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Maccabi Tel Aviv to decline tickets for European tie at Aston Villa | The Express Tribune

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Maccabi Tel Aviv to decline tickets for European tie at Aston Villa | The Express Tribune



JERUSALEM:

Maccabi Tel Aviv will decline any tickets offered to their fans for a Europa League away match at Aston Villa, the Israeli club announced Monday.

The local Safety Advisory Group (SAG) covering Villa Park in Birmingham, in central England, last week blocked visiting fans from attending the November 6 match following a police risk assessment.

That decision drew widespread political criticism, including from UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, with widespread calls for the ruling to be reversed.

The British government said Friday it was working to allow Israeli fans to attend.

But a statement on the Maccabi Tel Aviv website said: “The 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.

“We hope that circumstances will change and look forward to being able to play in Birmingham in a sporting environment in the near future.”

The announcement came only a day after Israeli police called off the Israeli Premier League match between Maccabi and city rivals Hapoel because of “riots” between rival fans.

Maccabi insisted their supporters were not involved in the unrest, while their statement questioned the motivation of those leading calls for a ban on away fans.

“We acknowledge the efforts of the UK government and police to ensure both sets of fans can attend the match safely, and are grateful for the messages of support from across the footballing community and society at large,” said the club.

“Our first-team squad consists of Muslims, Christian and Jewish players and our fan base also crosses the ethnic and religious divide. We have also been working tirelessly to stamp out racism within the more extreme elements of our fan base.”

Game ‘weaponised’ to stoke violence 

The statement added: “It is clear that various entrenched groups seek to malign the Maccabi Tel Aviv fan base, most of whom have no truck with racism or hooliganism of any kind, and are exploiting isolated incidents for their own social and political ends.

“As a result of the hate-filled falsehoods, a toxic atmosphere has been created, which makes the safety of our fans wishing to attend very much in doubt.”

A British government spokesperson, responding to Maccabi’s announcement, said: “We are deeply saddened Maccabi Tel Aviv have turned down their away fan allocation but we respect their right to do so.

“It is completely unacceptable that this game has been weaponised to stoke violence and fear by those who seek to divide us.

“We will never tolerate antisemitism or extremism on our streets.”

Earlier, UK Culture, Media and Sport Secretary Lisa Nandy told the House of Commons the final decision must ultimately be made by the police.

However, she also said the country “should be appalled” that the initial assessment was “based in no small part on the risk posed to those fans that are attending who support Maccabi because they are Israeli, and because they are Jewish”.

West Midlands Police last week classified the fixture as “high risk”.

They said the decision was “based on current intelligence and previous incidents, including violent clashes and hate crime offences that occurred during the 2024 UEFA Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi Tel Aviv in Amsterdam”.

Birmingham has been the scene of pro-Palestinian rallies since the Gaza war between Israel and Hamas began.

A number of British left-wing independent and Green politicians backed the ban, with some calling for the wider exclusion of Israeli teams from international competitions due to the government’s actions in Gaza.

Earlier this month, two Jewish men died in an attack on a synagogue in Manchester, England, that police linked to Islamist extremism.



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NCAA: Ex-Dons player shared info with bettor

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NCAA: Ex-Dons player shared info with bettor


The NCAA on Wednesday accused a former men’s basketball player at the University of San Francisco of knowingly sharing information about his statistics in upcoming games with a player at a different school, who was betting on his stats on daily fantasy sites.

Marcus Williams, a guard who played for San Francisco from 2022 to 2025, was ruled ineligible after the NCAA found that he provided information to former Fresno State player Mykell Robinson ahead of at least nine games during the 2024-25 season.

Williams shared information with Robinson about his points, 3-pointers made, rebounds and assists, according to the NCAA, which found text messages between the two after imaging Robinson’s phone. In each instance, Williams directed Robinson to take the over on his statistics, according to the NCAA.

Paolo Zamorano, Williams’ agent, said his client has never bet on a college basketball game or his own performance.

“Marcus regrets that he responded with confidence when a friend and former AAU teammate reached out to him about published betting lines for his stats [over/unders] on various games, but he certainly never told anyone to bet on his under[s] or told anyone to bet against his team,” Zamorano said in a statement to ESPN.

“Unfortunately, Marcus did not appreciate the seriousness of the interactions with his friend and former AAU teammate and he would like to apologize to the University of San Francisco for this negative attention,” he added.

Robinson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In September, the NCAA ruled Robinson permanently ineligible after an investigation found that he had conspired with a former Fresno State teammate on an alleged gambling scheme centered on prop bets on Robinson’s statistics in a Jan. 7, 2025, game against Colorado State. Robinson and associates were found to have bet on the unders on his statistics.

The NCAA investigation also found that Robinson had allegedly placed prop bets on himself in five Fresno State games during the 2024-25 season.

The NCAA has ruled more than a dozen players ineligible from eight schools because of betting violations this year, and players at Western Michigan, Wisconsin, Dayton and Eastern Kentucky were held out of competition entering the season amid ongoing investigations, ESPN previously reported.

