Skip to main content
Blatter hopeful of ending his ‘biggest challenge’
Fifa president to visit Israel and Palestine over coming days

Sepp Blatter will visit Israel tomorrow to meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before talking to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday, in an attempt to end what he calls his “biggest challenge.”

Palestine have been calling for a vote to expel Israel from football’s governing body.

But Blatter, who is currently running for a fifth term as Fifa president, is opposing the vote in hope that Israel makes it “easier for Palestinian and foreign footballers and sports equipment to get in and out of the Palestinian territories.”

The 95th Anniversary Appeal
Support the Morning Star
You have reached the free limit.
Subscribe to continue reading.
Similar stories
COMMUNITY FEAR: A police car in Golders Green, north-west London, following a terror attack last week
Eyes Wright / 7 May 2026
7 May 2026

As antisemitism grows, the labour movement must recommit to defence of minorities while navigating the complexities of Gaza and global politics, argues NICK WRIGHT

Many seats are empty as teams warm up before the Club World Cup group F soccer match between Ulsan HD and Mamelodi Sundowns in Orlando, Tuesday, June 17, 2025
Men's Football / 18 June 2025
18 June 2025
Palestinian players leave the field after an Asian Group B World Cup qualifying soccer match against Oman at the King Abdullah II Stadium in Amman, Jordan on June 12, 2025
Men’s football / 17 June 2025
17 June 2025

Dabbagh and his Palestinian team’s World Cup campaign may have come to an end, but it has given fans hope amid war and tragedy, writes JOHN DUERDEN