‘Kick Israel Out of FIFA’: Pro-Palestinian activists target Israel at World Cup match in Canada

Pro-Palestinian activists used the opening week of the FIFA Club World Cup in Canada to call for Israel's suspension from world football, unfurling a large banner near one of Toronto's busiest expressways demanding that FIFA expel Israel.

The protest took place on Friday near the Gardiner Expressway, where demonstrators displayed a banner reading, “Kick Israel out of FIFA” alongside a World Cup sign. The banner was visible to large numbers of motorists traveling toward the stadium hosting tournament matches.

The activists, who wore T-shirts bearing the name of their group, “Jews for a Free Palestine,” said the demonstration was intended to pressure FIFA, the governing body of international football, to take stronger action against Israel.

The protest comes amid a broader campaign by the Palestinian Football Association (PFA) and its supporters to challenge Israel's standing within FIFA over issues related to football activities in disputed territories and allegations of discrimination.

A spokesman for the group, Faisal Ibrahim, explained to Reuters that “FIFA not only turns a blind eye to the Israel Football Association’s playing of games on illegally occupied West Bank and Syrian territory, it actually actively broadcasts those games, thereby normalizing occupation and erasure, which makes FIFA an active and complicit participant.”

In March, FIFA's Disciplinary Committee acted on a proposal submitted by the Palestinian Football Association at the 74th FIFA Congress, concluding that “the Israel Football Association (IFA) has committed multiple breaches of its obligations as a FIFA Member Association,” according to a statement published on FIFA's website.

The statement declared that “As a consequence, the FIFA Disciplinary Committee has imposed the following sanctions on the IFA for breaches of articles 13 (Offensive behaviour and violations of the principles of fair play) and 15 (Discrimination and racist abuse) of the FIFA Disciplinary Code (FDC):

The IFA is ordered to pay a fine [in] the amount of CHF 150,000, subject to [litigation], the IFA is issued with a warning regarding its conduct and the IFA is ordered to implement a prevention plan.”

FIFA also ordered the IFA to undertake a series of anti-discrimination measures, including displaying a “significant and highly visible banner with the words ‘Football Unites the World – No to Discrimination’ alongside the Israel Football Association’s logo” at home matches.

Additional requirements included educational initiatives to inform players, officials, and supporters of the IFA's opposition to discrimination.

The statement concludes by declaring that FIFA “cannot remain indifferent to the broader human context in which football operates. The sport must remain a platform for peace, dialogue, and mutual respect. Its global reach and unifying power carry with them a responsibility to uphold the values of dignity, equality, and humanity—especially in times of conflict and division.”