ZURICH: FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that football could not solve conflicts, but it must carry a message of peace and unity as Israel’s genocide in Gaza and other global tensions fuel calls for the sport to take a stand.

The sport’s world governing body said in a statement that at a meeting of the FIFA Council, Infantino “stressed the importance of promoting peace and unity, particularly in the context of the ongoing situation in Gaza”.

“At FIFA, we are committed to using the power of football to bring people together in a divided world,“ Infantino said.

“Our thoughts are with those who are suffering in the many conflicts that exist around the world today, and the most important message that football can convey right now is one of peace and unity.”

He added: “FIFA cannot solve geopolitical problems, but it can and must promote football around the world by harnessing its unifying, educational, cultural and humanitarian values.”

FIFA has faced repeated calls to act over the war in Gaza, with Palestinian officials pressing for Israel to be suspended from international football.

Amnesty International on Wednesday sent a letter to FIFA and UEFA calling on them to suspend the Israel Football Association.

The issue has been under review by FIFA for months, but no decision has been taken. Infantino has consistently said such matters require consensus with the confederations and must be handled with caution.

The comments came a day after FIFA Vice President Victor Montagliani noted that any decision over Israel’s participation in European competitions, including World Cup qualifiers, was a matter for UEFA to decide, effectively putting the onus on the European body.

“First and foremost, it (Israel) is a member of UEFA, no different than I have to deal with a member of my region for whatever reason… They have to deal with that,” Montagliani told reporters at the Leaders sports business conference on Wednesday.

The strongest push against Israeli teams by European football leaders during the two-year conflict in Gaza was paused after a peace proposal on Monday in the White House by US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

FIFA banned Russia in 2022, shortly after Russian forces invaded Ukraine — despite the fact that Russia hosted the World Cup finals four years earlier.

The head of the Norwegian Football Federation, Lise Klaveness, last week called for Israel to be banned.

“Personally, I think if Russia is out, Israel should be out too. That is my personal opinion,” she said, urging UEFA to call a vote of its executive committee ahead of the FIFA meeting in Zurich on suspending Israeli teams from international competitions.

Turkey’s football body directly called on UEFA and FIFA to suspend Israel.

Norway are due to play Israel in a 2026 World Cup qualifier in Oslo on October 11.

Israel are currently third in Group ‘I’ of the qualifying stage for next year’s World Cup in the US, Canada and Mexico with nine points, the same as second-placed Italy, while Norway are top with 15 points.

FIFA and Infantino — who has built close ties to Trump ahead of the US co-hosting the World Cup next year with Canada and Mexico — were never likely to follow any UEFA vote. That prospect became even more distant last week when the US State Department said it would work to protect Israel’s status in football.

The Trump-Netanyahu peace proposal on Monday also was quickly welcomed by governments in the Middle East including Qatar, a key supporter of the Palestinian people and which has close ties to UEFA and its president Aleksander Ceferin.

The FIFA meeting on Thursday was attended by Ceferin and the head of the group of European football clubs, Nasser al-Khelaifi, who is president of Paris St Germain, the Qatar-owned Champions League titleholders. Al-Khelaifi also is a member of Qatar’s government.

The head of the Palestinian football federation, Jibril Rajoub, also has been in Switzerland this week and met on Thursday with International Olympic Committee president Kirsty Coventry.

Published in Dawn, October 3rd, 2025