Israel national football team

History

Main article: History of the Israel national football team, Mandatory Palestine national football team

Early history

Football has a long tradition in Israel. The game was originally introduced during the time of the Ottoman Empire. The Palestine Football Association was formed in August 1928, and joined FIFA in June 1929, but at the time the association was made up of Arab and Jewish clubs as well as clubs of British policemen and soldiers serving in the region during the British Mandate. The Mandatory Palestine national football team made its debut against Cairo (Egypt) in 1934 FIFA World Cup qualification, losing 0–5 in Cairo, Egypt. The team played five international matches, including a friendly match against Lebanon that Palestine won 1–5; until the British Mandate for Palestine national team was dissolved. During these five games, the national team fielded only Jewish players. Three anthems were played before each match: the British "God Save the King", the Jewish (and future Israeli) "HaTikvah", and the opposing team's anthem.

In 1948 the team became the national football team of Israel. The Israel national team's first match as an independent nation was on 26 September 1948, against the US Olympic Team. The game was won by the US 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

Muslim and Arab countries boycotting Israel

Israel was one of the founding members of the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) following its independence in 1948. After the 1974 Asian Games in Iran, and Israel's 0–1 tense loss to Iran in the finals, Kuwait and other Muslim and Arab countries refused to play them. Following this, Israel was expelled from the confederation. It tried to join continental bodies such as the OFC (Oceania), before eventually joining UEFA (Europe).

Israel's last years in the AFC

Israel competed at the AFC between 1954 and 1974. Due to the Arab League boycott of Israel, several Muslim countries 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 hosted and won the 1964 AFC Asian Cup.

In 1968, Israel went to its 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. Israel earned two points after a 1–1 draw with Sweden, a 0–0 draw with eventual finalist Italy, and a 0–2 loss to Uruguay. The goal against Sweden, scored by Mordechai Spiegler, is Israel's only FIFA World Cup goal to date.

In 1974, Israel was excluded from AFC competitions, after Kuwait and other Muslim and Arab countries refused to play against it. The proposal was adopted by a vote of 17 to 13 with 6 abstentions. The vote coincided with the 1974 Asian Games, where the football competition was marred by the refusal of both North Korea and Kuwait to play second-round matches against Israel.

In 1976, Israel went to its second Olympic Games and lost in the quarterfinals again, this time against Brazil. In 1973 and 1977, Israel participated in the World Cup qualification tournament which included teams from both Asia and Oceania, but failed to qualify.

Years in exile

First steps in UEFA

During the early 1980s, Israel played the majority of its matches against UEFA (Europe) teams, and competed in the European stage of qualification for the 1982 FIFA World Cup.

First steps in OFC

For the next two tournaments, Israel entered Oceania's (OFC) qualification stage.

In 1989, Israel won the OFC second round (Oceania) by finishing above both Australia and New Zealand. As a result, Israel made it to the CONMEBOL–OFC play-offs to represent Oceania and play against CONMEBOL's (South America) Colombia for the 1990 World Cup, but lost (1–0, 0–0).

UEFA membership

In 1991, Israeli clubs began participating in European club competitions of UEFA, 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 UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying play-offs, but was beaten by Denmark.

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 for the final tournament, but finished fourth in Group E, just one point behind second-placed Russia, who qualified directly with Croatia, and level on 23 points with England, who also failed to advance. 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 Israel failed to qualify again, finishing 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.

In 2018, Willi Ruttensteiner was appointed as technical director. A national football academy was founded and three supporting development centers were established.

Israel subsequently failed to qualify for any World Cup or European Championship finals, and performed inconsistently during the qualifying phases in which they took part, alternating between the good and the not-so-good. However, in the qualifiers for Euro 2020, they came very close to making history. Despite finishing 5th and penultimate in their particularly homogeneous qualifying group, Israel earned the right to play in the play-offs thanks to their position in the 2018-2019 edition of the Nations League. They first had to play in the semi-final of the Path C play-off in Scotland to earn the right to play in the final of the play-off in Serbia, which defeated Norway away in extra time. The game was tight, and the Israelis were finally eliminated in a penalty shoot-out after a goalless draw in regulation time and extra time (0–0, 3:5), Eran Zahavi having missed the first Israeli shot.

