Israeli Amputee Soccer Team

Tzach founded the team back in 2020, which makes Israel the youngest team in European Amputee sports. Tzach was joined by Sharon Paz, who had, over the course of some 20 years, coached all kinds of players—youth, women, men. But if you ask him, he considers the amputees he coaches today to be the most amazing people he has ever worked with.

They began competing for fun—an added challenge for the process of healing and bonding as a team. Then they started winning. They beat Ireland, Germany, Belgium, Scotland…and suddenly they found themselves being moved up in the league ranks. 

On October 7th last year the team was slated to play and win a game that would bump them up yet another grade in the league. They, however, woke up that morning to horrifying reports, texts and uncensored video clips of the atrocities taking place back home. They played anyway, and only lost in a final penalty goal.

As the war progressed, there were so many new amputees, the need for a team like this only grew.

The IAFL’s presence in games abroad opens up valuable opportunities to build interpersonal ties with other countries—a crucial step in combatting the Islamic strategy of isolating Israel.

On one hand, the team’s inclusive nature that boasts Jews and Arabs, secular and religious, politically liberal and conservative, is a testimony to the freedom of worship and thought, which is so rarely found in the Middle East. On the other hand, all team members are perceived by outsiders simply as “Israeli” which places them in danger when they play in countries with active antisemitic sentiments.

While Israel as a people are proud of the team’s accomplishments, the government has not granted the team official status which would give it a budget for flights, considerable health insurance policies and security detail. Those expenditures, for the meantime, must be raised benevolently. Seeing this cause as both beneficial for the recovery of Israelis from war trauma as well as the impact they have internationally on behalf of Israel, ISWI is proud to join in and cover some of these expenses and are looking forward to a long-lasting relationship with the league.