THE big story emerging from the 75th Fifa congress in Paraguay on Thursday was that Gianni Infantino was late to his own party.

The Fifa president had prioritised meetings in the Middle East with US President Donald Trump, crown prince Mohammed Bin Salman of Saudi Arabia and emir of Qatar, Tamim Bin Hamad al-Thani, causing him to be several hours late for the congress in Asuncion.

Proceedings were delayed while attendees awaited Infantino’s arrival, annoying delegates and members of the Fifa council alike.

Several Uefa delegates eventually walked out at what would have been the original scheduled end of the congress in protest at Infantino’s apparent disregard for the event.

“To have the timetable changed at the last minute, for what appears to be simply to accommodate private political interests, does the game no service and appears to put its interests second,” Uefa said in a statement.

Only this wasn’t, and shouldn’t have been, the big story from this congress.

Away from this sideshow, Susan Shalabi, the vice-president of the Palestine Football Association (PFA), gave an impassioned speech.

Shalabi urged Fifa to take action on issues relating to illegal Israeli settlement clubs in Palestine, which she said are using football as a tool for the annexation and occupation of Palestine.

Inaction on this issue has lasted 15 years, as Fifa has passed the buck or used delay tactics to avoid tackling the situation.

At a Fifa congress in Bangkok in 2024, PFA president Jibril Rajoub asked: “How much more must the Palestine football family suffer for Fifa to act with the same severity and urgency as it did in other cases?

“Does Fifa consider some wars to be more important than others and some victims to be more significant?”

Shalabi’s speech on Thursday reinforced the disappointment at the continued delays and urged Fifa to make a decision.

“It has been almost 15 years since the issue of Israeli illegal settlement clubs located in Palestinian territories was formally brought to Fifa’s attention,” she said. 

“One year ago, we stood here and asked this body not for favours, not for special treatment, but for the enforcement of the very statutes and principles we all agreed to govern us as members of the global football community. 

“Specifically, we asked for the removal of the illegal settlement clubs on Palestinian territory from the Israeli leagues and immediate action against persistent racism and incitement to genocide within the Israeli football structure, which settlement clubs, by the way, are an integral part of.”

On the delays in resolving this issue, Shalabi said: “Our issue is stuck in a highly politicised, bureaucratic holding pattern, not unlike the suffering of our people. Visible, undeniable, but sadly ignored.”

It was a powerful speech. One that used the context of football to highlight the suffering of Palestinians at the hands of Israel and the fact that, despite going against Fifa’s own statutes and supposed principles, no action has been taken against the Israeli FA or its clubs.

This, again, mirrors attitudes towards the genocide in Palestine more generally.

“We must all realise that by delaying the decision, Fifa will be seen to be supporting the illegal settlements,” Shalabi added.

“Let me remind you that all of this is happening against a background of football fields in Palestine being needlessly destroyed and used as detention camps for Palestinian civilians, including children.

“Hundreds of Palestinian players, officials, and children from Palestinian football academies who were part of this football community have been brutally killed.

“Meanwhile, Israeli football players at European clubs and the Israel national team have publicly called for the annihilation of Gaza. 

“An Israeli organisation, the New Israel Fund, documented 493 violent incidents of a racist nature by Israeli clubs and fans, including 152 racist chants and incitements to genocide in Israeli stadiums, all within the period of just one football season.

“No action has been taken against any of it.

“As the Israel Football Association keeps implementing apartheid on the football stadiums in the West Bank, ignoring racism and illegally occupying and annexing Palestinian footballing territory, we must ask ourselves, what else needs to happen before the international football governing body takes action?”

The furore around Infantino’s late arrival and the walkout by some Uefa members distracted from this important issue, perhaps conveniently so for some.

In many ways, it is all linked, though. As Uefa hinted at in its statement, Infantino’s private political interests are being prioritised over the interests of the Fifa associations.

It could be said that these private political interests are also being prioritised over dealing with the issues raised by the PFA, and over Fifa’s own statutes, and have been for years.

The length of the delay in dealing with this issue certainly suggests it is affected by private political interests or favouritism.

Hundreds of Palestinian footballers have been killed, while stadiums and facilities have been reduced to rubble.

It beggars belief that this is apparently being ignored by Fifa and decisions on what action to take appear to be indefinitely delayed, again reflecting wider inaction.

Such issues have been raised by the Palestinian FA for decades and didn’t suddenly emerge in the last two years, although they are now clearly more urgent than ever before.

Support across the football world has been mixed. There has been some very vocal and visible support for Palestine at certain clubs, matches, and events, but this hasn’t been as widespread as might have been expected given the reputation many clubs have for being progressive and fighting injustice.

This has coincided with leagues and organisations stifling shows of support for Palestine by increasing the strictness and enforcement of rules around political messaging and the display of national flags.

The reception for Shalabi’s speech in Asuncion on Thursday reflected this mixed support. 

There was enthusiastic applause from some delegates, but it was not widespread across the floor.

“The president already said last year that it was urgent,” Shalabi concluded, again using football to echo the wider situation in Palestine.

“Let’s not keep rewriting the minutes of meetings and passing the bucket from one committee to the other, while football in Palestine is being erased. We need to act now. Thank you.”