Israeli FA chairman Iche Menahem said yesterday he would weigh carefully whether to host future international opponents at Jerusalem's Teddy Kollek Stadium following racist chants against Israel's Arab midfielder Abbas Suan in a friendly on Wednesday.

Suan was targeted after coming on as substitute in the second half against Croatia in a game which ended in a 3-3 draw. Yesterday, the abuse drew far more attention than the match.

"If there is (an opportunity to play another friendly in Jerusalem) I would have to consider very seriously whether to play at 'Teddy' only because of the racist issue," Menahem said.

Suan, who plays for Arab side Bnei Sakhnin, said he tried to get on with the game and was heartened by the support he received from his team-mates.

"At the National Stadium in Tel Aviv this doesn't happen, we all get equal respect, it probably has a lot to do with the rivalry between Sakhnin and Betar Jerusalem," Suan said.

The modern 27,000-seat venue in Jerusalem is rarely used for international matches. Almost all the national team's fixtures are played at Tel Aviv's 44,000-seater National Stadium.

"I wanted the match to be played at Teddy Stadium so the Croatians could see Israel's capital and because it is important Jerusalemites get to see the national team," but if there is one thing I regret it is the racism," Menahem said. "I apologise to Abbas Suan."

Meanwhile, Robert Hoyzer was barred from refereeing on the grounds of gross sporting misconduct yesterday, two weeks after admitting fixing matches in Germany.

The provisional ban from the German Football Association (DFB) is the first formal sanction against Hoyzer. He confessed to the central role in Germany's biggest soccer corruption scandal on January 27th.