The 1948–49 season was the first season of competitive

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

, which was established towards the end of the previous season, and the 23rd season under the

Israeli Football Association The Israel Football Association (IFA; he, ההתאחדות לכדורגל בישראל, ''HaHit'aḥdut leKaduregel beIsrael'', literally "The Association of Football in Israel") is the governing body of football in Israel. It organizes a variet ...

, established in 1928, during the British Mandate.

IFA Competitions

As the newly formed Israel was in the midst of the

1948 Arab–Israeli War The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...

, most footballing activities were delayed until spring 1949.

1949–51 Israel State Cup

The competition started on 9 April 1949, with 16 teams competing in the first round. After the completion of the quarter-finals, on 28 May 1949, two teams, Maccabi Petah Tikva and Maccabi Tel Aviv appealed their eliminations, and the competition was halted.

League competitions

League competitions started in May 1949 and carried over to the next season.

Youth competitions

Footballing activities for underage (and therefore, not eligible for military service) footballers continued, as possible even during the ongoing war, with the 1947–48 Palestine Noar League, which started before the declaration of independence, completed in summer 1948. During fall 1949, the

IFA IFA or Ifa may refer to: Organisations Economics * Independent financial adviser, a type of financial services professional in the UK * Index Fund Advisors * Institute and Faculty of Actuaries, representing actuaries in the UK * Institute of Act ...

organized a national cup competition for youth teams, which was won by Maccabi Tel Aviv, who had beaten Maccabi Ramat Gan 3–0 in the final.

National teams

National team

In summer 1948 an initiative was set to send a select XI to a tour in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, as a mean to show independence and as a fundraiser for the cash-strapped state.The First Independence Team on a Tour to the USA
Asher Goldberg, 9 May 2011, IFA Prior to departure the national team held a training camp in Israel, playing training matches against several army teams, beating the transport corps 10–1, the

artillery corps Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications dur ...

8–0, the

Alexandroni Brigade The Alexandroni Brigade (3rd Brigade) is an Israel Defense Forces brigade that has fought in multiple Israeli wars. History Along with the 7th Armoured Brigade both units had 139 killed during the first battle of Latrun (1948), Operation Ben Nu ...

8–3 and a select XI from the brigades stationed along the

Jordan Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...

ian-

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq ...

i front 6–0.The National Team's Tour of the USA, 1948
David Ovic, 18 August 2012, israblog.co.il The team played three matches on the tour, one against the USA team which appeared in the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ca ...

, and two against select XIs, losing all three matches. While in the US, the teams also had a training match, while visiting the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

, against the

Army Black Knights The Army Black Knights are the athletic teams that represent the United States Military Academy, located in West Point, New York. In sports contexts, since 2015, the teams are commonly referred to as Army. The Black Knights compete at the Nation ...

, winning 9–0.Change of System in Our Team in the U.S.
Arie Levin, HaMashkif, 10 October 1948, Historical Jewish Press

1948–49 matches

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:1948-49 in Israeli football Seasons in Israeli football