A member of Abu Dhabi’s royal family has bought half of Beitar Jerusalem, a top Israeli football team notorious for its anti-Arab fan base.
Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Nahyan signed a “partnership agreement” with club owner Moshe Hogeg, said a statement from Beitar, calling it a “historic and exciting day”.
The agreement comes after Israel established ties with UAE and Bahrain, only the third and fourth Arab nations to normalise relations with the Jewish state, after its neighbours Egypt and Jordan.
According to the statement, Sheik Nahyan “purchased approximately 50 per cent of Beitar in return for investing 300m shekels ($124m) in the club over 10 years”. In addition, his son Mohammad will be part of the club’s new board of directors.
“We’re marching the club together, all of us, to a new era of coexistence, achievements and fraternity for our club, our community and Israeli sport,” Hogeg said in the statement.
Beitar Jerusalem’s fans have historically been considered anti-Muslim and anti-Arab, with their far-right “La Familia” fan group known for songs against the Prophet Mohammed.
The first division club is the only Israeli side never to have fielded an Arab player, but has been working to change its image in recent years, and in 2017 received an award for its fight against racism.
Read the article in The Australian (AFP).