The chairman and CEO of the Israel Football Association sent a letter to the treasurer and the minister of culture and sport, Tuesday afternoon, advising them that soccer has been idled around the country, except for the national team's preparations for next Monday's opening game of World Cup competition against Italy in Haifa.
The letter cited a delay in the signing of a marketing agreement between the association and the Toto council for regulating sports betting. Another letter was sent to the association's budgetary control group to instruct teams to raise the funds they need to make up for the shortfall from the lack of a marketing agreement.