FIFA's silence on Israel is not neutrality, but a choice

When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, FIFA acted within four days. It suspended all Russian teams from international competition, issued a statement of solidarity, and declared that "football is fully united here." The speed was remarkable. The message was clear. Sport, FIFA told the world, has a conscience. That conscience, it turns out, has conditions. More than two years into a war in Gaza that has killed over 72,000 Palestinians, the majority of them civilians, FIFA has yet to suspend Israel from a single competition. Instead, it has imposed a $190,000 fine for racist violations, ordered a banner to be displayed at three home matches, and told the world that the status of the West Bank is "an unresolved and highly complex matter under public international law." This is not neutrality. This is a choice dressed up as neutrality.