The Hapoel Tel Aviv soccer club threatened to boycott its cup final match on Tuesday after the Israel Police published a video comparing fans to violent rioters in East Jerusalem.
Hours before Hapoel met Beitar Jerusalem for the final of the Toto Cup, police put out the clip, which Hapoel denounced as incitement against its supporters, a view shared by Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, who called on the force to apologize.
Last week police canceled a derby game between Tel Aviv’s rival soccer teams — Hapoel and Maccabi — after riots broke out in and around the stadium, wounding at least four people.
The video opened with a text declaring, “Some of the following clips were filmed in East Jerusalem, and some on the soccer field. Spot the differences.” It then showed a montage of violence from the Tel Aviv game a week earlier and from clashes with Palestinian rioters. In both cases, officers were seen facing barrages of fireworks and flares.
Police have, in the past, used deadly force against East Jerusalem rioters who shot fireworks at them.
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Hapoel Tel Aviv said in a statement that it is “shocked by the sickening and dangerous video” published by the police.
תראו את הסרטון שמפרסמת משטרת ישראל (!) לפני המשחק. תגידו לי שזה סרטון של משטרה שלא רוצה מהומה של אוהדי הפועל pic.twitter.com/ggg7w3LwYW
— ouriel daskal ????️???? (@odaskal) October 28, 2025
The club issued an “urgent call” for the soccer association, league managers and law enforcers to “completely condemn the terrible message of the clip.”
It also called on its fans to behave “with restraint and not be drawn out by provocations.”
In an apparent dig at the police, it said, “We can’t give assurances that everyone will return home safely.”
Hapoel Tel Aviv CEO Guy Primor said in a statement that “following the insane incitement against our fans in recent days,” he had notified Israel Football League Administration Chairman Erez Kalfon that “as long as there is deliberate police violence against our fans,” the club will not play in the cup final.
According to league rules, boycotting a game can lead to a team being punished with relegation to a lower league.
Despite the threat, Hapoel Tel Aviv turned up for the game that was held at the Sammy Ofer Stadium in Haifa.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid chairs a meeting of his Yesh Atid party in the Knesset, October 27, 2025. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
Opposition leader Yair Lapid called on police to apologize.
In a post to X, he said that “it is unimaginable that fans of Hapoel Tel Aviv…are afraid to go to a soccer game because of police incitement against them.”
Other clubs also protested against the video. Alona Barkat, owner of the Hapoel Beersheba club, said in a statement that “comparing Hapoel Tel Aviv fans to terrorists crosses a red line of incitement against soccer fans.”
Hours after the clip was published, Israel Police Commissioner Daniel Levy put out a statement about the match, but did not mention the video clip.
“As a sports enthusiast of many years, I instructed all officers and commanders to act with the necessary professionalism and sensitivity, in order to ensure proper conduct of the game and enable a fun and safe football experience for families and fans,” he said.
Levy added that police will not allow “any manifestation of violence” before, during, or after the game.”
A massive police operation involving 725 officers secured the game, which Beitar won 2-1. Seven Hapoel fans were arrested.
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