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PAIR OF JEWISH ANNOUNCERS BACK
Telemundo’s coverage of the tournament, as it has for
years, will feature plenty of “goooaaaaaals.”
That’s because it includes six-time Emmy award-win-
ner Andres Cantor, the Argentine-Jewish announcer
who perhaps is most responsible for popularizing long
goal calls in the English-speaking world.

He is being joined by one of his mentees — two-time
Emmy nominee Sammy Sadovnik — who has been with
Telemundo since 2007 and has covered sports since 1989.

He’s a proud Jew from Peru who visits Israel every year.

ISRAEL NOT IN TOURNAMENT
Israel’s first and only appearance in the World Cup was in
1970. That half-century hiatus is not due to a lack of talent.

It was one of the founding members of the Asian
Football Confederation, joining in 1954, and would
enjoy international success culminating in winning
the 1964 AFC Cup. But Israel’s success was overshad-
owed by geopolitics; many AFC member countries
began to boycott playing Israel over time.

In 1958, Israel won its World Cup qualifying group
without playing a single opponent due to protests. In
1974, the AFC expelled Israel from the confederation
in a 17-13 vote organized by Kuwait.

Israel would wander the soccer desert for two
decades before securing full membership in the Union
of European Football Association. Israel remains the
only UEFA member without any territory in Europe.

That membership brings rigorous competition:
Israel is in the same conference as soccer power-
houses like Spain, France and Italy. In the 2022
qualifiers, Israel was grouped with Denmark, also a
perennially top-tier team.

Despite the tough competition and frequent
antisemitism that Jewish and Israeli players face
across Europe, the Israeli Football Association is
content where it is.

“We prefer our clubs and national teams playing at
the European level,” Shlomi Barzel, a spokesman for
the IFA, said in 2018. “We find a warm, welcoming
and challenging home in Europe.”
ISRAELIS IN QATAR AN EXCEPTION
Israelis normally aren’t allowed into Qatar, and
direct flights from Israel aren’t allowed into the
Muslim-majority country. But for the World Cup,
Qatar announced that it would allow direct flights
from Tel Aviv to its capital Doha for Israeli fans,
and depending on Israeli government approval, for
Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
as well.

Moreover, Israeli diplomats have been permitted
to offer support to Israelis during the World Cup,
which will be crucial since Qatar — part of the
Association of Gulf Jewish Communities — has a
limited Jewish communal presence. Chapters of the
Chabad-Lubavitch movement normally help Jewish
tourists procure kosher food and offer other support,
but the closest Chabad center in the region is in the
United Arab Emirates.

And while as many as 20,000 Israelis could make
the trip, the Israeli government is still urging them
to be careful.

“The Iranian team will be in the World Cup, and we
estimate that tens of thousands of fans will follow it,
and there will be other fans from Gulf countries that
we don’t have diplomatic relationship with,” a senior
Israeli diplomat warned fans as part of a Foreign
Ministry campaign. “Downplay your Israeli presence
and Israeli identity for the sake of your personal
security.” AT WORLD CUP, JERUSALEM WARNS
VISITORS TO ‘DOWNPLAY ISRAELI
IDENTITY’ Qatar, which does not normally allow Israelis into
the country, is permitting Israeli visitors during the
2022 World Cup, prompting the Israeli government to
warn travelers who make the trip to “downplay” their
“Israeli identity.”
As many as 20,000 Israelis are expected to attend
the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, an Arab country
run by a Muslim monarchy that does not have dip-
lomatic ties with Israel. It is running in a reduced
timeframe of 29 days with the final to be held on
Dec. 18.

Qatar has allowed for new direct flights from Tel
Aviv to Doha, its capital, with an Israeli foreign min-
istry delegation there to help Israeli visitors navigate
local laws and customs and avoid any possible ten-
sions with locals.

Despite the unprecedented openness, Israel’s
Foreign Ministry launched a campaign to urge
Israelis to exercise caution, particularly given the
presence of Iran, which routinely calls for violence
against Israel, at the World Cup. Qatar has close ties
with Iran.

“The Iranian team will be in the World Cup and
we estimate that tens of thousands fans will follow
it, and there will be other fans from Gulf countries
that we don’t have diplomatic relationship with,” said
Lior Haiat, a senior Israeli diplomat, according to The
Associated Press, as the Foreign Ministry launched a
website on the topic.

Haiat urged Israeli visitors to hide Israeli symbols,
which could include Israeli flags or other things
outwardly showing a Star of David. While an esti-
mated 10,000 to 20,000 Israelis have bought tickets
to the quadrennial event, only 3,500 will be using
their Israeli passports to make the trip, reported The
Jerusalem Post.

“Downplay your Israeli presence and Israeli iden-
tity for the sake of your personal security,” Haiat said.

The campaign also advised against public displays
of drunkenness and homosexual relationships, both
of which are illegal in Qatar, which has been hit with
widespread criticism over its human-rights record
ahead of the World Cup.

While some of Qatar’s Arab neighbors, including
the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, have signed
recent normalization agreements with Israel (the
Abraham Accords were established in the fall of
2020), Qatar has said that it will avoid negotiations
with Israel until it sees a path forward for the creation
of a Palestinian state. JE
— Jacob Gurvis
Jewish professional men’s soccer players from the United States
who compete on the world stage are a rare phenomenon.

But this year, the U.S. men’s national team has two on its roster,
including the likely starting goalie.

18 DECEMBER 1, 2022 | JEWISHEXPONENT.COM



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