Al Mayadeen English

  • Ar
  • Es
  • x
Al Mayadeen English

Slogan

  • News
    • Politics
    • Economy
    • Sports
    • Arts&Culture
    • Health
    • Miscellaneous
    • Technology
    • Environment
  • Articles
    • Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Blog
    • Features
  • Videos
    • NewsFeed
    • Video Features
    • Explainers
    • TV
    • Digital Series
  • Infographs
  • In Pictures
  • • LIVE
News
  • Politics
  • Economy
  • Sports
  • Arts&Culture
  • Health
  • Miscellaneous
  • Technology
  • Environment
Articles
  • Opinion
  • Analysis
  • Blog
  • Features
Videos
  • NewsFeed
  • Video Features
  • Explainers
  • TV
  • Digital Series
Infographs
In Pictures
  • Africa
  • Asia
  • Asia-Pacific
  • Europe
  • Latin America
  • MENA
  • Palestine
  • US & Canada
BREAKING
Palestinian platforms: Settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque complex under the protection of the occupation police
Palestinian platforms: The IOF detonated a booby-trapped robot east of the al-Zaytoun neighborhood, south of Gaza City
Syrian Defense: We call on all parties in Sweida to cooperate with security forces and exercise restraint
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese Army is continuing its investigations and will later announce any information that does not affect the confidentiality of the investigation
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: It has not yet been determined whether the detainees belong to ISIS or another organization
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: Around 10 people of different nationalities, including Lebanese nationals, were detained
Al Mayadeen's correspondent: The Lebanese army arrested a number of people in the Matn area of Mount Lebanon with possession it has not disclosed
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: We have strong indications that there are martyrs, injuries, and trapped people in the Salah al-Din area
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Citizens should avoid Salah al-Din Street because anyone who approaches it is at risk of being directly targeted
Gaza Civil Defense spokesman: Reality is that there is a very limited retreat of the vehicles, with the occupation forces providing cover undeer fire up to Salah al-Din Street

Politico: EU sports head says 'Israel' should get the boot from sports

  • By Al Mayadeen English
  • Source: Politico
  • 26 May 2025 14:35
  • 1 Shares
4 Min Read

EU Sports Commissioner Glenn Micallef says countries violating core values should have “no space” in sports, hinting at sanctions over “Israel’s” assault on the Gaza Strip.

Listen
  • x
  • Commissioner-designate Glenn Micallef addressing the European Parliament hearing in Brussels, Belgium. Photo: European Union, 2024.
    Commissioner-designate Glenn Micallef addressing the European Parliament hearing in Brussels, Belgium (European Union, 2024)

The European Union’s top sports official has suggested that “Israel” could face exclusion from international sporting events over its ongoing war on Gaza, citing the need to uphold humanitarian values.

In remarks made to Politico, EU Sports Commissioner Glenn Micallef stated that “there should be no space in sporting events for those who do not share our values,” referring to countries involved in rights violations and humanitarian abuses.

“Sport is a tool that we use to promote peace, through which we promote human rights,” Micallef said to Politico, while noting that the global sports movement remains formally autonomous. Nevertheless, he insisted that the EU has “a responsibility to speak about these issues and to make our feelings known.”

Micallef’s statement comes as the Israeli occupation continues its devastating military assault on Gaza. According to Politico, his comments were made during a wider EU debate on how the international community, including the cultural and sporting sectors, should respond to the humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in occupied Palestine.

EU pressure builds over Gaza atrocities

Politico reported that the European Commission and member states have come under increasing pressure from civil society and lawmakers to apply the same standards to “Israel” as were applied to Russia following the war with Ukraine in 2022, when Russian athletes and teams were suspended from major events, including the Olympics and FIFA competitions.

Last week, a majority of EU countries supported reviewing the bloc’s political agreement with “Israel”, while Israeli ambassadors in Rome, Paris, and other capitals were summoned after occupation forces admitted to firing “warning shots” near a European diplomatic delegation visiting the occupied West Bank.

