Tackling racism head-on, the Israel Football Association on Sunday kicked off a zero tolerance campaign against prejudice and violence in the sport, recruiting British and Israeli soccer stars to give the initiative a boost.
The "Kick racism out of Israeli football" campaign aims to end racism and violence on the stands and the pitch by enlisting the help of high-profile players. It is the brainchild of the New Israel Fund, and is modelled after a similar and highly successful scheme that has been running for some years in England.
Eliezer Yaari, the Israeli chairman of the New Israel Fund, told Haaretz that this is actually the second stage of the project - involving the players themselves. Hence the presence of such big soccer names as Eyal Berkowitz and Avi Nimni of Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Bnei Sakhnin's Abbas Suan, not to mention former England and Liverpool footballing maestro John Barnes.
John Barnes enjoying an impromptu soccer
match with young Sakhnin residents Monday.
"We are taking the torch and moving it to those who will own it in the future - the players," Yaari says, positive that using soccer players will guarantee the cause has greater impact.
"We wanted to reach out to people who aren't traditional supporters of human liberties," Yaari explains. "I remember the impact soccer had on my life and realized this might be the right avenue to reach out to people."
He says the scheme has had far-reaching effects even in its early stage, and the rewards are already visible - a level of success that Yaari never expected. There has been a change in the law, and police now have special units present at "sensitive stadiums" where there have been incidents of racist attacks in the past.
The British delegation also has high praise for the scheme, which the FA's Simon Johnson says is responsible for the near eradication of racism and violence at English games to the point that "racist abuse on the field and on the terraces is rare."
Sunday evening's official launch, in the form of a reception hosted by British Ambassador Simon McDonald at his Ramat Gan residence, was the first in a series of events to promote the intiative.
The British delegation then spent Monday in the Israeli Arab town of Sakhnin, whose team, Hapoel Bnei Sakhnin, were the State Cup winners in 2004 and enjoyed a brief run in the UEFA Cup competition.
In Sakhnin, the group held a brainstorming session with their Israeli counterparts, aimed at sharing the successes and failures they have experienced in more than a decade of combating racism in the sport.
Later, Barnes spoke of his commitment to the project, emphasizing the influence that players can have on their fans. The veteran player said he believes that the fans want to hear from their soccer heroes, and as such, soccer has the power to influence society as a whole.
Barnes even found time for a little recreation, treating Sakhnin's younger soccer fans to a quick game.
The delegation was to conclude the visit with a trip to Jerusalem, where they were to meet with legislators and even get a presidential seal of approval from Moshe Katsav.
Those involved in the initiative have high hopes that scheme will have similar successes in Israel. After all, Johnson maintains, "The power of football can make a real difference."
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