![\"Villa](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/2_JS384737353.jpg\")
Villa Park in Birmingham(Image: Nick Wilkinson\/Birmingham Live)<\/p>\nThe Israeli champions said tonight that officials had decided not to sell tickets for the November 6 matchVilla Park in Birmingham(Image: Nick Wilkinson\/Birmingham Live)<\/p>\n
The Israeli club at the centre of the Villa Park fan ban row tonight said it would refuse to sell tickets to its supporters.<\/p>\n
The dramatic intervention by Maccabi Tel Aviv would appear to mean there will not, after all, be any travelling fans at the Europa League<\/a> game against Aston Villa on November 6.<\/p>\n The club said in a statement that a \u201ctoxic atmosphere\u201d had put the safety of fans wanting to attend \u201cvery much in doubt\u201d.<\/p>\n READ MORE: Missed chances to halt Maccabi Tel Aviv Villa Park fan ban revealed – and why no-one did<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThe wellbeing and safety of our fans is paramount and from hard lessons learned, we have taken the decision to decline any allocation offered on behalf of away fans and our decision should be understood in that context.<\/p>\n \u201cWe hope circumstances will change and look forward to being able to play in Birmingham<\/a> in a sporting environment in the near future.\u201d<\/p>\n The announcement last week that Maccabi fans would not be allowed to attend the match on safety grounds was made by a multi-agency safety advisory group and was backed publicly by West Midlands Police.<\/p>\n But a U-turn had seemed inevitable with authorities in the region under intense cross-party political pressure to reverse the decision.<\/p>\n Now that decision appears to have been taken out of UK hands with the announcement from Tel Aviv.<\/p>\n Earlier today, the Government had given its strongest indication yet that the ban would have been overturned.<\/p>\n Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy told the House of Commons this afternoon that the decision to ‘exclude fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv’ was wrong and ‘every resource’ would be made available to ensure they are welcomed.<\/p>\n Talks were under way between the government and West Midlands police<\/a> and Birmingham city council<\/a> to ensure people were not excluded from attending the game on November 6 ‘because of who they are or where they are from,’ she had said.<\/p>\n “This fundamental principle, that nobody in our country will be excluded from participating in public life because of who they are, must be upheld.”<\/p>\n While claiming it was for local agencies to take safety decisions, the government had stepped in because the ban was ‘unprecedented’ and had ‘wider implications’, she said.<\/p>\n Nigel Huddleston, shadow culture secretary, who tabled an emergency question to Parliament this afternoon, said it was ’embarrassing and a disgrace’ the country’s second city was saying it could not ‘guarantee the safety of visitors from another country’.<\/p>\n