Government ‘doing everything’ to overturn Maccabi Tel Aviv fan ban at Aston Villa match

The government said it was “doing everything we could” to lift a ban on Maccabi Tel Aviv fans attending a football match in Birmingham and was investigating what additional resources might be required.

Aston Villa on Thursday said the city’s Security Advisory Group (SAG) had decided that the Israeli club’s fans should not be allowed to attend its Europa League match on November 6 due to security concerns.

Facing mounting pressure to resolve the situation, the government said it was working with police and investigating what additional resources were needed.

The Home Office said SAG was expected to hold a meeting next week to discuss the match.

Sir Keir Starmer described the move to prevent fans from attending as “wrong” and said “we will not tolerate antisemitism on our streets”; Criticism also came from other party leaders.

Birmingham City Council said if West Midlands Police changed its risk assessment of the match, SAG, which advised the council on whether to issue a safety certificate, would review the decision.

West Midlands Police on Thursday said it had classified the match as “high risk” based on available intelligence and previous incidents, including “violent clashes and hate crime offenses” between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv fans ahead of the match in Amsterdam in November 2024.

The Home Office was informed last week that restrictions on fans could be imposed, but the BBC understands officials were not informed of the final decision until Thursday.

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said the statement left Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood with “serious questions that need to be answered” about why her department “did nothing” to prevent the ban.

“This is a weak government that does not act when necessary,” he said.

A source close to Mahmood told the BBC that “this is absolutely not true”.

“Last night was the first time the home secretary knew fans were banned,” they added.