Israeli football club Maccabi Tel Aviv has confirmed that its fans will not be able to attend next month’s UEFA Europa Conference League match against Aston Villa in Birmingham, citing safety concerns.
The decision means that even if a local supporter ban is overturned, no away tickets will be sold by the Israeli side.
In a statement posted on X, Maccabi Tel Aviv said:
“As a result of the hate-filled falsehoods, a toxic atmosphere has been created which makes the safety of our fans wishing to attend very much in doubt. Inflammatory rhetoric, trafficking in half-truths is never healthy, but in this particular case the remarks being generated are of the most concerning variety. Not for Maccabi Tel Aviv or football, but for the sake of society and its underlying values, maybe the agendas involved here should be looked at more closely.
”The wellbeing and safety of our fans is paramount and from hard lessons learned, we have taken the decision to decline any allocation offered on behalf of away fans and our decision should be understood in that context.”
The move follows guidance from Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group (SAG) — a body made up of the local council, police, and event organisers — which had earlier banned Maccabi fans from attending the match due to what it described as a “high risk of violence based on current intelligence and previous incidents.”
Maccabi said it believes “football should be about bringing people together, not driving them apart,” and claimed it has “been working tirelessly to stamp out racism within the more extreme elements of our fan base.”
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Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans are infamously known for their anti-Palestinian and anti-Arab racism, where they have been repeatedly filmed chanting genocidal slogans, which include the killing of Palestinian children in Gaza and the rape of Arab women.
West Midlands Police confirmed it had classified the fixture as high risk, echoing concerns raised by the SAG. The initial decision was partly informed by violent clashes surrounding Maccabi’s 2024 Europa League match against Ajax in Amsterdam.
However, Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the ban “the wrong decision,” while Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch described it as a “national disgrace”. The leader of the Liberal Democrats, Ed Davey, and the leader of Reform UK, Nigel Farage, also condemned the ban.
Subsequently, the UK government said it was exploring “what additional resources and support are required” to allow “all fans” to attend the match safely.
The controversy heightened after a major security incident before the Tel Aviv derby between Maccabi and Hapoel on Sunday 19 October, when the game was cancelled before kick-off due to violent fan unrest that left police officers and civilians injured.
Birmingham MP Ayoub Khan, who led the petition for the Maccabi fan ban, has backed the decision, saying it was “a matter of public safety, not religion.”
The match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv is scheduled to take place in Birmingham on Thursday 6 November, with no Israeli fans in attendance.
