Hapoel Jerusalem Coach Sasha Obradovic Nearly Clashes with Former Maccabi Tel Aviv Coach in Athens

A major dispute nearly erupted between two former Red Star Belgrade coaches, Sasha Obradovic and Ioannis Sfairopoulos, during a EuroLeague coaches seminar in Athens last May. According to a report by the Bosnian site Direktno, the confrontation began as a heated verbal exchange and almost escalated into a physical altercation. Witnesses said Obradovic, recently appointed as Hapoel Jerusalem's head coach, initiated the confrontation by aggressively approaching Sfairopoulos, who is a former coach of Maccabi Tel Aviv. Other coaches present intervened to prevent the situation from worsening, and the incident ended without physical contact or significant consequences.

The tension reportedly stemmed from Obradovic's dissatisfaction with Sfairopoulos's communication style with Red Star players during the season after Obradovic replaced him as head coach in October of the previous year. Obradovic accused Sfairopoulos of speaking about him behind his back and questioned his approach to the players. Sfairopoulos, however, sought to avoid escalating the conflict. The incident highlights lingering tensions between the two coaches following the coaching change at Red Star Belgrade.