BEVERLY HILLS, December 14, (THEWILL) – World football witnessed a momentous event of great significance when the football associations of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Israel signed a historic memorandum of understanding (MoU) in a ceremony held in Dubai.
The extraordinary occasion was attended by FIFA President Gianni Infantino, UAEFA President Sheikh Rashid bin Humaid Al Nuaimi and IFA President Oren Hasson.
A beaming Infantino described the importance of the day: “I’m very proud to be here today to witness this memorandum of understanding. It is crucial for the future because it shows that football is uniting, football is bringing people together.
“I’m expecting a lot from this agreement. I said it to the two presidents, they can count on the support from FIFA to organise events, to organise training opportunities, to organise actions to bring Israel and UAE but also the whole region closer together with football.”
Al Nuaimi, on his part, expressed optimism at signing the memorandum that serves the sport in both states, while stressing that it was an important step on the path to strengthening relations with Israel and other countries.
The UAEFA President extended his gratitude and appreciation to Infantino for his attendance and support to the historic agreement, stressing that football is a language of peace, tolerance, and love.
To these, Hasson added that everything taking place was still a dream only two months ago and everyone in attendance worked so hard to turn it into reality. The IFA President therefore called on everyone to visit Tel-Aviv and build strong relations so that future generations recognise that football unites peoples and is a common language of peace.
Of the joint sporting activities it will engender, the organisation of friendly matches for national teams and clubs from both parties, the establishment of joint workshops for the technical and administrative members of the two associations, as well as the launch of development initiatives that contribute to supporting the game in the two countries are the types of benefits that will accrue from the MoU.
About the Author
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
