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Israel national football team

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This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Israel women's national football team.

The Israel national football team (Template:Lang-he, Nivḥeret Yisra'el BeKhaduregel) is the national football team of Israel, governed by the Israel Football Association (IFA).

Israel
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)הכחולים-לבנים (The Blue and Whites)
AssociationIsrael Football Association (IFA)
ConfederationUEFA (Europe) (1991–present)
OFC (Oceania) (1974–91)
AFC (Asia) (1954–74)
Head coachVacant
CaptainTal Ben Haim
Most capsYossi Benayoun (102)[1]
Top scorerMordechai Spiegler (33)[2]
Home stadiumSammy Ofer Stadium, Haifa
Teddy Stadium, Jerusalem
FIFA codeISR
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current82 Steady (16 October 2017)
Highest15 (November 2008)
Lowest98 (September 2016)
First international
Mandatory Palestine:
 Egypt 7–1 Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine
(Cairo, Egypt; 16 March 1934)
Israel:
United States USA Olympic Team 3–1 Israel Israel
(New York City, United States; 26 September 1948)
Biggest win
Israel Israel 9–0 Chinese Taipei 
(Wellington, New Zealand; 23 March 1988)
Biggest defeat
Mandatory Palestine:
 Egypt 7–1 Mandatory Palestine Mandatory Palestine
(Cairo, Egypt; 16 March 1934)
Israel:
 Germany 7–1 Israel Israel
(Kaiserslautern, Germany; 12 February 2002)
World Cup
Appearances1 (first in 1970)
Best resultGroup stage, 1970
Asian Cup
Appearances4 (first in 1956)
Best resultChampions, 1964

Israel's national team is the direct successor of the Mandatory Palestine/Eretz Israel national team, and was managed by the Eretz Israel Football Association. Israel has competed in FIFA World Cup qualifiers in three different confederations, competing in the Asian Football Confederation and the Oceania Football Confederation before settling in Europe as a member of the Union of European Football Associations in 1994.

The Israeli side qualified for their only FIFA World Cup to date in 1970. Israel also hosted and won the AFC Asian Cup in 1964, and was finalist in 1956 and in 1960.

History

Main articles: History of the Israel national football team and Mandatory Palestine national football team

Football has a long tradition in Israel. The game was originally introduced during the time of the Ottoman Empire. The Palestinian Football Association was formed in August 1928, and joined FIFA in June 1929, but at the time the association was made up of Arab clubs, Jewish clubs, and clubs representing British policemen and soldiers serving in the region during the British Mandate rule that spanned the period between World War One and the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. The British Mandate of Palestine national team made its debut against Egypt in 1934 FIFA World Cup qualification, losing 1–7 in Cairo. The team played five international matches, including a friendly match against Lebanon, until the British Mandate for Palestine was dissolved.

Upon Israeli independence in May 1948, the IFA became the official association of the new state. The Israel national team's first match as an independent nation was on 26 September 1948, against the USA Olympic Team. The game was won by the USA 1–3, and in the 20th minute of the game Shmuel Ben-Dror scored the first goal after the creation of the State of Israel.

Asian Football Confederation membership

Main article: Politics and sports § Association football
 
Nahum Stelmach kicking; 1959

Israel competed in the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) between 1954 and 1974. Due to the Arab–Israeli conflict, several Muslim states refused to compete against Israel. The political situation culminated in Israel winning the 1958 World Cup qualifying stage for Asia and Africa without playing a single game, forcing FIFA to schedule a playoff between Israel and Wales to ensure the team did not qualify without playing at least one game (which Wales won).

 
Israel winning the 1964 AFC Asian Cup

Israel hosted and won the 1964 AFC Asian Cup. In 1968, Israel went to their first Olympic Games and lost to Bulgaria in the quarterfinals.

In 1969, Israel qualified for its first and only FIFA World Cup, via Asia/Oceania, and earned two points after draws with Sweden and finalist Italy, and a loss to Uruguay.

In 1976, Israel went to its second Olympic Games and lost in the quarterfinals again, this time against Brazil. In 1972 and 1977, it attempted World Cup qualification as part of Asia, which both times ended in failure.

Years in exile

 
Ronny Rosenthal against New Zealand in the 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification

In 1974, Israel was excluded from AFC competitions, as a result of a proposal by Kuwait which was adopted by a vote of 17 to 13 with 6 abstentions.[3] The vote coincided with the 1974 Asian Games, where the football competition was marred by the refusal of both North Korea[4] and Kuwait to play second-round matches against Israel.

During the 1980s, it played the majority of its matches against European teams, and competed in the European stage of qualification for the 1982 FIFA World Cup. For the next two tournaments, it entered Oceania's qualification stage. In 1989, Israel made it to the CONMEBOL–OFC play-offs for the 1990 World Cup to play against Colombia, which qualified from the South American group, but lost (1–0, 0–0).

European Football Confederation membership

In 1991, Israeli clubs began participating in European club competitions, and Israel returned to the European leg of World Cup qualifying in 1992. In 1994, Israel received full UEFA membership, 20 years after it had left Asia. Within Europe, Israel has been a relatively minor nation, though with some successes, notably winning 3–2 in Paris against France in 1993, and 5–0 against Austria in 1999. That year, Israel made it to the playoffs of UEFA Euro 2000, but was beaten by Denmark.

 
Avram Grant has been the youngest national coach of Israel
 
Yossi Benayoun is Israel's most capped player with 102 caps

Israel came close to advancing to the playoff stage in their 2006 World Cup qualifying group, finishing third, behind France, and tied on points with Switzerland, which also remained unbeaten in 10 matches after 4 wins and 6 draws. The Swiss had a better goal difference, though, and advanced to the qualification play-off. Coach Avram Grant announced his resignation on 26 October 2005. After the end of his contract, he was succeeded by Dror Kashtan.

In UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying, Israel came very close to qualifying to final tournament, but finished fourth in Group E, behind group winners Croatia, 1 point behind Russia who also with Croatia qualified direct, as well as equal on 23 points (one less than Russia) from 12 games with England; who failed to advance as did Israel. The 4–3 home loss to Croatia was the first loss after 13 consecutive official games and 9 home games without a loss.

In 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification, Israel again came in fourth, behind Switzerland, Greece, and Latvia. For the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, Kashtan was replaced as coach by Frenchman Luis Fernández, but to no avail, as Israel finished a distant third behind Greece and Croatia.

The continued presence of the Israeli Football Association in UEFA was a precedent cited by Australia to justify its transfer from the Oceania Football Confederation to the Asian Football Confederation.[5]

Ranking history

Year End rank Best rank Worst rank
1993 57 57 71
1994 42 42 56
1995 42 40 48
1996 52 42 55
1997 61 43 61
1998 43 36 63
1999 26 22 38
2000 41 26 41
2001 49 39 50
2002 46 46 55
2003 51 40 51
2004 48 48 69
2005 44 43 52
2006 44 36 51
2007 26 26 44
2008 18 15 26
2009 26 18 26
2010 50 24 56
2011 37 30 58
2012 78 35 82
2013 63 58 76
2014 32 32 78
2015 69 26 69
2016 55 55 98
2017 TBA 55 60

Source: [6]

Stadium

 
Sammy Ofer Stadium of Haifa. Israel's newest stadium

In the past, the Israel national football team's home stadium was the national stadium in Ramat Gan. The stadium seats 41,583 and was the first stadium in Israel to meet world-class standards.

Ever since 2014, Sammy Ofer Stadium in Haifa (30,784 seats) and Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem (34,000 seats) are being used as the home stadiums of the Israel national football team. Both are considered to be world-class standard stadiums. The Israel Football Association has used Teddy stadium while hosting the 2013 Euro U21 championship in Israel. Both stadiums also host matches of the Israel national football team, and of Israeli clubs for the UEFA Champions League.

Kit suppliers

Israel's kits were supplied by Diadora from 1988 to 1995 and Puma from 1996 to 2008. Adidas took over in September 2008 and have remained Israel's kit suppliers since.

Honours

  Winners (1): 1964.
  Runners-up (2): 1956, 1960.
  Silver medal (1): 1974.

Competition history

FIFA World Cup

Main article: Israel at the FIFA World Cup

Template:Israel World Cup record

Olympic record

See also: Israel at the 1968 Summer Olympics and Israel at the 1976 Summer Olympics
Olympics Record
Year Round Position GP W D L GS GA
  1952 Did Not Qualify
  1956
  1960
  1964
  1968 Quarter-finals – 4 2 0 2 9 7
  1972 Did Not Qualify
  1976 Quarter-finals – 4 0 3 1 4 7
  1980 Withdrew
  1984 Did Not Qualify
  1988
Total Quarter-finals 2/10 8 2 3 3 13 14

Since the 1992 Summer Olympics, the football competition is played as an Under-23 competition

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
**Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.
***Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

AFC Asian Cup

Main article: Israel at the AFC Asian Cup
AFC Asian Cup record
Year Round Position GP W D* L GS GA
  1956 Runners-up 2nd 3 2 0 1 6 5
  1960 Runners-up 2nd 3 2 0 1 6 4
  1964 Champions 1st 3 3 0 0 5 1
  1968 Third Place 3rd 4 2 0 2 11 5
  1972 Withdrew
Total Champions 4/15 13 9 0 4 28 15

Israel did not compete in a regional competition between the years 1968 and 1994, although in 1972 they were scheduled to compete in the AFC Asian Cup.

*Denotes draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.
**Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.
***Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

UEFA European Championship record

Template:Israel UEFA European Championship record

1996 UEFA European Championship - Qualifier - Group 1

1996 marked Israel's first UEFA European Championship qualification attempt, out of ten such tournaments. Israel had last competed in a regional tournament at the 1968 Asian Cup.[7] Israel was expelled from the AFC in the early 1970s and eventually became a member of UEFA.[8]

Standings
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification            
1   Romania 10 6 3 1 18 9 +9 21 Qualify for final tournament — 1–3 3–2 2–1 2–1 3–0
2   France 10 5 5 0 22 2 +20 20 0–0 — 4–0 1–1 2–0 10–0
3   Slovakia 10 4 2 4 14 18 −4 14 0–2 0–0 — 4–1 1–0 4–1
4   Poland 10 3 4 3 14 12 +2 13 0–0 0–0 5–0 — 4–3 1–0
5   Israel 10 3 3 4 13 13 0 12 1–1 0–0 2–2 2–1 — 2–0
6   Azerbaijan 10 0 1 9 2 29 −27 1 1–4 0–2 0–1 0–0 0–2 —
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
Matches
Israel  2 – 1  Poland
R. Harazi   44', 59' Report Kosecki   80'
Attendance: 3,500
Israel  2 – 2  Slovakia
R. Harazi   23'
Banin   32' (pen.)		 Report Rusnák   5'
Moravčík   14'
Attendance: 7,500
Azerbaijan  0 – 2  Israel
Report R. Harazi   30'
Rosenthal   51'
Attendance: 2,863
Israel  1 – 1  Romania
Rosenthal   83' Report Lǎcǎtuş   70'
Attendance: 38,000
Israel  0 – 0  France
Report
Attendance: 39,000
Poland  4 – 3  Israel
Nowak   1'
Juskowiak   50'
Kowalczyk   55'
Kosecki   62'		 Report Rosenthal   33'
Revivo   38'
Zohar   70'
Attendance: 5,500
Referee: Anders Frisk (Sweden)
Romania  2 – 1  Israel
Lăcătuş   16'
Munteanu   56'		 Report Berkovic   50'
Attendance: 18,575
Slovakia  1 – 0  Israel
Jančula   54' Report
Attendance: 7,810
Israel  2 – 0  Azerbaijan
R. Harazi   31', 90' Report
Attendance: 7,000
France  2 – 0  Israel
Djorkaeff   69'
Lizarazu   89'		 Report
Attendance: 20,822
2000 UEFA European Championship - Qualifier - Group 6

Israel competed in qualifiers for the UEFA Euro 2000. This marked Israel's second UEFA European Championship qualification attempt, out of eleven such tournaments.

