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The Football Association of Ireland has given the green light to submit a official proposal to Uefa, demanding the banning of Israeli football from continental team and national tournaments.

Grounds for the Recommended Ban

This motion, that had been put forward by Irish side Bohemians, highlighted claimed breaches by the IFA of a couple of important Uefa statutes.

• Inability to implement and enforce an effective policy against racism.
• Organisation of clubs in occupied Palestinian territories lacking the consent of the Palestrian FA.

Ballot Results and Future Actions

As stated in an announcement from the Irish FA, the resolution was supported by 74 votes, with seven against and two abstentions.

The association intends to officially present this request to the UEFA's decision-making body, seeking the immediate suspension of the Israel Football Association from European tournaments.

During a special assembly of the FAI, an standard motion was posed to delegates. It was approved by a majority.

Earlier Uefa Deliberations

The European body had earlier put on hold plans to exclude Israeli football at the end of September, following the revealing of a US peace proposal for the region.

Although they never publicly stated considering an special session on the matter, plans were believed to be quite advanced.

Global Context

This Irish resolution follows similar demands in last autumn from the heads of both Turkey and Norway's football associations for Israel's suspension from international competition.

Those requests were issued after UN specialists asked Fifa and Uefa to suspend the Israeli FA, citing a UN investigation that accused Israel of acts of genocide during the Gaza conflict.

The Israeli government has rejected these allegations and labeled the report as outrageous.

Potential Ramifications

Should Uefa decide to ban the IFA, it would probably create tension with the US administration – joint hosts for the 2026 World Cup – which strongly opposes such an action.

Even though Uefa has the power to exclude Israeli teams from European competitions, it may not be able to prevent them from taking part in qualification for the World Cup, which is governed by world football's governing body.