Why Scotland v Israel is behind closed doors as another big night awaits Pedro Martinez Losa and players

Scotland will take on Israel at Hampden Park on Friday night in Euro 2025 qualifying action - but the game will have no fans in attendance

Scotland Women’s Euro 2025 double-header against Israel this week will go ahead despite strong calls for the games to be cancelled.

The national team have already taken four points from their games against Serbia and Slovakia in the qualifying stages and will face Israel in a double-header this coming week, with many raising concern over the games going ahead due to the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

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Since 2021, the Scottish Women’s national team have exclusively played their home games at Hampden Park but will take on Israel behind closed doors this Friday night before heading to the Hungarian capital of Budapest on Tuesday for the return clash.

Under pressure Scotland head coach Pedro Martinez Losa will enter the games knowing his side require maximum points as speculation on his future continues to grow. Despite an unimpressive spell in charge of the national team, the Spaniard was strongly linked to the vacant role at French giants Lyon recently. However, Martinez Losa said his focus is solely “on qualifying for the Euros” and “protecting the players”.

Goalkeeper Lee Gibson said the boss had “addressed the squad” amid uncertainly over his future, adding: “he's re-iterated that he's committed here and we've had that clarity so going forward, we're fully focused on the job at hand.”

With much controversy surrounding the game going ahead, here are the reason’s the game is still being played, why it is being played behind closed doors and what Police Scotland have said regarding to game.

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Why is Scotland vs Israel being played behind closed doors

The decision to play Friday’s game at Hampden Park was made by the Scottish Football Association last week, who said they were “alerted to the potential for planned disruptions to the match”, adding that they were left with “no option” to place game behind closed closed doors after “extensive security consultations with all key parties”.

Several fans and organisations immediately called for the game to not be played by the Scottish national team when they were drawn together in Group B2 of Euro 2025 qualifying alongside Serbia and Slovakia in March.

The game was confirmed to go ahead due to the decision by Europe’s governing body, UEFA, after they decided to not remove Israel from the tournament despite their government’s military response to the attack by Hamas on October 7. UEFA confirmed the matches would go ahead but that no matches in their own competition would be held in Israel, owing to ‘security concerns’.

Tuesday’s away game with Israel - which was subsequently moved to Budapest - will also be played behind closed doors.

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Is Scotland vs Israel on TV? How to watch Euro 2025 qualifier

Where: Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland, Friday 31 May, 7.05pm

The game will be broadcast live on TV despite security concerns, with BBC Scotland, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website all showing the game.

Are protests expected at the Scotland vs Israel game?

Many public protests have already taken places across the UK following the Israeli’s military operation in Gaza, including protests from the ‘Gaza Genocide Emergency Committee’, who have organised a protest prior to Friday’s clash outside of the national stadium. They are calling for the matches to be cancelled.

A recent statement from Police Scotland said that "appropriate policing plans are in place to maintain public safety and minimise any disruption to the community."

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