Sports
No. 10 pledges action over Maccabi fan ban at Villa
Downing Street has pledged action to resolve the ban on fans of Israeli club Maccabi Tel Aviv attending next month’s Europa League game at Aston Villa, as it emerged the government was warned of the proposals last week.
Discussions are happening “at pace, across government” to overturn the ban on visiting supporters attending the match at Villa Park on Nov. 6, No. 10 has said.
Authorities in Birmingham are facing mounting pressure to overturn the ban, with the government stepping in on Thursday evening.
However, ministers face fresh questions after the UK Football Policing Unit said the Home Office was briefed “last week” that “restrictions on visiting fans” could be among the measures taken to police the fixture.
Senior officers at the unit backed the ban, saying it was “important that we respect and support the structures in place for making these decisions”.
It is understood the Home Office was briefed that a ban was being considered, but no decision had been taken and the Home Secretary was not informed of the final decision until it was made public on Thursday night.
Conversations aimed at overturning the ban include Home Office offers of support to police in Birmingham, and a phone call between Communities Secretary Steve Reed and Birmingham City Council.
Meanwhile, Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy is “meeting officials to discuss what more can be done to try to find a way through to resolve this, and what more can be done to allow fans to attend the game safely”, a No. 10 spokesman said.
He added: “You can expect to hear further updates today. I won’t pre-empt the conversations, but these are happening at pace, across government, with all the relevant groups to find a way to resolve this.”
The Prime Minister has been “angered by the decision,” the spokesman also said, adding: “While of course this is an operational decision, we are perfectly entitled to speak out on fundamental principles of fairness like this.”
He said: “The Prime Minister will do everything in his power to give Jewish communities the security they deserve and, as he has made clear, we think this is the wrong decision.”
The Aston Villa vs. Maccabi Tel Aviv match was classified high risk by West Midlands Police based on “current intelligence and previous incidents.”
The force pointed to violent clashes and hate crime offences that occurred during the 2024 Europa League match between Ajax and Maccabi in Amsterdam.
Birmingham’s safety advisory group (SAG), which brings together the council and police force, has faced widespread criticism from across the political spectrum for its decision to implement the ban.
The West Midlands’ police and crime commissioner Simon Foster called for Birmingham council officials and West Midlands Police to review the decision.
The review would “determine whether or not this decision and recommendation is appropriate, necessary, justified, reasonable and a proportionate means of achieving a legitimate aim,” he said.
Labour mayor of the West Midlands Richard Parker suggested the government could finance the policing costs should the ban be overturned.
He wrote on social media: “Whilst I respect West Midlands Police, if the government are willing to support in terms of resource then there should be a review of the decision that has been made.”
UEFA, which runs the Europa League, urged UK authorities to make sure Maccabi fans could attend the fixture.
Maccabi chief executive Jack Angelides said he did not want to take security issues lightly but told the BBC the team has travelled to places such as Turkey, where he said the sentiment is “not so kind towards Israeli teams,” but the police “were out in force” and there were no incidents.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch urged the Home Secretary and the Prime Minister to “get involved” if the police did not reverse its decision to ban Maccabi supporters.
She said the Prime Minister “needs to show he has got a backbone and isn’t so weak that he will just allow Jewish people to be terrorised here.”
The chair of the Culture Media and Sport select committee, Dame Caroline Dinenage, has written to the Chief Constable of West Midlands Police asking for an explanation of the decision.
“The move to prevent away fans from attending next month’s match at Villa Park is extremely concerning and is at odds with the principle that football in this country is for everyone,” Dinenage said.
“The police need to be open about how and why they reached the decision that a ban was the only way of guaranteeing public safety, and whether there is a route to reversing what is a deeply regrettable situation.”
Peshawar Zalmi ended a nine-year wait for Pakistan Super League glory with a composed five-wicket victory over debutants Hyderabad Kingsmen in the PSL 11 final at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on Sunday, sparking jubilant reactions from fans across the cricketing world.
All-rounder Aaron Hardie emerged as the star of the night, delivering a match-winning performance with both ball and bat. His four-wicket haul restricted Kingsmen to a modest total, before he anchored the chase with an unbeaten half-century to guide Zalmi home with 28 balls to spare. Chasing 130, Zalmi approached the target with calm authority, sealing the win for the loss of five wickets.
The triumph marked Zalmi’s second PSL title — their first since 2017 — and a significant personal milestone for captain Babar Azam, who lifted his maiden major T20 trophy as skipper. The victory also denied Hyderabad Kingsmen a dream debut season ending, though their impressive run to the final as first-time entrants drew widespread praise.
Fans flooded social media with celebratory reactions after Peshawar Zalmi’s title win, with supporters enjoying the franchise’s second PSL crown and praising a competitive, entertaining season.
Federal Minister for Information Ataullah Tarar was all praise for the match, lauding the “great game of cricket” and the country’s effort in staging another successful season of the PSL.
Amid the wider celebrations, much of the spotlight turned to Babar’s leadership, with fans lauding his composed captaincy and resilience throughout the tournament, hailing the triumph as a long-overdue milestone in his career.
Aaron Hardie backed his four-wicket haul with a blistering half-century to lead Peshawar Zalmi to a five-wicket victory over Hyderabad Kingsmen in an enthralling Pakistan Super League (PSL) 11 final at Lahore’s Gaddafi Stadium on Sunday.
