Algeria international Youcef Atal has been slapped with a seven-match ban by French Ligue 1 authorities (LFP) over his social media comments about the ongoing war between Israel and Palestine.
The Ligue 1 authorities confirmed the punishment after the 27-year-old defender was handed an indefinite suspension by his club, OGC Nice last week.
In the wake of the Israel-Hamas war this month, Atal pledged his support for Palestinians in Gaza but deleted the Instagram post after social media backlash and he also issued an apology to his French employers, OGC Nice.
Atal’s suspension will start this weekend and he will miss games against Clermont Foot, Rennes, Montpellier, Toulouse, Nantes, Reims and Le Havre and he will be available to return to action for Francesco Farioli’s team on December 20.
While serving his suspension, Atal could be summoned by Algeria for the opening games of 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against Somalia and Mozambique on November 16 and 19.
The Algerian right-back is the second African star to be punished for comment on the Israel-Hamas war, after Bundesliga club Mainz suspended Morocco’s Anwar El Ghazi last Tuesday.
