In a tense prelude to the Europa League soccer match between Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Birmingham, British police arrested six individuals on Thursday evening. The match, which saw Maccabi Tel Aviv fans banned from attending, was marked by heightened security and protests. West Midlands Police deployed over 700 officers to manage the situation, which included the arrest of a 21-year-old man for refusing to remove a face mask and a 17-year-old boy for violating a dispersal order. Three others were detained for racially aggravated public order offenses, and one for breach of the peace. Approximately 200 protesters, including members of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, gathered near a children’s playpark adjacent to Villa Park’s Trinity Road stand. Palestinian flags and banners calling for a boycott of Israel were displayed, accompanied by pro-Gaza chants. Police briefly formed a cordon to prevent a surge of protesters after an Israeli flag was reportedly waved by a passer-by. Prior to kick-off, five vehicles with electronic billboards opposing antisemitism drove past the stadium. One message, featuring a Star of David, read “Ban hatred not fans,” while another quoted French soccer legend Thierry Henry, emphasizing football’s role in uniting people. The decision to ban visiting fans, made by Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group last month, was widely criticized, including by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and led Maccabi Tel Aviv to announce their fans would not travel. The ban comes amid heightened concerns about antisemitism in Britain, following a deadly attack on a Manchester synagogue earlier this month and calls for a sports boycott of Israel over the Gaza conflict. West Midlands Police deemed the match high-risk due to current intelligence and past incidents, including violence and hate crimes during Maccabi Tel Aviv’s match against Ajax in Amsterdam last season.
UK police arrest 6 ahead of soccer match between Aston Villa and Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv
