Israel’s national youth soccer team made history on Saturday night by qualifying for the semi-final of the UEFA Under-19 championship, the furthest an Israeli team has ever gone in the competition.
The achievement also meant a ticket to participate in the U-20 World Cup, which will be held next year in Indonesia.
The Minister of Culture and Sports, Chili Tropper, congratulated the team on their success.
“You have brought the determination and spirit of victory to the field and have shown that you are true winners,” Tropper said in a statement.
The team finished second in their group despite losing 1-0 to England on Saturday on a rain-soaked pitch in Slovakia.
In the semifinal they will face France, undefeated so far in the championship, and which qualified after beating Italy 4-1.
The Kan public broadcaster will broadcast the match live at 9:00 p.m. Tuesday Israel time.
Coach Ofir Haim told Kan on Sunday that it was an “extremely exciting achievement. This is unprecedented,” he said.
Haim admitted that the team will face a challenge against the French, but noted that they have drawn games in the past. “That means it’s possible to do it… and I think we’ll come prepared,” he stated.
Haim claimed that the Israeli team uses their brains to make up for what they lack in muscle strength.
“I like the players to think,” he said. “It is clear that in Israel we do not have the [capacidad] Europa’s physics and speed…so we have to compensate for that with intellect and wisdom and other components, and we’re better than the others at that,” Haim said.
Israel’s road to the semi-final began with a 2-2 draw against Serbia in their first match, and then a 4-2 win against Austria in the next. England are also unbeaten so far in the championship and scored the winning goal after six minutes of play.
Attending the World Cup next year could be challenging, as Israel has no diplomatic ties with Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country.
In 2015, Indonesia eventually granted Israeli badminton player Misha Zilberman a visa to enter the country to compete. After he tried for six months to obtain the document, the Badminton World Federation stepped in to ensure that he could obtain the visa.
