Hapoel Tel Aviv owner says handshake snub was deliberate, not personal

Following Hapoel Tel Aviv’s dramatic playoff final loss to Maccabi Tel Aviv, owner Ofer Yannay explained on Wednesday why he did not shake hands with Iffe Lundberg. Speaking on “Hamesh BaAvir,” Yannay said he greeted most of the people present, but added that he was expelled from the court in February “for no fault of my own,” describing it as humiliating treatment. “When I decide to shake hands, it is a choice. It is a calculated gesture. I have nothing against Lundberg. I spoke with him before the game and we joked,” he said.

Yannay also reflected on Hapoel Tel Aviv’s season, saying he felt proud of the team’s European campaign and of what it achieved in Israel. But he argued that basketball in Israel is played under unequal conditions. “In Israel we play in an unequal competition,” he said, contrasting basketball with football, which he described as more balanced.

He claimed the sport has been stagnant for years and said the lack of real competition is one reason not enough people come to arenas. Yannay pointed to a specific example, saying that when Shimon Mizrahi approaches the secretariat no one reacts, while when he does the same he is removed “for no fault of my own.” That, he said, “says everything.”

Asked what he regrets, Yannay said he had naïvely believed the Israeli basketball system, including referees, wanted to improve. Instead, he said, that belief was a waste of time because the existing systems had reached a point where they no longer serve Israeli basketball, only their own personal interests.