Jerusalem. From our correspondent
Less than three months later establishment of official relations between Israel and the United Arab Emirates, at the initiative of Donald Trump, Hamad ben Khalifa al-Nahyane, a distant cousin of the strong man from the Emirates, Mohammed Ben Zayed, said MBZ, has just taken half of the capital of Beitar Jerusalem, a football club in which he promises to invest nearly 80 million euros over ten years.
A club like no other
The news may seem trivial, given the hundreds of millions released by extremely wealthy Gulf nationals in major European clubs, starting with Paris Saint-Germain. Except that the Beitar is not a club like the others. Its most fanatic supporters have proclaimed themselves most racist club of Israel “
. During matches, chants Muhammad is dead
and Death to the Arabs
have echoed in the stands for decades.
In a statement, Hamad bin Khalifa al-Nahyane was enthusiastic about this renowned club, in this very special city, the capital of Israel
, sending the taboo on the sovereignty of Jerusalem waltzed. Is the man really a fan of Israeli football? Or the instrument of a subtle policy that aims to appease popular voters and Likud leaders, the main supporters of Beitar? Like Prime Minister Netanyahu, campaigning on the right in Israel means going through the stands at Teddy Stadium, with a yellow and black scarf on your shoulders.
An Arab at the helm alongside the Jewish Moshe Hogeg, who bought the club in 2018? Pragmatic, the majority of fans put up with it, dreaming of stars and titles to come. A pocket of diehards disagrees. Fuck Dubaï
wrote, on the walls of the stadium, the Family
, group of ultras famous for having burned down the club’s headquarters in 2013, after the arrival of two Chechen Muslim players.
– .