Standings
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification          
1   Spain 8 7 0 1 42 5 +37 21 Qualify for final tournament — 3–0 9–0 8–0 9–0
2   Israel 8 4 1 3 25 9 +16 13[a] Advance to play-offs 1–2 — 5–0 3–0 8–0
3   Austria 8 4 1 3 19 20 −1 13[a] 1–3 1–1 — 3–1 7–0
4   Cyprus 8 4 0 4 12 21 −9 12 3–2 3–2 0–3 — 4–0
5   San Marino 8 0 0 8 1 44 −43 0 0–6 0–5 1–4 0–1 —
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Head-to-head points: Israel 4, Austria 1.
Matches
Austria  1–1  Israel
Reinmayr   7' Report Nimni   68' (pen.)
Attendance: 20,000
Referee: Anders Frisk (SWE)
San Marino  0–5  Israel
Report Revivo   16'
Nimni   18'
Mizrahi   32'
M.Valentini   58' (o.g.)
Grayeb   82'
Attendance: 872
Referee: Asim Khudiev (AZE)
Israel  1–2  Spain
Hazan   64' Report Hierro   65'
Etxeberria   78'
Attendance: 37,000
Referee: David Elleray (ENG)
Israel  3–0  Cyprus
Banin   11'
Mizrahi   48', 53'		 Report
Attendance: 30,000
Referee: Marcel Lică (ROU)
Israel  5–0  Austria
Berkovich   26', 47'
Revivo   46'
Mizrahi   53'
Grayeb   75'		 Report
Attendance: 42,000
Referee: Ľuboš Micheľ (SVK)
Cyprus  3–2  Israel
Engomitis   27'
Špoljarić   53', 86' (pen.)		 Report Badir   31'
Benayoun   82'
Attendance: 12,000
Referee: Graham Barber (ENG)
Israel  8–0  San Marino
Benayoun   25', 46', 70'
Mizrahi   38'
Revivo   40', 68'
Sivilia   84'
Abuksis   89'		 Report
Attendance: 25,078
Referee: Ilhami Kaplan (TUR)
Spain  3–0  Israel
Morientes   30'
Martín   37'
Raúl   51'		 Report
Attendance: 16,100
Referee: Hellmut Krug (GER)
Second placed teams

The best runner-up of the entire group phase qualified automatically for the final tournament. To determine the best runner-up, a comparison was made between all of them. Only matches played against teams that finished first, third and fourth were regarded. Matches played against fifth and sixth placed teams were discarded, because some groups had more teams than others.

After the best runner-up was found, all the others (eight of them) entered a random playoff to determine four more teams to qualify.

Standings
Pos Grp Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 7   Portugal 6 4 1 1 11 3 +8 13 Qualify for final tournament
2 3   Turkey 6 4 1 1 12 5 +7 13 Advance to play-offs
3 9   Scotland 6 3 1 2 9 6 +3 10
4 1   Denmark 6 3 1 2 10 8 +2 10
5 4   Ukraine 6 2 4 0 6 4 +2 10
6 8   Republic of Ireland 6 3 1 2 6 4 +2 10
7 6   Israel 6 2 1 3 12 9 +3 7
8 5   England 6 1 4 1 5 4 +1 7
9 2   Slovenia 6 2 1 3 6 12 −6 7
Source: RSSSF
Rules for classification: Counting only matches against teams ranked first to fourth in the group, 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored; 4) Away goals scored; 5) Drawing of lots.
Matches
Team 1 Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score Team 2 1st leg 2nd leg
Israel   0–8   Denmark 0–5 0–3
Israel  0 – 5  Denmark
Report Tomasson   2', 34'
Tøfting   67'
Jørgensen   68'
Steen Nielsen   73'
Attendance: 42,000
Denmark  3 – 0  Israel
Sand   4'
Steen Nielsen   14'
Tomasson   64'		 Report
Attendance: 41,186

Denmark won 8–0 on aggregate.

2004 UEFA European Championship - Qualifier - Group 1
Standings
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification          
1   France 8 8 0 0 29 2 +27 24 Qualify for final tournament — 5–0 3–0 5–0 6–0
2   Slovenia 8 4 2 2 15 12 +3 14 Advance to play-offs 0–2 — 3–1 4–1 3–0
3   Israel 8 2 3 3 9 11 −2 9 1–2 0–0 — 2–0 2–2
4   Cyprus 8 2 2 4 9 18 −9 8 1–2 2–2 1–1 — 2–1
5   Malta 8 0 1 7 5 24 −19 1 0–4 1–3 0–2 1–2 —
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

|}

Games
Malta  0–2  Israel
Balili   56'
Revivo   76'
Attendance: 5,200
Referee: Sergei Shebek (UKR)
Cyprus  1–1  Israel
Rauffmann   61' Afek   2'
Attendance: 9,000
Israel  1–2  France
Afek   2' Trezeguet   23'
Zidane   45'
Attendance: 2,455
Referee: Graham Barber (ENG)
Israel  2–0  Cyprus
Badir   88'
Holtzman   90'
Attendance: 300
Referee: Michal Benes (CZE)
Israel  0–0  Slovenia
Attendance: 1,800
Referee: Massimo Busacca (SUI)
Slovenia  3–1  Israel
Šiljak   35'
Knavs   37'
Čeh   78'		 Revivo   69'
Attendance: 8,000
Referee: Herbert Fandel (GER)
Israel  2–2  Malta
Revivo   16'
Balili   79'		 Mifsud   51' (pen.)
Carabott   52'
Attendance: 1,300
Referee: Eric Blareau (BEL)
France  3–0  Israel
Henry   9'
Trezeguet   24'
Boumsong   42'
Attendance: 57,009
Goalscorers
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
2008 UEFA European Championship - Qualifier - Group E

