Khaberni - Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were prevented from attending the match against Aston Villa in the "Europa League" football competition next month for "safety-related reasons," according to the English club on Thursday.
Villa announced in a statement that "it has been informed that the visiting team's fans will not be allowed to attend the Europa League match on Thursday, November 6th, based on instructions from the Security Advisory Group."
The Security Advisory Group is the entity responsible for issuing safety certificates for each match at "Villa Park" in Birmingham.
The group formally directed a letter to the club and the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) informing them of the decision to bar the visiting team's fans from attending this match at Villa Park,” as “the West Midlands Police informed the group of its concerns about public safety outside the stadium premises, and its ability to handle any potential protests that night."
Villa confirmed that it is in "ongoing dialogue" with the Israeli club and local authorities "with the safety of the fans attending the match and the safety of local residents at the forefront of any decision."
In a related context, local police announced on Thursday that it has classified the match as "high risk" after a "comprehensive assessment."
A police spokesperson said, "This decision is based on current intelligence information and previous incidents, including violent clashes and hate crimes that occurred during the 2024 Europa League match between Ajax (Dutch) and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam."
The last encounter between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in November last year witnessed assaults on Israeli team fans in Amsterdam in hit-and-run attacks.
These attacks were the culmination of two days of skirmishes that also saw Maccabi fans chanting anti-Arab songs, vandalizing a taxi, and lowering the Palestinian flag.
