Police removed spectators carrying placards reading ‘Ban Israel from FIFA’ from the National Stadium in Malé on Friday during an exhibition match featuring President Mohamed Muizzu and visiting FIFA President Gianni Infantino.
Videos circulating on social media showed police approaching a group of spectators holding the placards and escorting at least two individuals out of the stadium. Others in the group were heard protesting Israeli atrocities in Gaza and the occupied Palestinian territories and calling for Israel’s suspension from world football over its ongoing genocide against Palestinians.
The protest highlighted international outrage over FIFA President Infantino’s refusal to sanction Israel for its brutal military onslaught in Gaza, which has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, including over 20,000 children since October 2023.
Earlier this month, Infantino said at a FIFA Council meeting in Zurich that football’s role was to “promote unity and peace” and that “FIFA cannot solve geopolitical problems.”
The exhibition match drew widespread criticism on social media, with opposition leader and Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) chairperson Fayyaz Ismail calling it “a mockery of the sentiments of the Maldivian people and the entire Islamic Ummah.”
“FIFA suspended the Russian national football team five days after the Russian army invaded Ukraine,” Fayyaz wrote on X. “For two years, the world has been calling for Israel to be suspended for its massacre in Gaza, which has killed thousands, including players from the Palestinian national football team. Yet, no action has been taken.”
He questioned why President Muizzu chose to play alongside Infantino, while FIFA “openly refuses to suspend Israel,” asking if the “symbolic match” was necessary at this time.
Infantino, who arrived in the Maldives on Friday morning on an official visit, was welcomed at Velana International Airport with cultural performances and greeted by national team players and children from local football academies.