ISTANBUL

Sports clubs, athletes and fan groups around the world have been increasingly reacting to Israel’s genocide in Gaza, with teams either refusing to play against Israeli clubs or donating ticket revenue from matches against Israel to humanitarian organizations in the enclave.

The sports world has not remained silent since the start of Israel's war on Gaza more than two years ago.

In Türkiye, federations, clubs and athletes have been voicing their opposition to Israel's attacks.

In Europe, the recent reaction and actions by Spanish clubs has been particularly striking against Israeli clubs.

World-renowned stars also not remaining silent on issue of Palestine

Leading figures in the sports world such as Lewis Hamilton, Eric Cantona and Mohamed Salah have frequently criticized Israel in social media posts and called on politicians to stop the attacks.

Belgian footballer Dries Mertens, with whom Galatasaray parted ways at the end of last season, warned in July that "Gaza is being left to starvation by Israel."

Hamilton warns ‘we can no longer remain silent’ over child deaths in Gaza

Seven-time Formula 1 champion Lewis Hamilton warned that "we can no longer remain silent" following the deaths of children caused by Israel's attacks.

Hamilton quoted UNICEF, which said that more than 100 children had died in Gaza due to intense Israeli attacks in the first week of July and that child deaths had continued since the beginning of the month.

Along with the Israeli attacks, the number of deaths due to Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip is also increasing due to starvation, particularly among children.

Cantona shares jersey of refugee camp team to benefit Palestine

French football legend Eric Cantona has expressed his support for a campaign backing a team based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

Last week, Cantona shared a post on Instagram wearing the jersey of the Lajee Celtic Club, a team from the Aida refugee camp in Bethlehem in the southern occupied West Bank.

In his post, Cantona noted that the aid campaign was launched by Celtic fan groups in Scotland, with proceeds from jersey sales going to support Palestinian refugees.

Salah reacts to UEFA's farewell post for ‘Palestinian Pele’

Egyptian football star Mohamed Salah protested UEFA’s silence over how a former Palestinian player died in August.

Former Palestinian national team player Suleiman Al-Obaid was killed in an attack by Israeli occupation forces on Gaza while waiting for humanitarian aid.

Marking his passing, UEFA wrote: "Farewell to Suleiman al-Obaid, the 'Palestinian Pele.' A talent who gave hope to countless children, even in the darkest of times," but said nothing about how he died.

Salah pointedly criticized UEFA's farewell to al-Obaid, saying: "Can you tell us how, where and why he died?"

The Palestinian Football Federation released a statement saying: "Former national team player Suleiman Al-Obaid was martyred during an attack by occupation forces while waiting for humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip."

Al-Obaid, 41, born in Gaza and married with five children, was one of the brightest stars in Palestinian football history.

Spain takes action following its reactions to Israel

Spanish club Barcelona rejected Israeli basketball team Hapoel Bank Yahav Jerusalem's request to use its facilities and train before their EuroCup match against Baxi Manresa on Oct. 15.

A similar reaction to Israeli teams in Spain was also seen in the Canary Islands.

A request was made to postpone the La Laguna Tenerife-Bnei Herzliya Basketball Champions League match scheduled for Oct. 14 in Tenerife, Canary Islands.

On Sept. 15, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for Israel to be banned from all international sporting events due to its genocide in Gaza, similar to decisions taken against Russia, which occupied Ukraine.

Gerardo Candina, president of Bizkaia Gernika, the Basque women's basketball team that became the first club in Spain to decide not to play against Israeli teams, said: "We are completely against the brutal genocide in Gaza. I think everyone needs to accept this. We will not fall for this trick."

He announced that they would not play either match against Israel's Elitzur Ramla in the women's EuroCup group stage.

In Spain, the Supreme Council for Sports (CSD), an autonomous government agency attached to the Ministry of Education, Vocational Training and Sports, accused the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI) of "whitewashing the genocide in Gaza" by allowing an Israeli team to participate in La Vuelta cycling events.

Seven Israeli chess players who received calls to not participate in the international chess tournament in the Basque region of northern Spain in September have reportedly decided to withdraw from the tournament.

Protests in support of Palestine were prominent at matches played by Basque teams in Spain's First Football League (La Liga) last week. Israel's genocide in Gaza was protested at matches between Osasuna and Getafe, Athletic Bilbao and Mallorca, and Alaves and Elche. Fans of Basque clubs Osasuna, Athletic Bilbao and Alaves filled the stands with Palestinian flags and banners protesting Israel.

