The 1960–61 season was the 13th 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 ...

and the 35th 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.

Review and Events

* The national team competed in the

1960 AFC Asian Cup The 1960 AFC Asian Cup was the 2nd edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were hosted by South Korea from 14 October to 23 October 1960. ...

, hosted in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

. The team came out second after winning two matches and losing one, to eventual winners,

. * In the 1962 World Cup qualification, Israel was drawn in the European Zone, into

Group 7 Group 7 may refer to: * G7, an international group of finance minister *Group 7 element, chemical element classification *Halogens (alternative name) *Group 7 Rugby League, rugby league competition in New South Wales, Australia *Group 7 (racing) G ...

. The group was played in a knockout stage on a home-and-away basis. Israel defeated

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

in the first round and then

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

in the second round, to advance to the zonal final, against

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, which was played in October 1961.

Domestic leagues

Promotion and relegation

The following promotions and relegations took place at the end of the season: ;Promoted to

Liga Leumit Liga Leumit ( he, ליגה לאומית, lit. ''National League'') is the second division of the Israeli Football League, and below its Premier League. Structure There are 16 clubs in the league. At the end of each season, the two lowest-place ...

* Hapoel Tiberias ;Promoted to

Liga Alef Liga Alef ( he, ליגה א', , League A) is the third tier of the Israeli football league system. It is divided into two regional divisions, north and south. History League football began in Israel in 1949–50, a year after the Israeli Declar ...

* Beitar Netanya * Maccabi Ramla ;Promoted to

Liga Bet Liga Bet ( he, ליגה ב', lit. ''League B'') is the fourth tier of the Israeli football league system. It is divided into four regional divisions. History League football started in Israel in 1949–50, a year after the Israeli Declaration of ...

* Hapoel Kfar Blum * Hapoel Beit HaShita * HaCarmel Club Haifa *

Hapoel Bat Yam Hapoel Bat Yam ( he, הפועל בת ים) (currently known as Hapoel Abirei Bat Yam he, הפועל אבירי בת ים, lit. Hapoel Bat Yam Knights) is an Israeli football club from the city of Bat Yam. The current club is a resurrection of ...

* Hapoel Ya'akov Kfar Saba * Hapoel Ein Karem * Hapoel Sderot * Hapoel Bnei Zion ;Relegated from

* Beitar Tel Aviv ;Relegated from

* Hapoel Hadera *

Hapoel Herzliya Hapoel Herzliya ( he, הפועל הרצליה) is an Israeli football club based in Herzliya. The club is currently in Liga Alef North division and play their home matches at the Herzliya Municipal Stadium. History The Hapoel sport club in Herzl ...

;Relegated from

* Hapoel Geva * Beitar Binyamina * Hapoel Karkur * Hapoel Dora Netanya * Hapoel Kiryat Shalom ¹ * Hapoel Zichronot * Maccabi Gedera * Hapoel Gedera 1. Hapoel Kiryat Shalom merged with Hapoel HaDarom Tel Aviv and remained, as part of the merged club, in

Domestic cups

Israel State Cup The Israel State Cup ( he, גביע המדינה, ''Gvia HaMedina''), is a knockout cup competition in Israeli football, run by the Israel Football Association (IFA). The State Cup was first held in 1928 as the People's Cup. Because it involve ...

The 1958–59 Israel State Cup started during the previous season, but was carried over the summer break and finished with the final on 19 November 1959, in which

Maccabi Tel Aviv Maccabi Tel Aviv ( he, מכבי תל אביב) is one of the largest sports clubs in Israel, and a part of the Maccabi association. Many sports clubs and teams in Tel Aviv are in association with Maccabi and compete in a variety of sports, such ...

defeated

Hapoel Petah Tikva Hapoel Petah Tikva F.C. ( he, הפועל פתח תקווה) is an Israeli football club based in the city of Petah Tikva, currently playing in the Liga Leumit. Its most successful period was throughout the 1950s and 1960s, in which the club won ...

4–3. On 30 January 1960, the next season's competition began, and once again carried over to the next season.

National Teams

National team A national sports team (commonly known as a national team or a national side) is a team that represents a nation, rather than a particular club or region, in an international sport. The term is most commonly associated with team sports, for exam ...

1960 AFC Asian Cup The 1960 AFC Asian Cup was the 2nd edition of the men's AFC Asian Cup, a quadrennial international football tournament organised by the Asian Football Confederation (AFC). The finals were hosted by South Korea from 14 October to 23 October 1960. ...

1960–61 matches

{{DEFAULTSORT:1960-61 in Israeli football Seasons in Israeli football