Israel competed in qualifiers for the UEFA Euro 2008. This marked Israel's fourth UEFA European Championship qualification attempt, out of thirteen such tournaments.

Standings
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification              
1   Croatia 12 9 2 1 28 8 +20 29 Qualify for final tournament — 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–1 2–0 7–0
2   Russia 12 7 3 2 18 7 +11 24 0–0 — 2–1 1–1 3–0 2–0 4–0
3   England 12 7 2 3 24 7 +17 23[a] 2–3 3–0 — 3–0 0–0 3–0 5–0
4   Israel 12 7 2 3 20 12 +8 23[a] 3–4 2–1 0–0 — 1–0 4–0 4–1
5   Macedonia 12 4 2 6 12 12 0 14 2–0 0–2 0–1 1–2 — 1–1 3–0
6   Estonia 12 2 1 9 5 21 −16 7 0–1 0–2 0–3 0–1 0–1 — 2–1
7   Andorra 12 0 0 12 2 42 −40 0 0–6 0–1 0–3 0–2 0–3 0–2 —
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
Notes:
  1. ^ a b Head-to-head points: England 4, Israel 1.
Matches
Estonia  0–1  Israel
Report Colautti   8'
Attendance: 7,800
Israel  4–1  Andorra
Benayoun   9'
Ben-Shushan   11'
Gershon   43' (pen.)
Tamuz   69'		 Report Fernandez   84'
Attendance: 0
Referee: Sinisa Zrnic (Bosnia)
Russia  1–1  Israel
Arshavin   5' Report Ben-Shushan   84'
Attendance: 22,000
Israel  3–4  Croatia
Colautti   8', 89'
Benayoun   68'		 Report Srna   35' (pen.)
Eduardo   39', 54', 72'
Attendance: 38,000
Israel  0–0  England
Report
Attendance: 45,000
Israel  4–0  Estonia
Tal   19'
Colautti   29'
Sahar   77', 80'		 Report
Attendance: 23,658
North Macedonia  1–2  Israel
Stojkov   13' Report Yitzhaki   11'
Colautti   44'
Attendance: 15,000
Andorra  0–2  Israel
Report Tamuz   37'
Colautti   53'
Attendance: 618
Referee: Ian Stokes (Ireland)
England  3–0  Israel
Wright-Phillips   20'
Owen   49'
Richards   66'		 Report
Attendance: 85,372
Croatia  1–0  Israel
Eduardo   52' Report
Attendance: 32,000
Israel  2–1  Russia
Barda   10'
Golan   90+2'		 Report Bilyaletdinov   61'
Attendance: 27,563
Israel  1–0  North Macedonia
Barda   35' Report
Attendance: 2,736
Goalscorers
2 goals
1 goal
2012 UEFA European Championship - Qualifier - Group F

Israel competed in qualifiers for the UEFA Euro 2012. This marked Israel's fifth UEFA European Championship qualification attempt, out of fourteen such tournaments.

Standings
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Greece 10 7 3 0 14 5 +9 24 Qualify for final tournament
2   Croatia 10 7 1 2 18 7 +11 22 Advance to play-offs
3   Israel 10 5 1 4 13 11 +2 16
4   Latvia 10 3 2 5 9 12 −3 11
5   Georgia 10 2 4 4 7 9 −2 10
6   Malta 10 0 1 9 4 21 −17 1
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
Matches

Group F fixtures were to be finalized at a meeting between the participants in Athens, Greece on 7 March 2010.[11] After that meeting proved inconclusive, the fixture list was determined by a random draw at the XXXIV Ordinary UEFA Congress in Tel Aviv, Israel, on 25 March.[12]

Israel  3–1  Malta
Benayoun   7', 64' (pen.), 75' Report Pace   38'
Attendance: 17,365[13]
Georgia  0–0  Israel
Report
Attendance: 45,000[14]
Israel  1–2  Croatia
Shechter   81' Report Kranjčar   36' (pen.), 41'
Attendance: 33,421[15]
Greece  2–1  Israel
Salpingidis   22'
Karagounis   63' (pen.)		 Report Spyropoulos   59' (o.g.)
Attendance: 16,935[16]
Israel  2–1  Latvia
Barda   16'
Kayal   81'		 Report Gorkšs   62'
Attendance: 10,801[17]
Israel  1–0  Georgia
Ben Haim II   59' Report
Attendance: 13,716[18]
Latvia  1–2  Israel
Cauņa   62' (pen.) Report Benayoun   19'
Ben Haim I   43' (pen.)
Attendance: 6,147[19]
Israel  0–1  Greece
Report Ninis   60'
Attendance: 13,100[20]
Croatia  3–1  Israel
Modrić   47'
Eduardo   55', 57'		 Report Hemed   44'
Attendance: 13,688[21]
Malta  0–2  Israel
Report Refaelov   11'
Gershon   90+3'
Attendance: 2,614[22]
Goalscorers
4 goals
1 goal

Note: During the tournament, Nikos Spyropoulos of Germany also scored on his own goal during a match against Israel.

