Fortuna Düsseldorf, a German soccer team, decided on Tuesday not to sign Israeli national team forward Shon Weissmann after a backlash from fans.
“We examined Shon Weissman in depth, but finally decided to refrain from signing him,” the club posted to its X account.
INFO-TWEET ℹ️
— Fortuna Düsseldorf (@f95) August 5, 2025
Wir haben uns intensiv mit Shon Weissman beschäftigt, uns aber final entschieden, von einer Verpflichtung abzusehen.#f95 | 🔴⚪
German newspaper Bild had reported on Monday that Weissman, 29, was on his way to Fortuna Düsseldorf from the Spanish football team Granada. Düsseldorf planned to pay him €500,000 ($577,000).
Fortuna Düsseldorf fans sent messages opposing Weissman to the team. At first, the club defended him, tweeting: “What’s going on here? I keep getting messages. Judging people you don’t know based on their Wikipedia page? That doesn’t reflect our values.”
Was geht hier ab? Bekomme im Feierabend eine Benachrichtigung nach der anderen.
— Fortuna Düsseldorf (@f95) August 4, 2025
Grundsätzlich: Menschen, die man nicht kennt, anhand eines Wikipedia-Artikels bewerten?! Passt eigentlich nicht zu unserer Bubble…
Düsseldorf fans had gone to Weissman’s Wikipedia page seeking information about him as news emerged that he would be signed.
According to Wikipedia, Weissman had posted to X shortly after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023: “What’s the logical reason that 200-ton bombs haven’t been dropped on Gaza yet?”
Haaretz reported that Weissman also liked and reposted calls to “wipe Gaza off the map,” and responded to a photo of detained Palestinian terrorists: “Why the hell aren’t they being shot in the head?”
Weissman’s agent said that the posts and likes were not by Weissman but by a social-media manager who had access to the player’s accounts, Haaretz reported.
According to Israeli news site N12, an hour after the news that he would not be signed, Weissman responded: “I am a member of a nation that is still mourning the horrors of Oct. 7. That black day, when entire families were murdered, kidnapped and abused, left an open wound for me as a person, as a member of an Israeli family and as an athlete representing my country.
“It is possible and necessary to oppose harming innocent people on both sides, but I will not allow myself to be portrayed as someone who promoted hatred with only a few Likes and one comment that was immediately deleted,” he said.
“While I accept all the criticism, it pains me that the full context is not taken into account. In a moment of national and personal heartbreak, I remain committed to the values of humanity, sportsmanship and mutual respect.
“I am very grateful for the support I have received from people who really know me, and I will continue to proudly carry the Israeli flag wherever I play,” he concluded.
