Soccer
SoccerFlash 90

Responding to public pressure, the Israel Football Association announced Friday that it had taken back its newly-announced prohibition on soccer players' wearing a kippah, or yarmulke, on the soccer field.

"After a consultation carried out this morning between the Soccer Federation and the Referees' Union, it was decided to maintain the status quo... until the end of the season, so that every tradition-abiding player who chooses to play with a kippah on his head, without the matter even being mentioned in the referee's report,” said the Referees' Union.

"It is important to note that no player was ever put on trial for wearing a kippah,” the union added.

The Soccer Federation had released guidelines on Thursday, in which it forbade striker Yair Cohen Tzedek, of the Maccabi Yafo Kabilyo team, to wear a kippah while playing.

Referees ruled that for "reasons of unity," Cohen Tzedek will be required to remove his kippah before taking the pitch, or else not play. The decision was reversed on Friday, and on Saturday, Cohen-Tzedek regaled the audience of a game against Bat Yam with a stupendous goal, that can be seen in the embedded video.