Israeli soccer clubs team up to help wounded veterans rebuild their lives

(Nov. 10, 2026/ JNS)

A recently introduced effort by the Israel Football Association and the IDF Disabled Veterans Organization is utilizing soccer to support the rehab of injured IDF soldiers and security workers.

” Kicking Forward,” introduced recently at the nationwide group’s training complex in Shefayim, unites 9 groups developed in cooperation with 6 leading Israel Premier League clubs: Beitar Jerusalem, F.C. Ashdod, Hapoel Beersheva, Hapoel Tel Aviv, Maccabi Haifa and Maccabi Tel Aviv.

The effort supplies individuals with a routine, team-based structure integrating sports activities, social connections and a sense of coming from the soccer clubs they support, as part of their rehab and go back to daily life.

Ronit Glasman, director of development and organization advancement at the Israel Football Association, who started the task, informed JNS that the concept emerged not long after the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, massacre and the occurring war in Gaza, when the IDF Disabled Veterans Organization approached the association to check out methods the 2 companies might work together.

The partnership was triggered by an understanding that the brand-new generation of veterans would be more youthful which rehab programs would require to adjust appropriately, she stated.

“We selected a couple of efforts through these 3 years. We desired to do something more structured to enable us to comprehend the effect on the veterans and we began ‘Kicking Forward,'” Glasman informed JNS.

“It’s more concentrated on Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder-impacted soldiers and the goal is to provide a structure of routine training once a week, with expert fitness instructors, devices, centers, to have them initially leave your home and back to the regular,” she continued.

“We understood that by engaging all the 6 leading clubs and doing the activities in the clubs, it would be more significant,” Glasman included.

The IDF Disabled Veterans Organization’s Beit Halochem rehab centers will offer individuals with expert and psychological assistance, consisting of assistance from social employees, psychologists and rehab experts, according to their private requirements.

“Our cooperation with the Israel Football Association is another essential action in our shared efforts to supply injured IDF soldiers and security workers with extra chances for rehab and a go back to satisfying lives,” stated Yossi Matityahu, CEO of the IDF Disabled Veterans Organization.

“Sport is an important part of physical and psychological rehab, reinforcing confidence and cultivating a sense of ability and belonging. Honoring our heroes is not merely about stating thank you, it needs a continuous dedication to their rehab,” he included.

Around 250 IDF soldiers are presently taking part in the program, Glasman stated. The primary barrier to broadening it is the schedule of training centers.

“For now, we are doing it for one year. It’s a pilot. We were expected to have 6 groups however opened 9 due to the fact that of the need,” she stated.

The launch occasion opened with an event presenting the effort and the collaboration in between the 2 companies. It was followed by an exhibit match including injured soldiers and security workers, members of the Israeli Artists’ National Football Team and previous Israel nationwide group gamers, consisting of Moshe Sinai, Omri Afek, Liran Strauber, Ravid Gazal, Omer Golan, Shuli Gilardi and Jean Talesnikov.

“The collaboration with the IDF Disabled Veterans Organization shows the worths that direct us at the Israel Football Association: shared duty, empathy and belief in the power of a group. Injured IDF soldiers and security workers are a remarkable example of decision, guts and the capability to increase once again, even in the face of the best obstacles,” Shino Zuaretz, chairman of the Israel Football Association, stated.

“It is thanks to them that we can continue playing, and it is our responsibility to continue waiting their side. I take pride in the clubs that have actually joined this effort and of a collaboration that when again shows that Israeli soccer has to do with far more than the video game itself. Together, we will keep kicking forward.”