The World Cup Qualifiers return this week for European nations, and many besides checking on their own national squads, many people will be closely looking what happens in Group I, the one with Israel, which still has options to qualify. With FIFA declining to suspend Israel and leaving the decision to UEFA, and Donald Trump threatening to block any attempt to ban the country, the question now is what will happen if Israel manages to qualify.
Israel is on Group I, led by Norway, with 15 points, thanks in a great deal to Erling Haaland, who recently scored five goals in a 11-1 demolition to Moldova. Italy and Israel both have 9 points, with Italy ahead due to a better goal average (5 vs. 4).
Norway will likely get direct qualification from the group stage, and the team that finished in second place will go through a play-off.
Israel visits Italy and Norway this week and the next
The upcoming matches between Norway and Israel (Saturday, October 11) in Oslo and Italy and Israel (Tuesday, October 14) in Udine could be decisive. Both matches will be heavily guarded, with reduced capacity (3,000 people in Oslo, 6,000 in Udine).
The mayor of Udine, Alberto Felice de Toni, said that he asked for the postponement of the match "because the atmosphere was not right for a national celebration as a national team game should be, but that request was not considered". Then asked it to be played behind closed doors, but FIFA didn't grant it either. Italy has had a series of general strikes and protests against Israel, asking the end of the genocide in Gaza.
"We will end up with 6,000 people inside the stadium and 10,000 outside," De Toni added (via Reuters). "It's a situation that was rather forced upon us, the situation is dramatic and paradoxical, there are going to be more people outside than in the arena."