Hapoel Tel Aviv Owner Condemns Disciplinary Move After Derby Controversy

The Tel Aviv derby controversy continued on June 17, 2026, after the league prosecutor decided to charge Hapoel Tel Aviv over the incident involving Jalen Hood and a Hapoel Tel Aviv fan. In response, club owner Ofer Yannay addressed supporters and argued that the team must respond only on the court.

Yannay said he had spoken with the players after the painful loss and told fans their role was to keep supporting the team. “We are at the end of a difficult and challenging season,” he said, adding that Hapoel is in the championship finals and wants the title badly.

He insisted that if Hapoel wins the championship, it will be because of basketball, not outside help. Yannay accused the system that is supposed to be “equal, public and objective” of failing that standard, citing a decision in recent weeks to replay a game after Jerusalem did not return to play.

Yannay then described what he said happened that morning to a 71-year-old Jewish man who was approached by two or three young, large, strong men. According to his account, one of them knocked the man’s glasses off, frightened him, and left him unable to recover overnight, requiring a doctor’s visit. He said the prosecutor believes Hapoel should be on trial rather than the players who attacked the man and “crossed the lines of the court.” Yannay promised the club would do everything possible to fight and win “through sportsmanship, competitiveness and fair play,” and urged fans to come support the team in the remaining games.