FA chief executive Mark Bullingham has acknowledged the decision to not light up the Wembley arch following Hamas‘ attacks on Israel ’caused hurt in the Jewish community’.
The governing body considered lighting up the arch in the colours of the Israel flag for England’s friendly match against Australia last Friday after the attacks by Hamas on October 7.
However, they opted against it in a move that was criticised by the Jewish community, with the Rabbi who runs the FA’s Faith in Football group resigning over the matter. Reflecting on the decision, Bullingham has now apologised for any hurt caused.
‘I recognise our decision on the arch caused hurt in the Jewish community,’ he told a Leaders conference.
Explaining why the arch had not been lit up on this occasion, Bullingham added: ‘We felt we should show compassion for all innocent victims.’
The FA decided not to light up the Wembley arch in the colours of the Israel flag for England’s match against Australia last week
Following the attacks, 10 Downing Street lit up in the colours of the Israel flag to show their support for the Middle Eastern country.
The Wembley arch has previously been lit up to show support for the LGBTQ+ community and Ukraine following Russia’s invasion of the country last year.
But this time they decided to keep the arch unlit, and Bullingham has confirmed the FA will be reviewing when to light up the arch in the future.
Instead, the FA decided to hold a minute’s silence before last Friday’s match with Australia to honour the victims on both sides of the ongoing conflict between Israel and Palestine.
Israel and Palestine flags were also banned from being brought in to Wembley, although one Israel flag was spotted being held up inside the venue.
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