In October, the NCAA said that it had opened cases into approximately 30 current and former men’s basketball players over potential sports betting violations.



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Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza wins 2025 Heisman Trophy

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Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza wins 2025 Heisman Trophy


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Indiana University quarterback Fernando Mendoza became the first Hoosier to win the coveted Heisman Trophy, college football’s most prestigious award.

Mendoza claimed 2,392 first-place votes, beating Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia (1,435 votes), Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love (719 votes) and Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin (432 votes).

Mendoza guided the Hoosiers to their first No. 1 ranking and the top seed in the 12-team College Football Playoff bracket, throwing for 2,980 yards and a nation-best 33 touchdown passes while also running for six scores. 

Indiana, the last unbeaten team in major college football, will play a College Football Playoff quarterfinal game in the Rose Bowl Jan. 1.

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Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza runs off the field after a game against Wisconsin Nov. 15, 2025, in Bloomington, Ind (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Mendoza, the Hoosiers’ first-year starter after transferring from California, is the triggerman for an offense that surpassed program records for touchdowns and points set during last season’s surprise run to the CFP.

A redshirt junior, the once lightly recruited Miami native is the second Heisman finalist in school history, joining 1989 runner-up Anthony Thompson. The trophy was established in 1935.

NO 2 INDIANA CAPS OFF COMEBACK WIN OVER PENN STATE WITH SENSATIONAL TOUCHDOWN, KEEPS UNDEFEATED SEASON ALIVE

Mendoza is the seventh Indiana player to earn a top 10 finish in Heisman balloting, and it marks another first in program history. It now has had players in the top 10 of Heisman voting in back-to-back years. Hoosiers quarterback Kurtis Rourke was ninth last year.

Quarterbacks have won the Heisman four of the last five years. Travis Hunter of Colorado, who played wide receiver and cornerback, won last season.

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Fernando Mendoza warms up

Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza throws before a game against Wisconsin Nov. 15, 2025, in Bloomington, Ind. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings)

Mendoza was named The Associated Press Player of the Year earlier this week and picked up the Maxwell and Davey O’Brien awards Friday night while Love won the Doak Walker Award.

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

Follow Fox News Digital’s sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.





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Navy goes for it, beats Army on 4th-and-goal TD

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Navy goes for it, beats Army on 4th-and-goal TD


BALTIMORE — Blake Horvath threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Eli Heidenreich with 6:32 remaining — on fourth-and-goal — and No. 22 Navy rallied to beat Army 17-16 on Saturday.

Horvath turned the ball over twice, and his fumble near the goal line nearly spoiled Navy’s key drive. On second down from the 1, the ball came loose when the Midshipmen (10-2) attempted a tush push, but Heidenreich fell on the ball at the 8.

After an incompletion, Navy, which was trailing 16-10, went for it on fourth down, and Horvath found his top receiving threat over the middle in the end zone.

Army then had to punt, and on third-and-3 from the Army 43, the ball popped loose on a run by Horvath, but he caught it out of the air and reached for the first down. It came loose again and Army recovered, but after a review, Horvath was ruled down before the second fumble — a yard short of the first down.

Alex Tecza then ran for the first down that enabled Navy to kneel out the clock. In what was at times a chippy game, with some post-play shoving, there was a bit of a ruckus near midfield after the final kneel-down before things eventually calmed down for the traditional singing of the alma maters.

With President Donald Trump in attendance, Navy got its second straight victory over Army (6-6), and the Midshipmen won the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy for a second straight season. The Black Knights have not beaten a Navy team that was ranked by the AP since 1955.

The teams traded touchdown drives to start the game, each lasting 13 plays, 75 yards and over seven minutes. Horvath scored on a 5-yard run, and Army quarterback Cale Hellums answered with a 2-yarder. Army’s first drive didn’t end until five seconds into the second quarter.

Then, it was a while before anyone reached the end zone again. With Army up 10-7 late in the second quarter, the ball slipped out of Horvath’s hand while he was looking to pass. Army recovered the fumble at its 45 with 20 seconds to play and moved into range for a 45-yard field goal by Dawson Jones.

Horvath threw an interception in the third, giving Army the ball at the Navy 30, but the Black Knights had to settle for Dawson’s career-long 48-yard field goal.

Navy’s Wing-T offense has been explosive this season. The Midshipmen entered the day with an FBS-high 10 plays of at least 60 yards. Army mostly kept them contained, but Horvath slipped free for a 37-yard run that set up a third-quarter field goal that made it 16-10.

After Hellums’ underthrown pass was intercepted by Phillip Hamilton, giving Navy the ball at the 50 with 11:19 to play, Tecza’s 24-yard run made it first-and-goal from the 5.

Trump tossed the coin before the game at midfield, then returned at halftime to walk from the Navy sideline to the Army one.

Up next for Navy is a Jan. 2 game against Cincinnati in the Liberty Bowl. Army faces UConn in the Fenway Bowl on Dec. 27.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



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