Spanish basketball clubs Tenerife and Manresa announced on Sunday night (12) that their upcoming Champions League and European Championship games against Israeli rivals Bnei Herzliya and Hapoel Jerusalem respectively will be played behind closed doors.
“The European competition games scheduled for next week at the Santiago Martín and Nou Congost stadiums will be played behind closed doors,” both teams said in a joint statement released on social media.
This is a “decision taken to ensure the safety of everyone involved and the proper conduct of the matches,” the statement continues.
After Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas reached an agreement that ended the war in Gaza, the two Spanish teams said they “categorically reject any form of violence or violation of human rights.”
Since the start of the Israeli offensive in Gaza, in response to the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, matches involving Israeli teams participating in European competitions have been subject to heightened surveillance to prevent disturbances.
In late December 2024, a basketball match between French club Nanterre and Hapoel Holon was briefly interrupted when a spectator entered the court waving a Palestinian flag.
In Spain, where the Palestinian cause is very popular, thousands of protesters demonstrated against the participation of the Israeli cycling team Premier-Tech, forcing the organizers of the Tour of Spain to cancel its final stage.
Since then, gestures of solidarity have multiplied in Spanish stadiums, where several groups of fans from Bilbao, Seville and Vigo have repeatedly waved Palestinian flags and banners in the stands.
