Two Israeli soccer clubs advanced in European competition this week, with Hapoel Tel Aviv reaching the final qualifying round of the UEFA Conference League and Hapoel Be’er Sheva moving one step closer to the UEFA Champions League.
Hapoel Tel Aviv advanced 3-2 on aggregate over Poland’s GKS Katowice despite a 2-1 defeat in the second leg on Wednesday. Stav Turiel scored in the 23rd minute for the Israeli side, which will face Italy’s Atalanta for a spot in the Conference League.
Hapoel Be’er Sheva, meanwhile, defeated Red Star Belgrade 2-0 in Serbia on Tuesday to complete a 3-0 aggregate victory. Igor Zlatanovic and Javon East scored in the second half as the Israeli champions advanced to face Azerbaijan’s Sabah in the final Champions League qualifying round.
The victories were marred by separate anti-Israel incidents. The Israel Football Association said it would file a complaint with UEFA after Iranian-Canadian businessman Alex Haditaghi posted an anti-Israel message before Hapoel Tel Aviv’s match against Katowice, while video from Belgrade appeared to show Red Star fans throwing plastic bottles at a Hapoel Be’er Sheva representative carrying an Israeli flag.