Promoted to League B for the 2020-2021 edition of the Nations League without having finished top of their group in the previous edition, thanks to the change of format subsequently decided by UEFA, Israel ensured their survival by finishing 3rd and penultimate in their group, with a balanced record of 2 wins, 2 draws and 2 defeats. At the 2022-2023 Nations League, Israel finished top of its 3-team group (Russia, which should have taken part, was excluded from European and international competitions due to its aggression against Ukraine), thanks to 2 wins over Albania (2–1 in both legs) and 2 draws against Iceland (2–2 on each occasion), synonymous with promotion to League A for the 2024-2025 edition.

In the Euro 2024 qualifiers, Israel was again eliminated at the play-off stage, as in the previous edition. Indeed, they finished 3rd in their qualifying group and saw their place in the play-offs assured thanks to their status as group winners at the 2022-2023 Nations League. Against Iceland in the semi-finals of the play-offs for Path B, they opened the scoring with Eran Zahavi's 31st-minute penalty, but failed to hold on to their advantage and were soundly beaten (1–4). The turning points of the match were Roy Revivo's 73rd-minute red card for a crude foul, and Eran Zahavi's penalty miss 7 minutes after the red card, when the score was 1–2.

Home stadium

The first home game of the Israel national football team was at Palms Ground on 6 April 1934 against Egypt in a 1934 World Cup qualifier. Prior to the formation of Israel, they also played at the Maccabi Ground for the 1938 FIFA World Cup qualifiers and Maccabiah Stadium. The first national team to represent the newly formed State of Israel back in 1948, had played at the Ramat Gan Stadium as part of 1954 FIFA World Cup qualification, in front of 55,000 spectators. The Ramat Gan Stadium would remain Israel's home stadium until 2013.

Since the construction of Sammy Ofer Stadium in the city of Haifa, Teddy Stadium in the city of Jerusalem, Turner Stadium in the city of Be'er Sheva, Netanya Stadium in the city of Netanya and Bloomfield Stadium in the city of Tel Aviv – the Israel national team has rotated their official home matches between the latter five.

During the Gaza war, Israel played most of their home matches in Hungary.

Active stadiums

Inactive stadiums

Kit suppliers

Results and fixtures

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

2025

• Hein
• Dasa
• Paskotši
• Abu Fani
• Turgeman
• Møller Wolfe
• Sørloth
• Ajer
• Haaland
• Käit
• Biton
• Abu Fani
• Shua
• Peretz
• Solomon
• Baribo
• Gloukh
• Locatelli
• Do. Peretz
• Bastoni
• Kean
• Politano
• Raspadori
• Tonali
• Khalaili
• Haaland
• Nachmias
• Retegui
• Mancini
• Turgeman
• Revivo
• E. Peretz
• Baboglo
• Nicolaescu

2026

Coaching staff

!GA !Win% |- | AUTISR Egon Pollak || 1948 |- | AUTISR Lajos Hess || 1949 |- | HUN László Székely || 1950 |- | ISR Jerry Beit haLevi || 1953–54 |- | ENG Jackie Gibbons || 1956 |- | ISR Jerry Beit haLevi || 1957 |- | ISR Moshe Varon || 1958 |- | HUNISR Gyula Mándi || 1959–63 |- | ENG George Ainsley || 1963–64 |- | ISR Yosef Merimovich || 1964 |- | HUNISR Gyula Mándi || 1964 |- | ISR Yosef Merimovich || 1964–65 |- | YUG Milovan Ćirić || 1965–68 |- | ISR Emmanuel Scheffer || 1968–70 |- | ROM ISR Edmond Schmilovich || 1970–73 |- | ISR David Schweitzer || 1973–77 |- | ISR Emmanuel Scheffer || 1978–79 |- | ENG Jack Mansell || 1980–81 |- | ISR Yosef Merimovich || 1983–86 |- | YUG Miljenko Mihić || 1986–88 |- | ISR Itzhak Schneor ISR Ya'akov Grundman || 1988–92 |- | ISR Shlomo Scharf || 1992–2000 |- | DEN Richard Møller Nielsen || 2000–02 |- | ISR Avram Grant || 2002–06 |- | ISR Dror Kashtan || 2006–10 |- | ISR Eli Ohana (caretaker) || 2010 |- | ESPFRA Luis Fernández || 2010–11 |- | ISR Eli Guttman || 2011–15 |- | ISR Alon Hazan (caretaker) || 2016 |- | ISR Elisha Levy || 2016–2017 |- | ISR Alon Hazan (caretaker) || 2018 |- | AUT Andi Herzog || 2018–2019 |- | AUT Willibald Ruttensteiner || 2020–7 February 2022 |- | ISR Gadi Brumer (caretaker) || 17 March 2022 – 29 March 2022 |- | ISR Alon Hazan || 8 May 2022 – 27 March 2024 |- | ISR Ran Ben Shimon || 23 May 2024 – present |}

Players

Current squad

The following players were called for friendly match against Lithuania on November 13 and 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification match against Moldova on November 16.