Reactions by other countries, fans and federations

The Palestinian Football Federation called for the suspension of Israeli sports teams and players from international competitions until Israel halts its attacks on the Gaza Strip, which have been ongoing since Oct. 7, 2023.

Clubs from many countries around the world have supported the "Show Israel the Red Card" call launched by the Scottish club Celtic's fans' group. Celtic's "Green Brigade" supporters' group, which announced its efforts to organize protests in support of Palestine in numerous countries worldwide, brought together fans of different languages, races and religions from the stands at matches held in Scotland from Spain to Chile, Türkiye to Italy and Indonesia to Belgium with banners saying "Show Israel the Red Card."

The presidents of Turkish sports federations called for Israel to be banned from all sporting events, while many national athletes also condemned the Israeli genocide.

In September, the Amsterdam City Council unanimously adopted a proposal introduced by DENK Party council member Sheher Han declaring that sports clubs from countries that "contribute to occupation or racism" are unwelcome in the city.

Germany's Fortuna Düsseldorf announced that it had reversed its decision to sign Israeli footballer Shon Weissman in August.

Italian fans protested the Israeli national anthem by turning their backs to the pitch during a 2026 FIFA World Cup European qualifier in September.

Last week, a group gathered in front of Wembley Stadium in London, England chanting slogans such as "Kick Israel out of FIFA," "Justice for Palestine," "Boycott Israel" and "Long live a free Palestine" while marching with Palestinian flags. The protesters called on the English Football Association to support Israel's ban by UEFA and FIFA.

Israel's Premier Tech cycling team was expelled from the Giro dell'Emilia cycling race in Italy.

Home fans protested against Israel ahead of a UEFA Europa League match between the Greek team PAOK and Israeli team Maccabi Tel Aviv last month.

Norway to donate ticket revenue from Israel match to Gaza

The Norwegian Football Federation announced that ticket revenue from an upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Israel will be donated to Gaza.

The federation said that proceeds from the Group I qualifier between Norway and Israel, scheduled for Oct. 11 at Oslo’s Ullevaal Stadion, will be directed to humanitarian aid in Gaza.

"Neither we nor other organizations can remain indifferent to the humanitarian suffering and disproportionate attacks that the civilian population in Gaza has been subjected to for a long time," said Norwegian Football Federation President Lise Klaveness.

"We want to donate the proceeds to a humanitarian organization that saves lives in Gaza every day and provides active emergency aid on the ground," she added.

The Israeli soccer federation on Wednesday urged its Norwegian counterpart to also condemn the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks by the Palestinian group Hamas while stressing in a statement published by The Telegraph that Norway should "make sure that the money is not transferred to terrorist organizations or to whale hunting."

Norwegian club Bodo/Glimt also donated ticket revenues from this year's UEFA Europa League game against Israel's Maccabi Tel Aviv for humanitarian aid to Gaza.

"Bodo/Glimt cannot, and will not, be unaffected by the suffering and violations of international law that are taking place in other parts of the world. We will donate all the ordinary ticket revenues from the home game against Maccabi Tel Aviv to the Red Cross and earmark aid work in the Gaza Strip. This amounts to NOK 735,000 ($73,000) - and is donated by all of us," the club said.

Sports in Gaza also suffer from genocide and starvation

More than 800 athletes have been killed in Gaza since the start of Israel's offensive on Oct. 7, 2023, as the sports community continues to suffer under bombardment, famine and the collapse of infrastructure, according to Palestinian officials.

The Palestinian Football Association (PFA) said more than 420 football players were among the more than 800 athletes killed in Gaza over the past two years, nearly half of them children.

The ongoing Israeli assault — now in its second year of genocide in Gaza — has devastated Palestinian sports. Athletes, coaches and referees have been killed, and entire sports facilities have been bombed, burned or repurposed as mass graves.

Some 90% of sports infrastructure in Gaza has reportedly been destroyed.

The PFA said 288 sports facilities have been partially or fully destroyed by Israeli forces across Gaza and the West Bank, including stadiums, gyms and football clubs. Among them was the PFA headquarters, which was hit by Israeli airstrikes.

Of the destroyed facilities, 268 were in Gaza, while 20 were in the West Bank. Half of them served Palestinian football directly.

The United Nations and humanitarian groups have warned of mass starvation as Israel’s blockade continues to cut off aid, fuel and food supplies to Gaza’s population.

Gaza residents, including athletes, are increasingly abandoning sports activities as they struggle to survive amid bombardment, displacement and the growing risk of starvation.