The Trump administration will work to prevent FIFA banning Israel from international football ahead of the 2026 World Cup, Sky News can reveal.
Football’s world and European governing bodies were urged this week by United Nations (UN) advisory experts to suspend all Israeli teams over the war in Gaza.
FIFA has not responded to the UN special rapporteurs as Israel’s men continue trying to qualify for next year’s World Cup, which is largely being played in the United States.
And the US government, through Marco Rubio’s state department, has made a direct intervention to stop sporting sanctions being imposed.
A state department spokesperson told Sky News: “We will absolutely work to fully stop any effort to attempt to ban Israel’s national soccer team from the World Cup.”
FIFA launched an investigation last year into allegations of discrimination raised by the Palestine Football Association against the Israeli FA.
There is also an investigation into whether teams from Israeli settlements in the West Bank playing in Israeli competitions breaches FIFA regulations.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has a close relationship with US President Donald Trump and is a regular visitor to the White House. He has been in New York this week meeting world leaders around the UN General Assembly.
During a speech after collecting an Atlantic Council Global Citizen Award last night, Mr Infantino referenced the war while speaking on bringing people together in “a divided world, in an aggressive world”.
In an indirect reference to the challenge of sanctioning countries over wars, Mr Infantino said there are 80 countries where there are conflicts.