Caps and goals are correct as of November 16 2025, after the match against Moldova.

Recent call-ups

The following players have also been called up to the Israel squad within the last twelve months.

INJ Withdrew due to injury or illness

PRE Preliminary/extended squad

RET Retired from the national team

SUS Serving suspension due to either a red card, or two accumulated yellow cards

WD Player withdrew from the squad due to neither injury nor illness issue

U21 Player withdrew from the squad to play for the national under-21 team

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Records

Main article: List of Israel international footballers, Israel national football team records and statistics

:Players in bold are still active with Israel. :Statistics include official FIFA-recognised matches only.

Most capped players

Top goalscorers

Competitive record

FIFA World Cup

Main article: Israel at the FIFA World Cup

|1970 FIFA World Cup qualification (AFC and OFC)}}

UEFA European Championship

UEFA Nations League

:*Denotes draws including knockout matches decided via penalty shoot-out. :**Group stage played home and away. Flag shown represents host nation for the finals stage.

Olympic Games

Main article: Israel at the Summer Olympics

Main article: Football at the 2024 Summer Olympics#Qualification

AFC Asian Cup

Main article: Israel at the AFC Asian Cup

• Israel qualified as hosts but later withdrew. Thailand replaced them later.

• Gold background colour indicates that the tournament was won.
• Red border color indicates tournament was held on home soil.

Asian Games

Main article: Israel at the Asian Games

Head-to-head record

FIFA World Ranking history

, Israel ranked 78th in the FIFA Men's World Ranking; its highest ever ranking was 15th and lowest was 99th, with an average ranking of 53rd.

Honours

Continental

• AFC Asian Cup

  • Champions (1): 1964
  • Runners-up (2): 1956, 1960
  • Third place (1): 1968

• Asian Games****1

  • Silver Medal (1): 1974

Summary

;Notes:

1. Competition organized by OCA, officially not recognized by FIFA.

Notes

References

References

1. (25 March 2023). "נאתכו: בטוח שהנבחרת תגיע ליורו, אהיה בשווייץ".
2. Mubarak, Hassanin. "Palestine – International Results – Details".
3. (28 June 2011). "Statistical Kit: Preliminary Draw for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil".
4. "Site-Map-Israel-Football-Facts—Stats".
5. "Bayati recalls Iran's tense win over Israel".
6. Montague, James. (February 27, 2008). "Time is right for Israel to return to its Asian roots". The Guardian.
7. (1974-09-16). "Aust-Asian bid fails". [[The Sydney Morning Herald]].
8. (1974-09-14). "'Visibles' win without any kick...". [[New Straits Times]].
9. Williams, Richard. (19 May 2015). "Why Does Israel's Football Team Play In Europe?". [[Sky News]].
10. [https://www.derstandard.at/story/2000133170699/willi-ruttensteiner-ist-nicht-mehr-israel-teamchef Willi Ruttensteiner ist nicht mehr Teamchef von Israel] {{Webarchive. link. (3 March 2022 , der Standard, 2022-02-07.)
11. (19 October 2023). "European Qualifier match between Belgium and Sweden declared abandoned with half-time result confirmed as final". Union of European Football Associations.
12. (2023-11-21). "Israel Football Association - National A Team - Team Staff".
13. (2024-05-23). "ההתאחדודת לכדורגל בישראל - [ - נבחרת ישראל בכדורגל גברים ( בוגרים)] - בעלי תפקידים".
14. "Alon Hazan, football manager".
15. Win% is [[Rounding. rounded]] to [[Decimal. two decimal places]]
16. "Andreas Herzog, football manager".
17. "Andreas Herzog, football manager".
18. (7 February 2022). "וילי רוטנשטיינר סיים את דרכו כמאמן נבחרת ישראל: "גאה בעשייה שלי"".
19. (17 March 2022). "ברומר וחרזי יאמנו את נבחרת ישראל - ספורט 5".
20. (8 May 2022). "רשמי: אלון חזן מונה למאמן נבחרת ישראל - ספורט 5".
21. "Estonia-Israel". UEFA.
22. "Israel national football team match results".
23. "The FIFA World Ranking - Israel Men's". FIFA.