Fenerbahce postpones Europa League matches against Israeli teams due to security concerns

Fenerbahce’s Europa League matches against Israeli teams Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv next month have been moved to Germany due to security concerns.

The Turkish team was scheduled to host the clubs in Istanbul on November 11 and 13, but the matches will now be held in Munich on the same dates due to what Fenerbahce said were security measures implemented by the Turkish authorities.

Fenerbahce said that the matches will be held in the German city’s SAP Park and will be “open to the participation of our fans.”

The defending Euroleague champions were also forced to move two games against Maccabi, which were scheduled to be played in Istanbul, to Lithuania last year.

Relations between Türkiye and Israel have deteriorated since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.

Large anti-Israel demonstrations have taken place across Türkiye since then.

Last week, Fenerbahce and fellow Europa League club Efes Istanbul criticized the tournament organizers’ decision to allow Israeli clubs to resume playing at home from December 1.

Israeli teams have been playing their Europa League and European Cup matches abroad since October 2023.

This is just the latest in a series of incidents in which tensions surrounding the war between Israel and Gaza have affected the sport.

Earlier this month, the decision was made to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv FC fans from attending the Europa League match against Aston Villa in Birmingham on November 6 for safety reasons.

Violence also broke out before Maccabi’s match against Ajax in the same competition in November last year.

There were also protests at the Israeli national football team’s 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Norway and Italy this month.

Meanwhile, Israel-Premier Tech will drop Israel from its name as of next season after the cycling team, owned by Israeli-Canadian billionaire Sylvan Adams, was at the center of several disturbances by protesters during last month’s Vuelta a Espana in Spain.