Fenerbahce postpones Euroleague matches against Israeli teams due to security reasons
Fenerbahce’s EuroLeague home matches against Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv next month have been moved to Germany due to security concerns.
The Turkish side were due to host the clubs in Istanbul on November 11 and 13, but the games will now be played in Munich on the same dates due to what Fenerbahce said were security measures implemented by the Turkish authorities.
Fenerbahce said the matches will be played at the SAP Garden in the German city and will be “open to the participation of our fans”.
The defending Euroleague champions also had to move two games against Maccabi, originally scheduled to be played in Istanbul, to Lithuania last year.
Relations between Turkey and Israel have deteriorated since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to a Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
Since then, large anti-Israel demonstrations have been held across Turkey.
Last week, Fenerbahce and fellow Euroleague Efes Istanbul criticized the tournament organizers’ decision to allow Israeli clubs to continue playing at home from December 1.
Israeli teams will play their Euroleague and Eurocup matches abroad from October 2023.
It is just the latest in a series of incidents where tensions over the war between Israel and Gaza have affected sport.
Earlier this month, a decision was made to at least Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans from attending the Europa League match against Aston Villa in Birmingham on November 6 for security reasons.
Violence broke out before the Maccabi match against Ajax in the same competition in November last year.
There were also protests at Israel’s 2026 World Cup qualifiers in Norway and Italy this month.
Meanwhile, Israel-Premier Tech to put Israel out of their name from 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.
2025-10-30 22:09:00
