Maccabi Tel Aviv was due to face Turkish football team Besiktas in Istanbul on 28 November in the Europa League. However, the Turkish club announced on Monday that the match will be played in a neutral country, and that it remains to be decided in conjunction with UEFA where exactly that alternative venue will be.
The decision was taken because they consider the event to be high risk in the context of the growing tension between Turkey and Israel, exacerbated since the start of the conflict in Gaza on October 7.
Since the start of the war in Gaza, there have been multiple anti-Israel demonstrations in Turkey, some of which have been supported by the government. Amid these tensions, Israel last year advised its citizens and diplomats to leave Turkey for security reasons.
Maccabi Tel Aviv is one of the most important clubs in Israel, it is the most successful team in Israel with 25 Leagues, 24 Cups, 8 Super Cups, 8 Toto Cups and 2 AFC Champions Leagues. There are only 3 Israeli clubs that have reached the group stage of the UEFA Champions League: Maccabi Tel Aviv, Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Tel Aviv FC.