Maccabi Haifa will not be able to host Maccabi Tel Aviv in front of a full stadium in the second round of the Premier League, as of this writing. Today (Wednesday) the club was punished in the Football Association’s court for closing the northern stand in the next home game, and since the team’s next three games are away games, it means that the stand behind the goal will not open against Maccabi Tel Aviv – which may also be a championship game.
Maccabi Haifa was prosecuted for the many torches that its fans lit at last week’s game in Bloomfield, which caused the game to be delayed by five minutes. In addition, the judge’s report stated that a glass of drink was thrown from the stands of the Greens and therefore it was decided to convict the Greens who had already received a suspended sentence in similar circumstances.
In fact, the severe punishment is the result of 17 different convictions in the court that answer for offenses of rioting fans and misconduct, according to Judge Israel Shimoni, who also fined the club NIS 10,000.
However, Maccabi Haifa is seeking legal advice on the matter and is considering filing an appeal. The club will examine whether the sentence could have been imposed on probation, as the condition was for a fan riot in aggravated circumstances whereas the charge in this case was not in aggravated circumstances clause.