Police have arrested 11 people during heated demonstrations in advance of the politically charged Europa League match between Aston Villa and Israel’s Maccabi Tel Aviv in Birmingham.
Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli supporters gathered outside the stadium to protest on Thursday evening, but despite the tensions, the game went ahead without major disruptions.
The match, in which the hosts beat Maccabi Tel Aviv 2-0, at Villa Park in Birmingham, was held under an enormous security operation.
West Midlands Police (WMP) said in a statement after the game that those arrested were all men and boys aged between 17 and 67. The majority were arrested for racially aggravated public offences.
Other arrests included a 21-year-old who tried to throw fireworks into the stadium and another person suspected of possessing drugs with the intent to supply. Police also detained a 21-year-old who refused to remove a face covering when ordered to do so, and a 17-year-old who ignored a dispersal order.
More than 700 officers from WMP and 25 other forces across the United Kingdom were deployed in the city for the match, which kicked off at 20:00 GMT – alongside police horses, dogs, drones and road units.
🔴 A man, 21, for failing to comply with an order to remove a face mask
🔴 A boy, 17, for failing to comply with a dispersal order
🔴 Three people arrested for racially aggravated public order offences
🔴 One person for a breach of the peace pic.twitter.com/Ia3CL7EgjJ
— West Midlands Police (@WMPolice) November 6, 2025
The atmosphere inside the stadium was relatively quiet, with large sections of empty seats.
Aston Villa announced last month that Maccabi Tel Aviv supporters would not be permitted to attend the match, a decision made by Birmingham’s Safety Advisory Group based on intelligence provided by police.
Sky News reported on Thursday that police had banned Maccabi supporters due to “significant levels of hooliganism” in the fan base, which threatened safety around the match, rather than over threats to Israelis attending the game.
“I’m aware there’s a lot of commentary around the threat to the (Maccabi) fans being the reason for the decision. To be clear, that was not the primary driver,” West Midlands Police Chief Superintendent Tom Joyce told Sky.
“We have intelligence and information that says that there is a section of Maccabi fans, not all Maccabi fans, but a section who engage in quite significant levels of hooliganism,” Joyce said.
