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The most nostalgic: When the Israeli and Brazilian teams met for the last time | Israel Hayom

2023-06-02T05:13:17.401Z

Highlights: Almost 47 years ago, Israel and Brazil met in the quarterfinals of the Olympic tournament. The match took place at the University of Toronto Stadium in front of 18,000 spectators. The blue and white team ended up losing 4-1, but that period will never be forgotten. Until the World Cup in Argentina, this is the last time any Israeli soccer team has participated in a world (non-continental) tournament.. Israel advanced from second place at home to a quarter-final encounter against Brazil, then coached by Claudio Coutinho. Israel ended its three games in the group stage with a draw.


Almost 47 years have passed since the two teams met in the quarterfinals of the 1976 Olympic Games • Alongside national euphoria, there were also quite a few mishaps on the way to the tournament, which were forgotten in an instant • The blue and white team ended up losing 4-1, but that period will never be forgotten


When Ofir Haim's players take to the pitch at the San Juan Stadium, it will not be the first time that Israel and Brazil have met in the quarterfinals of a major international championship.

Few people remember, but almost 47 years ago, Israel and Brazil met in the quarterfinals of the Olympic tournament. And so far, until the World Cup in Argentina, this is the last time any Israeli soccer team has participated in a world (non-continental) tournament.

In those days, the Olympic soccer tournament was very different from how it looks today. Professional players were not allowed to participate, but everything was with a wink. So it's true that Western European teams played mostly young players, although 21-year-old Michel Platini – then a rising young star in Nancy – played for France.

Michel Platini. The legend of the French national team, photo: AP

The teams of Eastern European countries in the communist era came with the strongest rosters. The actors earned quite well in their fictitious jobs in the army and police, but were defined as "amateurs".

The players of the Israeli national team, which at the time was still playing in the framework of the Asian Association, were also in this position as far as FIFA was concerned. With the exception of the Legionnaires, such as Giora Spiegel and Motella Spiegler who played in France, anyone who came from the Israeli league was considered an amateur.

So in fact Israel's Olympic team was the national team, including two graduates of the World Cup Mexico '70, goalkeeper Itzik Visuker and midfielder Yitzhak Shum. David Schweitzer, who was appointed coach of the team in 1973, was the one who led the team to victory over South Korea in Seoul, which secured a ticket to the Olympics in Montreal.

At the end of June 1976, the team left for a training camp in London, and then mishaps began. First it was Uri Malmilian, the young star of Beitar Jerusalem, who remained in Israel due to veins.

On 27 June, an Air France plane en route from Israel to Paris was hijacked by Palestinian and German terrorists and flown to Entebbe, Uganda. One of the 248 passengers was Nili Ben Dor, wife of the national team and Hapoel B'Sheva defender, Alon Ben Dor. The fear was enormous since Nili's father, Yosef Tulipman, was the director of the Dimona Nuclear Research Campus, and Nili's passport still had her maiden name on it. Ben Dor's head wasn't in training or the Olympics and he only registered at the last minute, and wasn't at all sure if he would make it to Canada. That's why he also got the number 17 shirt, the last on the list.

Release of the hostages in Operation Entebbe, photo: Sarah Davidson

On 4 July, Sayeret Matkal raided the terminal in Entebbe and freed the hostages, in one of the most daring operations in history. Nili was released, Alon returned to training, but for many years refused to talk about the case.

Opening whistle

The Olympics opened on July 17, two weeks after Operation Jonathan and a week after Serena Moore won the Miss World title. The euphoria surrounding small, brave and victorious Israel has broken records.

Then the football tournament began. Israel ended its three games in the group stage with a draw. 0-0 with Guatemala, 2-2 with Mexico of 18-year-old Hugo Sanchez, and 1-1 with Platini and Patrick Battiston's France. Israel advanced from second place at home to a quarter-final encounter against Brazil, then coached by Claudio Coutinho, who coached the Seleção at the World Cup in Argentina two years later.

The match on July 25, 1976 took place at the University of Toronto Stadium in front of 18,<> spectators, many of them local Jews. Schweitzer believed that it would be possible to beat Brazil, about which he knew almost nothing, and came up with an attacking lineup, with Vicky Peretz from Maccabi Tel Aviv and Gidi Damati from Shimshon Tel Aviv alone.

Avi Cohen, 19, Maccabi Tel Aviv's great talent, was not in the lineup at the start of the tournament, but towards the end he became a key player. Three years later he would sign for Liverpool.

Avi Cohen z"l. was a huge talent, photo: Getty Images

The starting line-up against Brazil: Yitzhak Visuker, Eli Lowenthal, Haim Bar, Alon Ben Dor, Meir Nemni, Avi Cohen, Yaron Oz, Yitzhak Shum, Moshe Schwaitzer, Gidi Damti, Vicky Peretz. Jimmy Turk and Oded Machness came in as substitutes.

Although all of Brazil's players came from local teams at the time, four of them became World Cup superstars within a few years: goalkeeper Carlos, midfielders Edinho and Batista and, of course, Junior, the legendary left-back.

Junior, Brazil's legendary left-back, photo: AP

Until the 56th minute, Israel was still holding on. The score was 0-0 and there were still hopes of a medal, but then the technical gaps between the players began to manifest. The Brazilians' physical fitness was also far superior. Brazil scored four goals in the last half hour (a pair of Yerebas, and more goals by Arribelto and Junior) in front of a sneaky Vicky Perez goal. That didn't help Brazil in the semi-finals, where they lost 2-0 to Poland, who themselves lost in the final to East Germany.

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Despite the disappointing loss to Brazil and despite not winning any of its four matches, for Israel it was overall a successful tournament. The fact is, since then the senior team has not qualified for any major tournament in 47 years.

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Source: israelhayom

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