Maccabi Haifa Suffers Third Heaviest Defeat at Sammy Ofer Stadium

Translated & summarized from N12 by baba

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Maccabi Haifa suffered a significant 5-2 defeat against Hapoel Be'er Sheva on October 26, 2026, at Sammy Ofer Stadium. This loss represents the third-worst defeat in the club's history at the venue. It was also the first time in nearly a decade that the team conceded five goals in a single half. Barak Bakhar, the current coach, was also in charge during two previous heavy home losses.

The story in 4 lines · by baba

Maccabi Haifa lost 5-2 to Hapoel Be'er Sheva on October 26, 2026.
The 5-2 defeat is Maccabi Haifa's third-heaviest loss at Sammy Ofer Stadium.
It was the first time Maccabi Haifa conceded five goals in one half since 2016.
Coach Barak Bakhar was also in charge during two previous heavy home defeats.

Maccabi Haifa experienced a night to forget on October 26, 2026, suffering a resounding 5-2 loss to Hapoel Be'er Sheva at Sammy Ofer Stadium. This defeat marks the third-heaviest loss in all competitions for Maccabi Haifa at their home ground, surpassed only by a 5-1 defeat to Hapoel Haifa and a 6-1 loss to Benfica in the Champions League in November 2022. The loss to Benfica, which ended their European campaign, saw the Portuguese side win by a five-goal margin, with four of their goals scored in the second half. The 5-1 derby loss to Hapoel Haifa in May 2025 featured a hat-trick from Javon East and a brace from Tiago D'Araújo, with Guy Melamed scoring Maccabi Haifa's lone goal. Notably, Barak Bakhar was the coach for Maccabi Haifa during all three of these significant home defeats.

Furthermore, this was the first time Maccabi Haifa conceded five goals in a single half since the final match of the 2015/16 season. In that game, Maccabi Tel Aviv defeated them 6-0 at Bloomfield Stadium, though Barak Bakhar was celebrating a league title with Hapoel Be'er Sheva that evening. The 5-2 loss to Hapoel Be'er Sheva is considered a rare occurrence for a team regarded as one of Israel's top football clubs.

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