It comes as the Government seeks to overturn a ban on Maccabi fans attending the fixture due to safety concerns
Maccabi Tel Aviv has said it will decline any tickets offered to its fans for next month’s Europa League match at Villa Park.
It comes as Sir Keir Starmer’s Government had been working with West Midlands Police and Birmingham City Council to ensure fans from both Aston Villa and Maccabi Tel Aviv could attend the fixture.
Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group, the body responsible for issuing safety certificates for every match at Villa Park, last week recommended that no away fans will be allowed to watch.
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West Midlands Police classified the fixture as high-risk based on “current intelligence and previous incidents”.
The force pointed to violent clashes and hate crime offences that occurred during the 2024 Uefa Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam.
On Tuesday evening, the Israeli club said in a statement that a “toxic atmosphere” had put the safety of fans wanting to attend “very much in doubt”.
It 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.
“We hope that circumstances will change and look forward to being able to play in Birmingham in a sporting environment in the near future.”
The Prime Minister previously called the move to ban fans “wrong” and said “we will not tolerate antisemitism on our streets.”
The Tories, Liberal Democrats and Reform UK also criticised the decision.
The Green Party of England and Wales backed the move, saying it was “irresponsible” for Starmer to question a local authority’s safety decision.
The Government had been expecting West Midlands Police to set out this week what they would need to police the game safely with both sets of fans present.
Downing Street said earlier on Monday that the UK Football Policing Unit was “reaching out” to Israeli authorities to understand why an Israeli Premier League match between rivals Hapoel and Maccabi was called off.
Trouble reportedly flared before kick-off in and around the Bloomfield Stadium, a venue shared by Hapoel and Maccabi.
Media reports in Israel said Tel Aviv police arrested five people on suspicion of disturbing public order and that 51 flares or smoke bombs had been thrown on to the pitch.
Israel National News reported that fans of both teams hurled flares onto the pitch.
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