FIFA, UEFA chiefs accused of aiding war crimes in Palestine

• A coalition of Palestinian and international advocacy groups filed a 120-page complaint with the ICC, accusing FIFA President Gianni Infantino and UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin of "aiding and abetting" war crimes and apartheid by allowing ‘Israeli’ clubs based in illegal West Bank settlements to compete in their leagues.
• The filing highlights a perceived "political neutrality" bias, contrasting the immediate suspension of Russian clubs in 2022 with the continued support for the ‘Israel’ Football Association despite reports of "athleticide"—including the deaths of over 1,000 Palestinian sportspeople and the destruction of nearly 200 facilities in Gaza.

A coalition of Palestinian footballers, clubs, landowners, and advocacy groups filed a 120-page complaint with the International Criminal Court (ICC) Office of the Prosecutor, accusing FIFA President Gianni Infantino and UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin of aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The submitting parties include organizations such as Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor, Irish Sport for Palestine, Scottish Sport for Palestine, Just Peace Advocates, and Sport Scholars for Justice in Palestine.

The complaint centers on the inclusion of ‘Israeli’ football clubs based in illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank within leagues organized by the ‘Israel’ Football Association (IFA) and UEFA competitions.

The complaint asserts that by permitting these settlement-based clubs to operate and compete, Infantino and Čeferin have normalized ‘Israel's’ settlement activities, which contravene international law.

Specifically, the groups claim this support facilitates the transfer of civilian populations into occupied territories, a war crime under Article 8(2)(b)(viii) of the Rome Statute.

Additionally, the practices are alleged to aid apartheid, a crime against humanity under Article 7(1)(j), as Palestinians are reportedly excluded from spectating, playing for, or managing these clubs.

The context involves at least six ‘Israeli’ clubs operating in settlements on land seized from Palestinians, with FIFA and UEFA providing financial and structural backing.

This arrangement is said to violate FIFA's own statutes, which prohibit member associations from operating in another's territory without consent.

The complaint references a 2024 International Court of Justice ruling and a United Nations General Assembly resolution declaring such settlements unlawful, requiring their dismantlement.

‘Israel’ rejects these characterizations, claiming that the settlements are legal.

The legal filing highlights inconsistencies in FIFA's approach, noting the organization's 2022 suspension of Russian teams following the war in Ukraine and bans on Crimean clubs after Russia's 2014 annexation.

In contrast, demands to suspend the IFA or settlement clubs amid ‘Israel's’ military assault on Gaza—which have killed over 1,000 Palestinian athletes—have gone unheeded.

Advocacy groups argue that FIFA and UEFA's "political neutrality" stance enables impunity for international law violations.