Attendance
Team Highest Lowest Total Average
  Israel 33,421 10,801 88,403 17,681
Discipline
Position Player Country     Suspended for match(es) Reason
Defender Tal Ben Haim I   Israel 2 1 vs Greece (12 October 2010)
vs Malta (11 October 2011)		 Booked in 2 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying matches
Sent off in a UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying match
Forward Itay Shechter   Israel 2 0 vs Latvia (26 March 2011) Booked in 2 UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying matches
2016 UEFA European Championship - Qualifier - Group B

Israel competed in qualifiers for the UEFA Euro 2016. This marked Israel's sixth UEFA European Championship qualification attempt, out of fifteenth such tournaments.[23]

Standings
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1   Belgium 10 7 2 1 24 5 +19 23 Qualify for final tournament
2   Wales 10 6 3 1 11 4 +7 21
3   Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 5 2 3 17 12 +5 17 Advance to play-offs
4   Israel 10 4 1 5 16 14 +2 13
5   Cyprus 10 4 0 6 16 17 −1 12
6   Andorra 10 0 0 10 4 36 −32 0
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers
Matches
Cyprus  1–2  Israel
Makrides   67' Report Damari   38'
Ben Haim II   45'
Attendance: 19,164[24]
Andorra  1–4  Israel
Lima   15' (pen.) Report Damari   3', 41', 82'
Hemed   90+6' (pen.)
Attendance: 2,032[25]
Israel  3–0  Bosnia and Herzegovina
Vermouth   36'
Damari   45'
Zahavi   70'		 Report
Attendance: 28,300[26]
Israel  0–3  Wales
Report Ramsey   45+1'
Bale   50', 77'
Attendance: 30,200[28]
Israel  0–1  Belgium
Report Fellaini   9'
Attendance: 29,750[30]
Bosnia and Herzegovina  3–1  Israel
Višća   42', 75'
Džeko   45+2' (pen.)		 Report Ben Haim II   41'
Attendance: 12,100[31]
Referee: Ruddy Buquet (France)
Israel  4–0  Andorra
Zahavi   3'
Bitton   22'
Hemed   26' (pen.)
Dabour   38'		 Report
Attendance: 22,650[32]
Wales  0–0  Israel
Report
Attendance: 32,653[33]
Referee: Ivan Bebek (Croatia)
Israel  1–2  Cyprus
Bitton   76' Report Dossa Júnior   58'
Demetriou   80'
Attendance: 25,300[34]
Belgium  3–1  Israel
Mertens   64'
De Bruyne   78'
Hazard   84'		 Report Hemed   88'
Attendance: 39,773[35]
Discipline
Team Player Offence(s) Suspended for match(es)
  Israel Eitan Tibi     vs Wales (28 March 2015) vs Belgium (31 March 2015)
Lior Refaelov   vs Cyprus (10 October 2014)
  vs Wales (28 March 2015)
  vs Belgium (31 March 2015)		 vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (12 June 2015)
Sheran Yeini   vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (16 November 2014)
  vs Belgium (31 March 2015)
  vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (12 June 2015)		 vs Andorra (3 September 2015)
Nir Bitton   vs Bosnia and Herzegovina (16 November 2014)
  vs Wales (6 September 2015)
  vs Cyprus (10 October 2015)		 vs Belgium (13 October 2015)
2020 UEFA European Championship

Israel was one of the countries to submit UEFA Euro 2020 bids. The deadline for expressions of interest was 12 September 2013.[36] On 20 September, UEFA confirmed expressions of interest from 32 football associations to act as host cities.[37][38]

Israel’s bid was for Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem who’s capacity would be expanded from 34,000 to 53,000[39]

On 10 September 2014, UEFA published the evaluation reports of the 19 bids.[40][41] Before the voting on 19 September 2014, UEFA judged that Israel did not fulfill the bid requirements, so they did not participate at all in the selection phases.[42]

2018 FIFA World Cup

2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group G

Main article: 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group G

Template:2018 FIFA World Cup qualification – UEFA Group G table

UEFA Euro 2016

UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group B

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification            
1   Belgium 10 7 2 1 24 5 +19 23 Qualify for final tournament — 0–0 3–1 3–1 5–0 6–0
2   Wales 10 6 3 1 11 4 +7 21 1–0 — 0–0 0–0 2–1 2–0
3   Bosnia and Herzegovina 10 5 2 3 17 12 +5 17 Advance to play-offs 1–1 2–0 — 3–1 1–2 3–0
4   Israel 10 4 1 5 16 14 +2 13 0–1 0–3 3–0 — 1–2 4–0
5   Cyprus 10 4 0 6 16 17 −1 12 0–1 0–1 2–3 1–2 — 5–0
6   Andorra 10 0 0 10 4 36 −32 0 1–4 1–2 0–3 1–4 1–3 —
Source: UEFA
Rules for classification: Qualification tiebreakers

Recent results and forthcoming fixtures

  Win   Draw   Loss

2016

12 November 2016 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Albania   0–3   Israel Elbasan, Albania
20:45
(20:45 UTC+1)		 [1]
Stadium: Elbasan Arena
Attendance: 7,600
Referee: Deniz Aytekin (Germany)

