Immediate release

Anti-Zionist Football Coalition to Host “Kick Israel Out of FIFA” Webinar / Virtual Rally with Leyla Hamed, Abubaker Abed, George Galloway, and more

ONLINE via Zoom (Septebmer 29, 2025) — The Anti-Zionist Football Coalition  will be bringing together some of the most prominent voices against sportswashing together to demand FIFA ban/suspend Israel and the U.S. from World Cup participation until they comply with international law. Speakers in this webinar will address how zionist/fascist sportswashing can be countered in international football and other sporting events. The webinar will be moderated by Leyla Hamed (Sports Journalist).

What: Kick Israel Out of FIFA Webinar / Virtual Rally

Who: Leyla Hamed (host/moderator), Abubaker Abed, George Galloway, Kat Vilarev, Ajamu Baraka, Shireen Ahmed, Roger Waters, Nathan Kalman-Lamb, Jill Thomson, Bram Hanekom, David Denny JP, Robert Wilson. Nicola Hadwa. More speaker may be added.

When: Monday September 29, 2025

09:00 Los Angeles

10:00 Mexico City

12:00 Toronto / New York

17:00 Dublin

18:00 Johannesburg

19:00 Ramallah

Where: Zoom, Registration required: Link to Register

The Israeli settler state’s assault on Palestine in collaboration with the U.S. and its allies, is normalizing fascism on a global scale. We must fight this on all fronts, including the world’s most popular stage: Football. Football is not separate from this struggle; it is a crucial battleground. Sporting events, like the 2026 FIFA World Cup, cannot be allowed to whitewash genocide. That’s why we demand FIFA ban Israel and the U.S. from World Cup participation until they comply with international law.

Further, FIFA and the UEFA must suspend / expel the Israel Football Association (IFA), Israeli players, and clubs. Just Peace Advocates, ICJP Canada, and Al-Haq have called upon Canada Soccer to take definitive and immediate action in this regard, to comply with it’s own by-laws and international law and compel FIFA to do the same (see CBC News, “Advocacy group calls on Canada Soccer to refuse to host World Cup if Israel Plays” and full text of the letter on our website). The IFA illegally organizes FIFA-sanctioned games in ililegal settlements, fails to manage its affairs independently of the Israeli government and military, provides tangible support to the military, and supports its players who incite genocide and its clubs that are belligerently racist, all in violation of FIFA and UEFA Statutes as well as international law. International law not only applies to FIFA as an international organization (ICJ, July 2024), it also brings itself within its confines through Article 2 of its Human Rights Policy which provides that “[w]here FIFA’s operations extend to situations of armed conflict, it will also respect the standards of international humanitarian law”. Further, a second letter was send to Canada Soccer Board Vice President Bérubé, whose “passion for human rights is matched only by his passion for soccer”, says Canada Soccer. We specifically sent Bérubé a letter based on his history with the UN Human Rights Commission and his “sustained commitment to the rights of people with disabilities” which garnered him two honorary doctorates.

Join Just Peace Advocates, as part of the Anti-Zionist Football Coalition on Monday at 12pm ET for the Kick Israel Out of FIFA webinar/virtual rally.Priority will be given to questions from those who identify as press.contact:

info@justpeaceadvocates.caJust Peace Advocates

www.justpeaceadvocates.ca