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- Post published:18 January 2026
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Swiss politicians push to revoke UEFA’s tax-exempt status over complicity with Israeli apartheid
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Swiss lawmakers have launched a formal effort to revoke UEFA’s tax-exempt status in Switzerland, citing the European football governing body’s continued affiliation with the Israeli Football Association (IFA), which includes clubs based in Israel’s illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank.
The move follows a growing campaign by human rights advocates and football activists under the banner of #GameOverIsrael, which argues that UEFA is complicit in Israel’s apartheid and war crimes by continuing to grant legitimacy and financial support to the IFA. Swiss MPs and campaigners say UEFA is in breach of the very conditions that earned it tax benefits in the country, namely, its stated commitment to promoting peace, inclusion, and anti-racism through sport.
READ: Why a match with an Israeli team should not be taking place in my city
A resolution introduced by Swiss legislators references the 19 July 2024 International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruling confirming Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestinian land. It argues that Swiss citizens, specifically in Vaud, are funding the illegal activities of the Israeli Football Association, and calls for an end to the double standards that allow UEFA to sanction Russian teams while taking no action against Israel.
“UEFA enjoys preferential tax treatment in Switzerland. This comes with certain obligations, including promoting the values of peace. A double standard is unacceptable. While UEFA has rightly chosen to sanction Russian teams, it has taken no action or measures against Israel to date,” said Raphaël Mahaim, Member of the National Council of Switzerland.
Campaigners note that the IFA currently fields five teams located in illegal Israeli settlements and continues to receive financial and institutional backing from UEFA. “UEFA is at the forefront of funding and normalising the apartheid and ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian territories,” said Ashish Prashar, former Middle East Peace Envoy and Campaign Director for Game Over Israel. “The simple solution for UEFA and their President if they truly believe in international law, national law and promoting peace – is to suspend Israel.”
READ: What does the ICJ ruling mean for Israel’s supporters? MEMO in conversation with Kathryn Ravey
Legal experts and former UN officials have also weighed in, warning that UEFA’s credibility and tax status are both at risk. “UEFA has an opportunity… to align with the forces of law, justice, and global conscience,” said Richard Falk, former UN Special Rapporteur on human rights in Palestine. “The refusal to take such a stand would be negatively etched in the collective memory of humanity.”
UEFA’s headquarters are located in Nyon, Switzerland, where local authorities are also considering action. Craig Mokhiber, former UN human rights official and President of the Gaza Tribunal, stated: “Today, on 10 December (International Human Rights Day) Swiss and cantonal authorities will start the debate on the continuation of UEFA’s privileged tax status. That status should be revoked until UEFA ends its complicity in the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. And Swiss authorities should know that their international reputation as a leading proponent of humanitarian law is itself on trial in this process.”
The #GameOverIsrael campaign is backed by a broad coalition including ADC, Athletes 4 Peace, CODEPINK, The Gaza Tribunal, Health Workers 4 Palestine, the Hind Rajab Foundation, Tech for Palestine, and numerous legal scholars, footballers, and human rights defenders. The debate on UEFA’s tax status is expected to intensify ahead of a formal vote scheduled for January 2026.
READ: FIFA, UEFA flayed for disregarding international law by continuing to include Israel in competition
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Dozens of athletes urge UEFA to suspend Israel over human rights violations in Gaza
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Dozens of athletes have called on the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) to suspend Israel for its human rights violations against Palestinians, Anadolu reports.
In a letter to UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin on Tuesday, the Athletes for Peace, which represents over 70 sports figures, supported calls for the organization to sever ties with the Israel Football Association.
The letter penned by the Game Over Israel organization is supported by Athletes 4 Peace, The Gaza Tribunal, and The Hind Rajab Foundation.
“No shared venue, stage, or arena in international civil society should welcome a regime that commits genocide, apartheid, and other crimes against humanity,” the letter said.
The call was supported by prominent athletes, including French World Cup champion Paul Pogba, Dutch forward Anwar El Ghazi, Moroccan player Hakim Ziyech, and Spanish winger Adama Traore.
READ: 47 international athletes urge UEFA to ban Israel from competitions
“Israel’s continued impunity for such crimes will only be ended by the weight of collective conscientious action, including measures to block their entry to sporting or cultural events and activities,” the letter added.
The letter addressed Ceferin directly, referencing his own words that “football belongs to everyone,” and warned that allowing people who harm their own and others’ humanity into the sport risks depriving football of its core values.
The petition is part of an ongoing campaign to have UEFA ban Israel from participating in tournaments over attacks in Gaza.
The Israeli army has killed more than 69,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured over 170,000 others, and left the Gaza Strip uninhabitable since October 2023, according to the Health Ministry.
READ: 6,000 Gazans amputated since start of Israeli war: Health Ministry
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UN experts urge FIFA, UEFA to suspend Israel amid ‘ongoing genocide’ in Palestine
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The UN experts on Monday called on FIFA and UEFA to suspend Israel’s national football team from international competitions, saying it is a “necessary response to address the ongoing genocide in the occupied Palestinian territory,” Anadolu reports.
“The conclusion of the United Nations Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem and Israel, that Israel is committing genocide is the latest in a growing number of international bodies affirming that genocide is being committed,” the experts said. They recalled that the International Court of Justice’s interim order of Jan. 26, 2024, reminded every country of its legal duty to act against genocide.
“Sports must reject the perception that it is business as usual,” they said. “Sporting bodies must not turn a blind eye to grave human rights violations, especially when their platforms are used to normalize injustices.”
The experts clarified that the call targets the state of Israel and not individual players, saying: “We have always maintained that individuals cannot bear the consequences of the decisions their government makes.”
They further urged FIFA to “stop legitimizing the situation arising from Israel’s unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory,” stressing: “There is a legal and moral imperative to take every measure possible to end the genocide in Gaza now.”
READ: UEFA: ‘Stop killing children. Stop killing civilians’
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