Maccabi Tel Aviv fans will not be able to buy tickets to their club’s match with Aston Villa next month, the Israeli club have said.
In a statement, they said: “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.”
It comes after the UK government said it was exploring what “additional resources and support are required” to allow “all fans” to attend.
Supporters of the Israeli side had been told last week they would not be allowed to go to November’s game in Birmingham after a decision by Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group (SAG).
The group – made up of local stakeholders, including representatives from the council, police and event organisers – said the decision was due to a high risk of violence based on “current intelligence and previous incidents”.
Maccabi Tel Aviv said the club believed “football should be about bringing people together not driving them apart” and that it had “been working tirelessly to stamp out racism within the more extreme elements of our fan base”.
However, it added: “Unfortnately those issues are not restricted to Israeli football, and they are problems the sport has been grappling worldwide including in the UK.”
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