Overview
- Sayed Abu Farchi scored to level the game then ran to the corner flag, uprooted it and made a gesture that drew a second yellow card and an immediate red, leaving Israel with ten men in the second half on Thursday.
- Austria took advantage of the numerical edge to win 3–1 after two late goals, with Romano Schmid, Philipp Mwene and Saša Kalajdžić on the scoresheet.
- Coach Ran Ben‑Shimon said the celebration is a routine for Abu Farchi and accepted some responsibility for not stopping it, while Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 reported the player apologized and described the move as his usual goal routine.
- Match referee Georgi Kabakow applied the Laws of the Game that allow cautions for provocative or inflammatory gestures, and officials issued the second yellow immediately after the celebration.
- The incident has provoked sharp and mixed reactions in media and among players, with some viewing the gesture as harmless habit and others calling it inappropriate, a debate intensified by wider political sensitivities linked to the region.