Norway uses influence in football to push for Israel’s suspension from FIFA

Norway is using its influence inside football to push for Israel’s suspension from FIFA, Politico reported over the weekend.

Details of the campaign were outlined in a Politico report examining how the Norwegian Football Federation and its president, Lise Klaveness, are seeking to move demands for sanctions against Israel into the mainstream of European football.

Klaveness, a lawyer and former player for Norway’s women’s national football team who sits on UEFA’s executive committee, has pursued the issue through football’s formal governing structures rather than through a unilateral Norwegian boycott.

Last year Klaveness began working to secure sanctions against the Israel Football Association, stating that Israel should be excluded from international competition.

“We believe Israel should be suspended, and this is about upholding the rules,” Klaveness said ahead of Norway’s World Cup qualifier against Israel in Oslo last year. She explained that Norway would not boycott the match unilaterally because forfeiting it could award Israel a victory and improve its chances of qualification. Norway went on to defeat Israel 5-0. 

The Politico report provides further detail about the strategy behind that position, portraying Norway as an important European country with a long tradition of supporting the Palestinian cause.

Norway’s involvement, the report argues, has helped carry the demand beyond the Arab and Asian football associations that initially backed it and into the decision-making structures of European football.

READ: FIFA orders legal review of Palestinian call to suspend Israel

A central part of Norway’s case is the precedent established by FIFA and UEFA following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Both governing bodies suspended Russian national and club teams, while Israel has continued to compete despite its assault on Gaza.

Klaveness and other campaigners argue that the contrasting treatment exposes a double standard in the enforcement of football’s rules and commitments to human.

The Palestinian Football Association launched its latest formal effort to suspend Israel in 2024. Its case cites Israel’s atrocities in Gaza, discrimination against Palestinian and Arab athletes and the participation of clubs based in illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Human rights lawyers have also argued that Israel has violated FIFA statutes on discrimination, internationally recognised human rights and the operation of clubs on occupied Palestinian territory.  

Norway has combined its institutional campaign with public expressions of solidarity with Palestinians.

When Norway hosted Israel in a World Cup qualifier in Oslo in October, the Norwegian Football Federation donated the match’s ticket revenue to medical relief work in Gaza.

Supporters displayed Palestinian flags and keffiyehs, while a large banner in the stadium declared: “Let Children Live.” Hundreds of demonstrators also gathered outside the ground to demand Israel’s exclusion from international football. 

In March, FIFA declined to take action against the Israel Football Association over Israeli clubs based in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank. It separately fined the Israeli association 150,000 Swiss francs, approximately $185,500, for breaches of its rules on discrimination and offensive conduct.

FIFA ​ordered Israel FA to implement a mandatory prevention plan to combat ​discrimination, including educational campaigns and monitoring measures. The association was also ordered to display anti‑discrimination banners during matches.

READ: FIFA declines to sanction Egypt coach Hossam Hassan over Palestinian flag display