Calls are growing for UEFA to drop Israel, after the UEFA Super Cup opening ceremony this week featured children from Gaza unfurling a banner calling for an end to war.
The match between Tottenham Hotspur and Paris Saint-Germain was located at the Blue Energy Stadium in Udine, Italy.
Refugee children were invited to feature at the opening ceremony by the UEFA Foundation for Children.
Two of the children were evacuated from Gaza, amid Israel’s brutal war and heavy restrictions on food and emergency aid entering the enclave.
One of the children, 12-year-old Tala, suffered from health issues and was evacuated to Milan due to Israel decimating the healthcare system in Gaza.
Another child, nine-year-old Mohammed, was orphaned in the war and severely wounded by an Israeli air strike. He and his grandmother were some of the few people who were able to evacuate from Gaza and relocate to Milan, where Mohammed is undergoing medical treatment.
The UN agency UNICEF estimates that over 50,000 children in Gaza have been killed or wounded in Gaza since the start of the war in October 2023.
Later, during the ceremony, the children unfurled a banner reading "stop killing children – stop killing civilians".
A video from the ceremony was posted on UEFA’s page on X, where footage of the children posing for photographs with UEFA President Alexander Ceferin were also shown.
The post triggered widespread calls from social media users for UEFA to ban Israel, citing their war crimes in Gaza and killing scores of athletes and sports players in the enclave.
"Why are Israeli teams playing in UEFA competitions ? UEFA are monumental hypocrites," one person wrote.
"The cowardice on display is there for everyone to see. Not once is Israel mentioned, not a word of condemnation, all while Israel should have been banned long ago. But UEFA has not a shred of courage and morality, the best they can do is parade 2 Palestinian children," another wrote.
The statement accompanying the video posted by UEFA, combined with the media release on their official website, make no reference to Israel, which critics have called a vague and intentional move.
“How’d they become refugees UEFA?,” one person asked, demanding them to make it clear that Israel is responsible for the huge human toll and widespread devastation in the enclave, which has triggered a humanitarian crisis and famine.
Earlier this month, Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah published a social media post in reference to Gaza, in what appeared to be his strongest criticism of Israel’s war on the enclave yet.
In the post on X, the Egyptian football star responded to a UEFA statement about the killing of Gaza footballer Suleiman al-Obeid, which did not mention any details about how he was killed.
Following the post, scores of people denounced UEFA and called on them to reissue the statement, accusing them of being complicit in the killing of al-Obeid and absolving Israel of blame.
The UEFA statement read: "Farewell to Suleiman al-Obeid, the ‘Palestinian Pele’. A talent who gave hope to countless children, even in the darkest of times".
In response, Salah wrote: "Can you tell us how he died, where and why?"
The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) and multiple local media sources confirmed that al-Obeid was shot dead by Israeli forces on 6 August, while he was waiting for urgent humanitarian aid in south Gaza.
"During his long career, al-Obeid, 41, scored more than 100 goals, making him one of the brightest stars of Palestinian football," the PFA said.
The much-loved 41-year-old football star was born in Gaza but also played for the Markaz Shabab al-Am’ari in the occupied West Bank.
Al-Obeid is the latest sports player from Gaza to be killed by Israel, with at least 662 others and their relatives targeted since October 2023. Over 288 sports facilities have also been destroyed by Israeli bombardment in Gaza and the occupied West Bank. Around 268 of them were in Gaza.