Why there will be more than 700 police at Aston Villa v Maccabi Tel-Aviv?
Birmingham Police Commander Ch Supt Tom Joyce said on Monday: “We know there will be protests from different groups on the day and we have plans in place that balance the right to protest with our duty to protect all communities in Birmingham.”
according to 2021 Census, external70.2% of the Aston Park area around Villa Park is Muslim.
Among the protests planned to be held at the stadium are protests by pro-Palestinian groups who want the match to be cancelled. The protest was jointly organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, the Stop the War Coalition, the Muslim Association of Britain, the Friends of Al-Aqsa Mosque, the Kashmir solidarity campaign and the Palestine Forum in the UK.
There may also be counter protests in support of Israel.
In July 2025, there were mass arrests at protests in support of Palestine Action, a British pro-Palestinian group banned under the Terrorism Act 2000.
There is also the possibility of protests inside the country.
On Wednesday West Midlands Police wrote on social media that “there will be multiple ticket checks on approach to the stadium for fans attending Thursday night’s match.”