The high-reward victory helped Zalmi clinch their second PSL title, ending a nine-year wait as they first got their hands on the prestigious silverware in 2017 under the leadership of West Indies great Darren Sammy. It also marked the first-ever major trophy for star batter Babar Azam as the captain.
Set to chase a modest 130-run target, Zalmi eventually knocked the winning runs comfortably for the loss of five wickets and 28 balls to spare.
The former champions, however, had a contrasting start to the pursuit as they lost Mohammad Haris (six) and captain Babar Azam (duck) in the pulsating first over, bowled by Mohammad Ali.
After the departure of both openers, all-rounder Aaron Hardie and in-form Kusal Mendis (nine) attempted to anchor the run chase with a 26-run partnership, which culminated with the latter’s dismissal in the fourth over.
Left-arm pacer Akif Javed inflicted another blow to Zalmi’s run chase in the subsequent over as he got Michael Bracewell (four) caught behind and brought the total down to 40/4.
Hardie was then joined by Abdul Samad in the middle, and the duo turned the game on its head with sensible batting and put Zalmi within touching distance with an 85-run partnership.
Ali broke the crucial stand in the 15th over by dismissing Samad, who walked back after scoring a valiant 48 off 34 deliveries, laced with three fours and four sixes.
Hardie, on the other hand, batted until the end and walked back after top-scoring with an unbeaten 56 off 39 deliveries, studded with nine boundaries.
Ali was the pick of the bowlers for the Kingsmen, taking three wickets for 38 runs in his four overs, while fellow pacers Hunain Shah and Javed could claim one apiece.Zalmi captain Babar Azam’s decision to field first paid dividends as the 2017 champions booked the debutants for a modest 129 in 18 overs.
Kingsmen got off to a shaky start to their innings as their lost left-handed opener Maaz Sadaqat (11) fell victim to Mohammad Basit in the second over with just 16 runs on the board.
Following his dismissal, Saim Ayub joined Marnus Labuschagne in the middle, and the duo ensured retaining the scoring rate by putting together 35 runs in 19 deliveries before Aaron Hardie got the skipper caught behind in the fifth over.
Labuschagne remained a notable run-getter for the Kingsmen, making a 12-ball 20 with the help of three fours and a six.
Saim, on the other hand, was then involved in a 20-run partnership for the third wicket with in-form wicketkeeper batter Usman Khan (eight), who was trapped lbw by leading wicket-taker of the PSL 11 Sufiyan Muqeem in the seventh over.
Usman’s dismissal triggered a middle-order collapse as the Kingsmen lost three more wickets, out of which two were run-outs, in just eight deliveries, and consequently slipped to 73/6 in 7.5 overs.
Following the collapse, Hassan Khan (12) walked out to bat at No.8 and shared a brief 17-run partnership for the seventh wicket with set batter Saim until being sent back by Hardie in the 10th over.
Saim was then involved in cautious partnerships with Hunain Shah (nine) and Mohammad Ali until eventually being dismissed by Hardie on the first delivery of the 18th over.
The left-handed batter remained the top-scorer for the Kingsmen with a cautious 54 off 50 deliveries, featuring five fours and two sixes.
Hardie struck again in the same over, getting Akif Javed (five) caught behind to round up Zalmi’s dominant performance with the ball.
Hardie was the standout bowler for Zalmi in the PSL 11 final, returning sensational figures of 4/27 in his four overs, followed by Nahid Rana, who bagged two wickets, while Muqeem and Basit chipped in with one scalp apiece.
Peshawar Zalmi captain Babar Azam was dismissed for a duck in the PSL 11 final against Hyderabad Kingsmen at Gaddafi Stadium on Sunday, falling short of Fakhar Zaman’s record for most runs in a single season.
The right-handed batter entered the high-stakes final needing just one run to surpass Zaman’s landmark tally. However, he failed to add to his score and was dismissed without troubling the scorers, missing out on a historic milestone.
Previously, the left-handed batter from the Qalandars held the record in the 2022 edition of the tournament, when he amassed 588 runs in 13 innings at a strike rate of 152.72, including seven half-centuries and one century.
Babar, meanwhile, has equalled the feat in 11 innings, scoring runs at an outstanding average of 73.50 and a strike rate of 145.90. His season has included two centuries and three half-centuries.
Most runs in a PSL season:
Babar Azam (Peshawar Zalmi) – 588 runs in 2026
Fakhar Zaman (Lahore Qalandars) – 588 runs in 2022
Babar Azam (Peshawar Zalmi) – 569 runs in 2024
Babar Azam (Karachi Kings) – 554 runs in 2021
Mohammad Rizwan (Multan Sultans) – 550 runs in 2023
Mohammad Rizwan (Multan Sultans) – 546 runs in 2022
Kusal Mendis (Peshawar Zalmi) – 541* runs in 2026
Babar Azam (Peshawar Zalmi) – 522 runs in 2023
Mohammad Rizwan (Multan Sultans) – 500 runs in 2021
Moreover, the 31-year-old previously equalled two major records during the ongoing edition of the tournament courtesy of a blistering century against Islamabad United in the Qualifier.
Babar Azam top-scored in the high-stakes fixture with a swashbuckling 103 off just 59 deliveries, decorated with 12 fours and four sixes, helping the table-toppers post a commanding total of 221/7 in their 20 overs.
His 57-ball century in the match marked his second of the ongoing edition, making him only the second batter in the history of the marquee league to register two centuries in a single season, joining Usman Khan, who achieved the feat in PSL 9 for Multan Sultans.
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