israel should go to AFC

They can't because the West Asian countries (Arab and mideast) won't/can't/refuse to play them. And playing against E. Asian countries would be logisitcally infeasible.

But yeah, their chances to get in WC in UEFA, especially with the reduced slots are very very slim.

 

Israel indeed used to be a member of AFC, but the Arab countries refused to play them, so they went to UEFA instead. Remember virtually none of the Arab countries even recognize Israel, so playing them in a soccer match is a fantasy for the near future.

 

From the Arab point of view, that land mass between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea already has a team, Palestine. So how can they play a team from a nation that already has one?

Of the nations of West Asia, only the Kingdom of Jordan has reconized the right of Israelis to breath air.

Sure, let them join the AFC. Just get ready for World War III.

 

Egypt recognizes Israel as well, but they still can't play them for political/security purposes

 

Very few teams want to travel to Isreal to play. Armenia played there recently but before that it was two years before anybody played there. The Armenians played out of sympathy, I presume, since they also have had genocide attempted against them.

 

There's one thing that also has to be said:

YOU ARE NOT ASIAN!!! ONLY ISRAELI! GO YOU TO EUROPE JUST LIKE TURKEY!!!

 

It aslo doesn't help that UEFA currently ban Israel and Israeli clubs from playing official matches there. The Armenia game was a friendly and thus wasn't covered under the ban.

 

Israel was one of twelve founding member of the AFC in 1956. It won the Asian Nation's Cup twice and finished as a runner up twice. Israel's club teams won the Asian Champions Cup three times. Israel also qualified for the World Cup in 1970.

Israel was ousted from the AFC in 1974. It became a full member of UEFA in 1994.

There is no way Israel could compete in the AFC against the Arab/Muslim countries. Those countries refuse to even recognize the country's right to exist. I'm more than happy with Israel in UEFA, even though they clearly are not up to par with the top leagues. The recent runs of Hapoel Tel-Aviv and Maccabi Haifa show that Israel can compete to at least some extent at Europe's level.

 

I think Israel played in Oceana (the region with Australia) before UEFA.

Obviously, it would be impossible to play in Asia, but I don't think Israel would want to.

I think playing in Europe is better for the development of the team. If you want to be one of the best teams, you are better off playing with the best.

By being part of UEFA, Israeli club teams get to play in EUFA competitions and the national team gets to play meaningful games versus top European countries. Obviously, Israel hasn't made the WC cut yet, but they may be doing more to improve their team than by running over most of the light-weights in Asia. (Yes, I realize there are a handful of good teams in Asia.)

I see it sort of like a basketball team in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Sure, NC State would have made the NCAA tournament in a lesser conference when the were constantly the doormat of the ACC years ago, but sticking it out in the ACC has caused them to be a better team. Now they can actually compete with the elite teams like Maryland. They'll earn their spot in the tournament this year.

 

Aren't there a lot of non-Jewish Isrealis? Can they play on the team if they want? Just curious.

 

I don't know how many there are on the team, but the answer is definately yes.

There are many Arabs who are Israeli citizens. They can vote, hold political office, play on the soccer team and do most other activities. There is even a supreme court that has often ensured their rights. There are few (if any) middle eastern countires where the Arab citizens have more rights than in Israel.

 

:::wonders how Segroves found this forum::::




Note to Iowa007:

You should have left well enough alone.

 

Two Israeli Arabs who played regularly for the national team over the last few years are Najwan Grayeb (formerly of Aston Villa) and Walid Badier (formerly of Wimbledon).

 

Leaving aside whether an "Arab" nation would even play Israel... would anyone want to be the referee for, say, an Israel/Syria World Cup Qualifier with a trip to the finals on the line? That's another logistical problem... minor compared to blatantly obvious issues of security (obvious to most people), but real nevertheless.

 

That is true, however, as I look at my map Egypt in not in Asia, but in Africa.

This is a joke, who really want to see what will happen the next time Isreal goes to Beirut for a game?

Whoever said something about the refs was right on. Could a ref from an Muslim nation make a late call in favor of Isreal that decides the outcome of the game? No way.

If Kazakstan can be in UEFA then Isreal can too.

Also, lest we forget, Munich 1972. This is the kind of crap that we could see.

 

Unfortunately, the chances of another Munich would be incredibly high.

In Munich, you had a situation where the local government did not do all they needed to do to protect the athletes, even though they did not condone what the terrorist did. (Germany's half-assed attempt is well chronicled in the HBO special.)

In most of the countries around Israel, they DID condone the terrorists' actions and would be happy to let it happen again.

It's too big a risk and it's an unnecessary risk. Israel would prefer to be safe and have better competition in UEFA.

 

Intersing conclusion

 

Israel used to be part of AFC. I remember watching them in the finals in the 70's against Iran in Tehran. Anything more than that will be more of a political discussion and perhaps doesn't belong here.

 

KYHS, hasn't there previously been an Arab team in the premier division. Specifically, Hapoel Taibe?

 

Najwan Grayeb went on Israeli media newspaper and sh-ited on israel and the current situation! He said that he is embarrased to play with the "zionist" entity and would be delighted to join the 'striving Palestinian NT!!!"

So much for someone who is respected!!!!!