The group stages of the UEFA Europa League continue on Thursday night with plenty of major teams in action. Manchester United, Roma, Ajax and Porto are all playing.
However, a look through the fixture list throws up a curious anomaly - one that anyone who knows anything about geography would be puzzled by - Israel's Maccabi Tel Aviv are up against RFS. All seems to make sense, except for the fact that Israel is not geographically part of Europe.
So, why are they part of UEFA and why do their teams play in UEFA competitions? Here's how it happened.
It's complicated
The politics of the Middle East are complicated and fraught. So, it goes without saying that in unpacking the situation in football, things will ultimately lead back to politics.
Before we continue though, it is true that Israel is geographically in Asia, like all of its neighbours.
Israel comes into being
The state of Israel came into being in 1948 and the Israeli Football Association was founded the same year.
In 1956, the IFA joined the Asian Football Confederation and things appeared good - at least on the field. Israel performed well at the Asian Cup, finishing as runners-up in 1956 and 1960 before winning it as hosts in 1964.
However, off the field, the situation was less rosy. Turkey (who had yet to switch to UEFA), Indonesia and Sudan all refused to play Israel in qualifiers for the 1958 World Cup and boycotts persisted. By 1974, a resolution proposed by Kuwait was passed by the AFC and Israel were expelled.
In the wilderness
For almost two decades, Israeli football teams were in the wilderness, unable to play in major global or continental competitions. However, their club sides were invited to play in the Intertoto Cup, in which they participated from 1976 to 1994.
Relations with Europe warm
By 1991, UEFA had warmed sufficiently towards Israel that the national team was allowed to compete under the European association. Shortly thereafter, in 1992, Israeli clubs were granted an exemption to play in UEFA competitions and in 1994, UEFA upgraded Israel's membership from associate to full.
Impact
The impact of European football has significantly benefited Israeli clubs like Maccabi Tel Aviv, Hapoel Be’er Sheva and Maccabi Haifa that regularly feature in prestigious tournaments like the UEFA Champions League and Europa League. This exposure has improved the standard of football in Israel and provided its players with opportunities to compete on an elite stage.
Other similar scenarios
Is the Israeli situation unique or are there other examples where geographic boundaries have been ignored? There are a few instances:
Rugby's European Champions Cup: This competition features teams from South Africa, who as the name implies, are very much not part of Europe. This is not a matter of political expediency or convenience however, it's simply that teams from three different competitions qualify to play in Rugby's Champions Cup - The Top14, The Premiership and The URC (which features South African) sides.
Turkey: Despite being 97% in Asia, Turkey are also part of UEFA. Critically 15% of the Turkish population live in the European part of the country.
Australia: Despite not being Asian, Australia participates in the Asian Cup and qualifies for the World Cup through Asia. Geographically they are part of Oceania, but moved to the Asian Federation to avoid crazy results like the 31-0 win over American Samoa in an Oceanian qualifying match for the 2002 FIFA World Cup.
