About The FIFL

“Building Community in the Holy Land through Football”.

The Friends of the IFL (FIFL) was founded in 2015 by Jewish and Christian friends who have a love for Israel and a passion for football.Bringing together young men or women on a football team gives them tools and values for the rest of their lives. Jews, Christians and Muslims, religious, secular and ultra-Orthodox, native Israelis and new immigrants all become one working and striving, as a team, for victory.
 
 

The game of football is one of the greatest teachers, and meritocracies, in the world. Hard work and perseverance, discipline and sacrifice, camaraderie and teamwork are just some of the traits these young men and women must refine as they prepare for a football game, as they prepare for their military service and as they prepare for the rest of their lives.

 
The FIFL works in full cooperation with the Federation of American Football in Israel (AFI), working to meet the needs of the exciting, growing, yet costly sport of football in Israel. Both the FIFL and the AFI are lean and efficient organizations, and we make sure that we help develop all aspects of the greatest team sport in the world in the greatest land in the world!

Our main sponsor and benefactor, Mr. Robert Kraft, has brought three separate missions of current and former NFL players to Israel!

Hundreds of shoulder pads and jerseys have been donated over the last 3 years!

The University of Tennessee donated all of their old gear when they switched equipment providers.

FIFL’s Betzalel Friedman reaching out in Texas with Brent Adams and Israeli Consul General Gilad Katz.

FIFL co-founder Coach Eric Cohu came to Karmiel to encourage our expansion high school team

FIFL's Long term Goals

1. Football Fields. The IFL currently plays on rented soccer fields and we are planning for 8 full-size high-school style football fields all over Israel. With matching funds from the Israeli government, each field will cost us approximately $2 million.

2. Twenty Full Clubs. We are building our teams in the European ‘Club’ style. As we spread across the nation, every adult team will have a high school team and pee-wee team under its auspices, for a grand total of 60 teams. The cost of player equipment alone for the entire program is estimated at over $1.5 million.

3. Endowment of $30 million. By building a strong endowment, we can guarantee the financial stability of the league in the long run. Yes, it’s a big dream, but as Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism, said: ‘’If you will it, it is no dream’’.