Israel football club UAE co-owner opens door to Arab players

Stadium security remove a fan during a friendly football match between Beitar Jerusalem and Atletico Madrid at the Teddy Stadium in Jerusalem on May 21, 2019 [JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images]

December 8, 2020 at 8:46 pm

Beitar Jerusalem's new Emirati co-owner said on Tuesday the Israeli soccer club was open to recruiting Arab players, a step likely to stir anger among its anti-Arab fan base.

Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Nahyan, a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family, this week bought a 50% stake in the club where a group of supporters, known as "La Familia", have been openly racist towards Israel's Arab minority.

Beitar has never fielded an Arab player since its founding in 1936, and Muslim players who played for the club in the past had been the target of racist abuse.

"We are open. Our door is open to all the talent. No matter what is his religion or wherever he comes from," said Sheikh Hamad, sitting alongside co-owner Moshe Hogeg in an online media briefing.

Arab citizens make up around 21 per cent of Israel's population of around 9 million and Arab players feature at Israel's other clubs and in the national team.

Sheikh Hamad and Hogeg said they believed Beitar's racist fans had been brainwashed and that they hoped the club would show that Jews and Muslims can work together.

Hogeg, co-founder of tech firm Sirin Labs, hailed Sheikh Hamad's investment as a "great moment" for the club, while warning, if necessary, that it would take legal measures, including suing fans, to stop "extreme racism" at its games.

"We are not afraid of the racists. We have a plan on how to deal with that," he said.

Sheikh Hamad bought into Beitar four months after the United Arab Emirates, breaking with decades of Arab policy, agreed to establish relations with Israel, a move that angered Palestinians and some Muslim states and communities. Bahrain and Sudan have since followed suit.

UAE royal buys Israel football club as fans react with 'F*** Dubai'
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Fans of the Israeli Premier League football team Beitar Jerusalem wait for the kick-off in Hungary on 6 July 2017 [Laszlo Szirtesi/Getty Images]

December 8, 2020 at 1:51 pm

A member of the UAE royal family, Sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, has purchased a 50 per cent stake in Israeli Premier League football team Beitar Jerusalem, a club notorious for its racist chants against Palestinians.

Details of the purchase were announced by the Israeli club on its website and social media. "A historic and exciting day for Beitar Jerusalem. This afternoon (monday) a partnership agreement was signed between Mr. Moshe Hogeg and Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Nahyan," said the Israeli club on its Twitter account.

In an announcement posted on their website, Beitar said Hamad Bin Khalifa's purchase also included a commitment to invest more than 300 million shekels ($92.18 million) in the club over the next ten years.

Beitar's announcement quoted Hamad Bin Khalifa as saying: "I am thrilled to be a partner in such a glorious club that I have heard so much of and in such a great city, the capital of Israel and one of the holiest cities in the world."

While the deal to purchase stakes in an Israeli football club may itself raise some eyebrows, Hamad Bin Khalifa's reference to Jerusalem as Israel's capital is likely to prove controversial given the city's status as one of the core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Despite normalising relations with the occupying state, the UAE has not officially recognised Jerusalem as Israel's capital.

Beitar Jerusalem is a bastion of Israel's political right-wing and a group of supporters known as "La Familia" has been openly abusive towards Israel's Arab minority. The club has faced several penalties as a result of its fans chanting racist slogans and its opposition to bringing Palestinian citizens of Israel into the team.

Its hardcore fan base is notoriously abusive towards opposing players, routinely taunting them with racist and anti-Arab chants. One chant goes: "Here we are, the most racist team in the country."

While a banner was set up outside Beitar Jerusalem's stadium praising Hamad Bin Khalifa and welcoming him to Jerusalem, some of the club's fans sprayed offensive and racist graffiti on the outer wall of Beitar Jerusalem's stadium, saying: "Mohammed is Dead", "Death to Arabs", "Fuck Dubai", and "You can't buy us!!! $ Don't fuck with us!