2017

24 March 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Spain   4–1   Israel Gijón, Spain
20:45
(20:45 UTC+1)
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: El Molinón
Attendance: 20,321
Referee: Michael Oliver (England)
6 June 2017 Friendly Israel   1–1   Moldova Netanya, Israel
Sahar   90+5' (pen.) Report Gînsari   51' Stadium: Netanya Stadium
Referee: Bastian Dankert (Germany)
11 June 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Israel   0–3   Albania Haifa, Israel
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Sammy Ofer Stadium
Attendance: 15,150
Referee: Aleksei Kulbakov (Belarus)
2 September 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Israel   0–1   North Macedonia Haifa, Israel
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Sammy Ofer Stadium
Attendance: 11,350
Referee: Aleksei Eskov (Russia)
5 September 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Italy   1–0   Israel Reggio Emilia, Italy
20:45
(20:45 UTC+2)
Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)		 Stadium: Mapei Stadium
Attendance: 15,507
Referee: Benoît Bastien (France)
6 October 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Liechtenstein   0–1   Israel Vaduz, Liechtenstein
20:45
(20:45 UTC+2)		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Rheinpark Stadion
Referee: Arnold Hunter (Northern Ireland)
9 October 2017 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification Israel   0–1   Spain Jerusalem, Israel
20:45
(21:45 UTC+3)		 Report (FIFA)
Report (UEFA)
Stadium: Teddy Stadium
Referee: Craig Thomson (Scotland)

Coaching staff

As of 20 April 2016[43]
Position Name Nationality
Head coach Vacant   Israel
Assistant Manager Amir Turgeman   Israel
Assistant Manager Rafi Cohen   Israel
Goalkeeper Coach Nir Davidovich   Israel
Fitness coach Ron Tziblin   Israel
Mental coach Alon Olman   Israel
Business Manager Israel Shchuchinski   Israel
Head Doctor Mark Rosnovsky   Israel

Current squad

The following players have been called up for the 2018 World Cup qualification matches against Liechtenstein on 6 October 2017 and against Spain on 9 October 2017.
Caps and goals updated as of 9 October 2017 after the match against Spain.
Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Ariel Harush (1988-05-25) 25 May 1988 (age 36) 10 0   Anorthosis Famagusta
1GK Boris Klaiman (1990-10-26) 26 October 1990 (age 34) 1 0   Beitar Jerusalem
1GK Danny Amos (1987-02-02) 2 February 1987 (age 37) 0 0   Maccabi Netanya
3 2DF Tal Ben Haim (Captain) (1982-03-31) 31 March 1982 (age 42) 96 1   Maccabi Tel Aviv
2DF Eitan Tibi (1987-11-16) 16 November 1987 (age 37) 34 1   Maccabi Tel Aviv
2DF Omri Ben Harush (1990-03-04) 4 March 1990 (age 34) 15 0   Maccabi Haifa
20 2DF Ofir Davidzada (1991-05-05) 5 May 1991 (age 33) 11 0   Maccabi Tel Aviv
2DF Dor Elo (1993-09-26) 26 September 1993 (age 31) 0 0   Hapoel Be'er Sheva
4 2DF Hatem Abd Elhamed (1991-03-18) 18 March 1991 (age 33) 0 0   Hapoel Be'er Sheva
15 3MF Yossi Benayoun (1980-05-05) 5 May 1980 (age 44) 102 24   Beitar Jerusalem
6 3MF Bibras Natkho (1988-02-18) 18 February 1988 (age 36) 49 1   CSKA Moscow
8 3MF Lior Refaelov (1986-04-26) 26 April 1986 (age 38) 40 6   Club Brugge
5 3MF Maor Melikson (1984-10-30) 30 October 1984 (age 40) 24 3   Hapoel Be'er Sheva
8 3MF Almog Cohen (1988-09-01) 1 September 1988 (age 36) 23 0   FC Ingolstadt 04
3MF Nir Bitton (1991-10-30) 30 October 1991 (age 33) 21 2   Celtic
9 3MF Dan Einbinder (1989-02-16) 16 February 1989 (age 35) 6 1   Hapoel Be'er Sheva
16 3MF David Keltjens (1995-06-11) 11 June 1995 (age 29) 6 0   Beitar Jerusalem
22 3MF Marwan Kabha (1991-02-23) 23 February 1991 (age 33) 4 0   Maribor
3MF Idan Vered (1989-05-25) 25 May 1989 (age 35) 2 0   Beitar Jerusalem
3MF Gidi Kanyuk (1993-02-11) 11 February 1993 (age 31) 0 0   Pakhtakor
10 4FW Tomer Hemed (1987-05-02) 2 May 1987 (age 37) 31 15   Brighton & Hove Albion
11 4FW Itay Shechter (1987-02-22) 22 February 1987 (age 37) 27 5   Beitar Jerusalem
12 4FW Tal Ben Haim II (1989-08-05) 5 August 1989 (age 35) 28 5   Sparta Prague
4FW Eliran Atar (1987-02-17) 17 February 1987 (age 37) 6 1   Maccabi Tel Aviv

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Israeli squad on the last 12 months.

Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Omri Glazer (1996-03-11) 11 March 1996 (age 28) 1 0   Maccabi Haifa v.   Liechtenstein, 6 October 2017 INJ
GK David Goresh (1980-02-01) 1 February 1980 (age 44) 7 0   Hapoel Be'er Sheva v.   Moldova, 6 June 2017
GK Ofir Marciano (1989-10-07) 7 October 1989 (age 35) 11 0   Hibernian v.   Spain, 25 March 2017
DF Shir Tzedek (1989-08-22) 22 August 1989 (age 35) 14 0   Hapoel Be'er Sheva V.   Italy, 5 September 2017
DF Taleb Tawatha (1992-06-21) 21 June 1992 (age 32) 8 0   Eintracht Frankfurt v.   Italy, 5 September 2017
DF Omer Danino (1995-02-17) 17 February 1995 (age 29) 0 0   Maccabi Petah Tikva V.   Italy, 5 September 2017
DF Ben Bitton (1991-01-03) 3 January 1991 (age 33) 3 0   Hapoel Be'er Sheva v.   North Macedonia, 2 September 2017 INJ
DF Eli Dasa (1992-12-03) 3 December 1992 (age 32) 9 0   Maccabi Tel Aviv v.   Moldova, 6 June 2017 INJ
DF Avi Rikan (1988-08-10) 10 August 1988 (age 36) 4 0   Maccabi Tel Aviv v.   Moldova, 6 June 2017
DF Rami Gershon (1988-08-12) 12 August 1988 (age 36) 26 2   Maccabi Haifa v.   Spain, 25 March 2017 INJ
DF Sheran Yeini (1986-12-08) 8 December 1986 (age 38) 18 0   Maccabi Tel Aviv v.   Spain, 25 March 2017
MF Michael Ohana (1995-10-04) 4 October 1995 (age 29) 1 0   Hapoel Be'er Sheva v.   Italy, 5 September 2017
MF Eran Zahavi (1987-07-25) 25 July 1987 (age 37) 39 6   Guangzhou R&F v.   North Macedonia, 2 September 2017 RET
MF Eyal Golasa (1991-10-07) 7 October 1991 (age 33) 11 0   Maccabi Tel Aviv v.   Moldova, 6 June 2017 INJ
MF Beram Kayal (1988-05-02) 2 May 1988 (age 36) 32 1   Brighton & Hove Albion v.   Moldova, 6 June 2017 INJ
MF Dor Micha (1992-03-02) 2 March 1992 (age 32) 0 0   Maccabi Tel Aviv v.   Spain, 25 March 2017 INJ
MF Maor Buzaglo (1988-01-14) 14 January 1988 (age 36) 23 1   Maccabi Haifa v.   Albania, 12 November 2016 INJ
MF Neta Lavi (1996-08-25) 25 August 1996 (age 28) 1 0   Maccabi Haifa v.   Albania, 12 November 2016
FW Manor Solomon (1999-07-24) 24 July 1999 (age 25) 0 0   Maccabi Petah Tikva v.   Italy, 5 September 2017
FW Moanes Dabour (1992-05-14) 14 May 1992 (age 32) 7 1   Red Bull Salzburg v.   North Macedonia, 2 September 2017
FW Ben Sahar (1989-08-10) 10 August 1989 (age 35) 41 7   Hapoel Be'er Sheva v.   Moldova, 6 June 2017
  • INJ Withdrew due to an injury.
  • PRE Preliminary squad.
  • SUS Suspended.
  • RET Retired from international football.

Player history

Main articles: List of Israel international footballers and Israel national football team records

Most capped players

As of 9 October 2017, the ten players with the most caps[1] for Israel are:

Rank. Name Career Caps Goals
1 Yossi Benayoun 1998–present 102 24
2 Tal Ben Haim 2002–present 96 2
3 Arik Benado 1995–2007 94 0
4 Alon Harazi 1992–2006 89 2
5 Amir Schelach 1992–2001 85 0
6 Mordechai Spiegler 1963–1977 83 33
Nir Klinger 1987–1997 83 2
8 Avi Nimni 1992–2005 80 17
9 Tal Banin 1990–2003 78 12
Itzhak Shum 1969–1981 78 10
Eyal Berkovic 1992–2004 78 9
Dudu Aouate 1999–2013 78 0

Bold denotes still active players.

Top goalscorers

 
Mordechai Spiegler (middle) is Israel's top scorer with 33 goals

As of 9 October 2017, the ten players with the most goals[2] for Israel are:

Rank. Player Career Goals Caps Average
1 Mordechai Spiegler 1963–1977 33 83 0.39
2 Yehoshua Feigenbaum 1966–1977 24 50 0.48
Yossi Benayoun 1998–present 24 102 0.24
4 Ronen Harazi 1992–1999 23 53 0.43
5 Nahum Stelmach 1956–1968 22 61 0.36
6 Gidi Damti 1971–1981 21 69 0.30
7 Giora Spiegel 1965–1980 18 44 0.40
Yehoshua Glazer 1949–1961 18 35 0.51
9 Eli Ohana 1984–1997 17 51 0.33
Avi Nimni 1992–2005 17 80 0.21

Bold denotes still active players.

Managers

Manager Years as manager Pld
 W
 D
 L
 GF GA Win%[44]
  Egon Pollak 1948 1 0 0 1 0 1 000.00
    Lajos Hess 1949 3 1 0 2 5 12 033.33
  László Székely 1950 2 1 0 1 7 4 050.00
  Jerry Beit haLevi 1953–54 5 0 0 5 1 7 000.00
  Jack Gibbons 1956 5 2 0 3 7 12 040.00
  Jerry Beit haLevi 1957 1 0 0 1 4 5 000.00
  Moshe Varon 1958 5 2 0 3 6 7 040.00
  Gyula Mándi 1959–63 31 12 7 12 49 63 038.71
  George Ainsley 1963–64 3 2 0 1 4 2 066.67
  Yosef Merimovich 1964 1 0 0 1 0 4 000.00
  Gyula Mándi 1964 3 3 0 0 5 1 100.00
  Yosef Merimovich 1964–65 3 1 0 2 2 2 033.33
  Milovan Ćirić 1965–68 25 8 2 15 43 45 032.00
  Emmanuel Scheffer 1968–70 24 8 8 8 44 34 033.33
    Edmond Schmilovich 1970–73 19 10 4 5 27 13 052.63
  David Schweitzer 1973–77 36 17 11 8 67 34 047.22
  Emmanuel Scheffer 1978–79 13 5 4 4 17 15 038.46
  Jack Mansell 1980–81 10 2 3 5 8 12 020.00
  Yosef Merimovich 1983–86 27 8 9 10 39 36 029.63
  Miljenko Mihić 1986–88 20 4 5 11 27 35 020.00
  Itzhak Schneor
  Ya'akov Grundman 		1988–92 18 5 5 8 21 30 027.78
  Shlomo Scharf 1992–2000 82 31 18 33 131 118 037.80
  Richard Møller Nielsen 2000–02 20 7 4 9 29 33 035.00
  Avram Grant 2002–06 33 14 13 6 55 37 042.42
  Dror Kashtan 2006–10 31 15 10 6 51 30 048.39
  Eli Ohana (caretaker) 2010 1 1 0 0 2 0 100.00
    Luis Fernández 2010–11 15 6 1 8 12 18 040.00
  Eli Guttman 2011–15 29 8 7 14 42 46 027.59
  Alon Hazan (caretaker) 2016 1 0 0 1 0 2 000.00
  Elisha Levy 2016– 10 4 1 5 11 15 040.00

