Story highlights Israel says it approved 95% of travel; Palestinians say travel bans ensnare coaches, goalies

FIFA members could vote on Palestinian bid to suspend Israel, which FIFA leader hopes to avoid

Palestinians say Israel restricts players' movements; Israel says they're mixing sports, politics

Jerusalem (CNN) FIFA President Sepp Blatter is trying to broker a deal between the Palestinian and Israel football associations ahead of this week's FIFA World Congress at which the Palestinians have called for a vote to suspend Israel.

Blatter met with both associations, as well as Israeli and Palestinian political leaders, during a visit to the region in hopes of finding a way to ease the tension. FIFA is the international soccer governing body.

"Football has the power to connect people," Blatter said at a press conference last week in Jerusalem. "Football has the power to construct bridges. I am coming here and going to your neighbors ... to try to construct bridges and to try and make sure that football is not dividing, but football is uniting."

Instead of a vote, Blatter suggests a game between the two national teams, offering Zurich, Switzerland, as a possible location.

The Palestinian group objects to Israeli teams playing in the West Bank. They also say Israel restricts movements of Palestinian players between the West Bank and Gaza as well as for international matches.

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