EU sports chief hints Israel should get the boot from competitions over Gaza war

BRUSSELS — When asked how the sporting world should respond to the crisis in Gaza, the EU’s sports chief has signaled there should be “no space” in events for countries that do not share “our values.”

Israel has come under increasing pressure from Europe recently over its military offensive in the besieged enclave, with the majority of EU countries last week backing a review of the bloc’s political agreement with the country.

Several Israeli ambassadors were also summoned to EU capitals, from Rome to Paris, after the Israel Defense Forces admitted they had fired “warning shots” at a diplomatic delegation visiting the West Bank that included European officials.

Sports Commissioner Glenn Micallef condemned the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza and said the sporting world needs to speak up.

“When it comes to sports, I think there should be no space in sporting events for those who do not share our values,” he told POLITICO without naming Israel directly, in response to a question as to whether the country should face sporting sanctions over the Gaza war. “Sport is a tool that we use to promote peace, through which we promote human rights.”

“On the other hand, the sport movement is autonomous, and they make their own decisions,” Micallef added. “But we have a duty and we have a responsibility to speak about these issues and to make our feelings known.”

Israel launched its military assault on Gaza after the Hamas militant group’s Oct. 7, 2023 cross-border raid, which killed 1,200 Israelis and other nationalities. More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed during the Israeli offensive, with hundreds of thousands more facing famine and disease and entire cities, from Khan Yunis to Rafah, reduced to rubble.

The sporting world has seen repeated calls to boycott Israel’s participation in international competitions, from the Olympics to the World Cup, although such proposals have so far largely been rejected.

Israel’s participation in the Eurovision Song Contest has also been lambasted, with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on May 19 calling for the country to be excluded from such events. “We cannot allow double standards, not even in culture,” he said.

“These spaces are big stages for political messages, big stages where we should promote values that we stand for in the Union, and where we should give space to those who have similar values to us in general,” Micallef said in response to a question about the controversy over Israeli participation in Eurovision and Sánchez’s stance. “These are issues I have discussed already with the European Broadcasting Union.”

Russia was swiftly condemned by the Olympic governing body and FIFA after its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, with clubs and teams suspended — a response that Palestinian critics have cited as proof of a double standard.

“There’s been bloodshed [in Gaza] and civilians that are paying the price,” said Micallef, who represented the Commission at a Wednesday debate on Gaza in the European Parliament.

“It’s a catastrophe. You see so many children, civilians, young people, without food and water, without access to humanitarian aid, humanitarian aid that should be allowed to flow at scale to people in Gaza and in Palestine,” he added.

Calling the situation in Gaza “absolutely shocking,” he said his “message is quite clear: Through sport, we have to promote the values that we stand for, with any country.”