WDL Record since 1948

Team From To Record
P W D L Win %
  1948 2017 476 177 112 187 037.18

See also

Notes

  1. ^ The Israel v Wales match was originally to kick off at 20:45 (22:45 UTC+3), but was moved to 18:00 (20:00 UTC+3) as matches cannot kick off later than 22:00 local time according to UEFA's guidelines.[27]
  2. ^ The Israel v Belgium match was originally to be played on 9 September 2014, 20:45 (21:45 UTC+3), but was postponed due to the 2014 Israel–Gaza conflict.[29]

References

  1. ^ a b "The Israel Football Association".
  2. ^ a b "The Israel Football Association".
  3. ^ "Aust-Asian bid fails". The Sydney Morning Herald. 16 September 1974. p. 11. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  4. ^ Rahman, Mansoor (14 September 1974). "'Visibles' win without any kick..." New Straits Times. p. 22. Retrieved 10 July 2014.
  5. ^ Williams, Richard (19 May 2015). "Why Does Israel's Football Team Play In Europe?". Sky News. Retrieved 8 August 2016.
  6. ^ FIFA.com. "The FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking - Associations - Israel - Men's - FIFA.com". FIFA.com.
  7. ^ "Malaysia, Singapore stay in Asian Cup central zone". The Straits Times. 16 August 1970.
  8. ^ "About the IFA". The Israel Football Association. Retrieved 27 July 2014.
  9. ^ Due to the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict, UEFA ordered that no matches in its competitions could be held in Israel until further notice. UEFA was scheduled to reconsider its ban on 14 September.
    "UEFA to reconsider ban on soccer games played in Israel". Haaretz. 31 August 2006. Retrieved 6 September 2006.
  10. ^ On 15 September, UEFA lifted its ban on matches in Israel, returning to its previous policy of restricting Israel home matches to the Tel Aviv area. Israel's national stadium in Ramat Gan is within the allowed area.
    "UEFA lifts Israel match ban". UEFA. 15 September 2006. Retrieved 15 September 2006.
  11. ^ "I Wales testira Hrvatsku".
  12. ^ "Fixtures draw completes qualifying schedule". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. 25 March 2010. Retrieved 25 March 2010.
  13. ^ "Israel vs. Malta - 2 September 2010 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  14. ^ "Georgia vs. Israel - 7 September 2010 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  15. ^ "Israel vs. Croatia - 9 October 2010 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  16. ^ "Greece vs. Israel - 12 October 2010 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  17. ^ "Israel vs. Latvia - 26 March 2011 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  18. ^ "Israel vs. Georgia - 29 March 2011 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  19. ^ "Latvia vs. Israel - 4 June 2011 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  20. ^ "Israel vs. Greece - 2 September 2011 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  21. ^ "Croatia vs. Israel - 6 September 2011 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  22. ^ "Malta vs. Israel - 11 October 2011 - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com.
  23. ^ uefa.com. "UEFA EURO 2016 - History - Standings – UEFA.com". UEFA.com.
  24. ^ "Cyprus vs. Israel - 10 October 2014 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  25. ^ "Andorra vs. Israel - 13 October 2014 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  26. ^ "Israel vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina - 16 November 2014 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  27. ^ "Israel v Wales correction of kick-off time" (PDF). Israel Football Association. 11 December 2014.
  28. ^ "Israel vs. Wales - 28 March 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  29. ^ "Israel v Belgium qualifier postponed". UEFA.com. 27 August 2014.
  30. ^ "Israel vs. Belgium - 31 March 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  31. ^ "Bosnia-Herzegovina vs. Israel - 12 June 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  32. ^ "Israel vs. Andorra - 3 September 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  33. ^ "Wales vs. Israel - 6 September 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  34. ^ "Israel vs. Cyprus - 10 October 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  35. ^ "Belgium vs. Israel - 13 October 2015 - Soccerway". soccerway.com. Retrieved 15 October 2015.
  36. ^ "2020 bids on Dubrovnik agenda". UEFA.org. 5 September 2013.
  37. ^ Conway, Richard. "FA says Istanbul is 'front runner' for Euro 2020 semi-finals and final". BBC Sport. Retrieved 24 September 2013.
  38. ^ "Thirty-two FAs considering EURO 2020 bids". UEFA.org. 20 September 2013.
  39. ^ "Teddy filed as a candidate for Euro 2020" (in Hebrew). sites.one.co.il. 11 September 2013.
  40. ^ "UEFA EURO 2020 bid evaluation report published". UEFA.com. 10 September 2014.
  41. ^ "UEFA Euro 2020 evaluation report" (PDF). UEFA.com.
  42. ^ "London to host UEFA EURO 2020 final". UEFA.org. 19 September 2014.
  43. ^ "National team staff". Israel Football Association. Retrieved 14 March 2016.
  44. ^ Win% is rounded to two decimal places
 
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