MPs at the Home Affairs Committee said that police intelligence of the match was “one-sided” [Michael Nguyen/NurPhoto via Getty Images]
The West Midlands police defended its handling of security assessments around a Europa League match involving Maccabi Tel Aviv and Aston Villa during a parliamentary hearing on Tuesday, amid criticism that police intelligence relied on selective and distorted assumptions.
MPs on the Home Affairs Committee questioned the basis for banning Israeli fans from attending the 6 November fixture, with committee chair Dame Karen Bradley saying the evidence presented by police appeared “one-sided” and suggested officers were “scraping” to justify the decision.
Chief Constable Craig Guildford rejected that characterisation, insisting the risk assessment was grounded in genuine security concerns.
Assistant Chief Constable Mike O’Hara told MPs that police had monitored online activity by individuals claiming to be Maccabi supporters who were “goading local community members” ahead of the match.
“We had people purporting to be Maccabi fans online who were saying ‘this is what you’re going to get’,” O’Hara said, adding that this contributed to what police described as an increasingly volatile atmosphere.
O’Hara also claimed intelligence suggested some individuals were seeking to confront Maccabi supporters violently. On that basis, Birmingham City Council’s Safety Advisory Group classified the game as high risk and approved the ban on Israeli fans.
MPs challenged the way police cited previous incidents involving Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters, including clashes that occurred during a 2024 Europa League match against Ajax in Amsterdam.
The violence saw Maccabi fans tearing down Palestinian flags, chanting racist and anti-Arab slogans and harassing locals. While dozens of local residents were arrested and several Maccabi supporters hospitalised, police narratives downplayed the role of Israeli fans in provoking the clashes.
Maccabi Tel Aviv have since been sanctioned over the conduct of their supporters at a match in Stuttgart, where racist and anti-Arab chants were again reported.
During Tuesday’s hearing, MPs said claims made by West Midlands Police about the Dutch authorities’ assessment of Maccabi fan behaviour were undermined by a letter from Dutch police that contradicted key elements of the British force’s account.
Committee members also pointed to minutes from Birmingham City Council’s Safety Advisory Group meetings showing that two councillors pushed strongly for the ban, raising questions about how decisions were reached.
Guildford denied any political motivation, saying the decision was taken solely on safety grounds. At the time, the ban drew condemnation from senior politicians, including Prime Minister Keir Starmer, as well as opposition MPs.
The Home Affairs Committee is expected to publish its findings in a report after gathering further evidence, including testimony from Dutch police, as scrutiny continues over how Israeli clubs and their supporters are policed amid growing criticism of racism, provocation and political double standards in European football.