Related News

Gaza flattened for pay, not need: IOF reward operators for each ruin

UK-made F-35 parts linked to Gaza Al-Mawasi tent massacre one year ago

Micallef told Politico that “there’s been bloodshed [in Gaza] and civilians that are paying the price,” adding, “It’s a catastrophe. You see so many children, civilians, young people, without food and water, without access to humanitarian aid, aid that should be allowed to flow at scale to people in Gaza and in Palestine.”

Cultural and sporting institutions face scrutiny

Beyond sports, the controversy around “Israel’s” participation in the Eurovision Song Contest has intensified. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez recently called for “Israel” to be excluded from Eurovision, saying, “We cannot allow double standards, not even in culture.”

Austrian singer JJ, who won the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest, himself has called for the exclusion of the Israeli occupation from future editions of the competition, citing its ongoing war of genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Micallef, asked by Politico whether he supported Sánchez’s call, reiterated that values must be upheld in all platforms. “These spaces are big stages for political messages, big stages where we should promote values that we stand for in the Union, and where we should give space to those who have similar values to us in general,” he said.

He confirmed that he had already raised the issue with the European Broadcasting Union, the body responsible for Eurovision.

Humanitarian catastrophe drives boycott calls

The calls for boycotting “Israel” in international sports and culture have grown louder as the death toll in Gaza surpasses 53,000 Palestinians, with entire cities such as Rafah and Khan Younis leveled by Israeli occupation forces. 

Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are now at risk of famine and disease. Humanitarian agencies continue to warn of an impending collapse of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure, with hospitals bombed, aid convoys restricted, and mass displacement ongoing.

Micallef said to Politico that the situation in Gaza is “absolutely shocking,” and reiterated, “My message is quite clear: through sport, we have to promote the values that we stand for, with any country.”

The EU’s apparent double standard, swiftly sanctioning Russia while allowing “Israel” to continue participating in international events, has been sharply criticized by Palestinian advocates and rights groups. Politico noted that, unlike Russia, “Israel” has not faced coordinated action from sporting bodies, despite widespread condemnation of its military campaign.

  • war on Gaza
  • Israel
  • Boycott Israel
  • EU Sports Commissioner
  • Glenn Micallef
  • Gaza

Most Read

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

Hezbollah SG reveals war details on Al Mayadeen for the first time

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Major ambush in Gaza kills 6 Israeli troops, injures dozens

Major ambush in Gaza kills 5 Israeli troops, injures 14

  • Politics
  • 8 Jul 2025
Israeli soldiers are seen in Beit Hanoun ahead of an operation by the al-Qassam Brigades, undated (Al-Qassam Brigades Military Media)

'Israel' on blast as media exposes report discrepancies in Gaza ambush

  • Palestine
  • 8 Jul 2025
Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

Yemen Navy sinks ETERNITY C ship, shares footage of operation

  • Politics
  • 9 Jul 2025

Coverage

All
The Ummah's Martyrs

Read Next

All
The Freedom Flotilla ship Handala as it departs for Gaza, where it aims to break the maritime blockade at a port in Syracuse, Sicily in southern Italy on July 13, 2025. (AFP)
Palestine

Freedom Flotilla's Handala departs Sicily in bid to break Gaza siege

The container ship CMA CGM Laperouse, left, docks at the Georgia Ports Authority's Port of Savannah, Sept. 29, 2021, in Savannah, Ga (AP)
Politics

US shipbuilding woes deepen as tariffs, outdated policies backfire

Gaza war raises ethical questions for ex-Obama, Biden officials
Politics

Mercenary firm tied to Gaza war crimes hires Obama-Biden PR operatives

'Israel' targets children in Gaza collecting water
Palestine

'Israel' strikes Gaza kids fetching water, blames it on 'malfunction'

Al Mayadeen English

Al Mayadeen is an Arab Independent Media Satellite Channel.

All Rights Reserved

  • x
  • Privacy Policy
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Authors
Android
iOS