A United Arab Emirate royal family has purchased a 50 percent stake in an Israeli Premier League football club, Beitar. The details of the purchase were announced by the Israeli club on its website and social media.
The Israeli club on its Twitter account said: ‘A historic and exciting day for Beitar Jerusalem. This afternoon (Monday) a partnership agreement was signed between Mr. Moshe Hogeg and Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Nahyan.’
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In an announcement posted on their website, Beitar said Hamad Bin Khalifa’s purchase also included a commitment to invest more than 300 million shekels ($92.18 million) in the club over the next ten years.
Beitar’s announcement quoted Hamad Bin Khalifa as saying: ‘I am thrilled to be a partner in such a glorious club that I have heard so much of and in such a great city, the capital of Israel and one of the holiest cities in the world.’
Many have shown concern saying that though the deal to purchase stakes in an Israeli football club may itself raise some eyebrows, but Hamad Bin Khalifa’s reference to Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is likely to prove controversial given the city’s status as one of the core issues in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Beitar Jerusalem is a bastion of Israel’s political right-wing and a group of supporters known as ‘La Familia’ has been openly abusive towards Israel’s Arab minority.
The club has faced several penalties as a result of its fans chanting racist slogans and its opposition to bringing Palestinian citizens of Israel into the team. Its hardcore fan base is notoriously abusive towards opposing players, routinely taunting them with racist and anti-Arab chants. One chant goes: ‘Here we are, the most racist team in the country.’
While a banner was set up outside Beitar Jerusalem’s stadium praising Hamad Bin Khalifa and welcoming him to Jerusalem, some of the club’s fans sprayed offensive and racist graffiti on the outer wall of Beitar Jerusalem’s stadium, the report says.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK