Awarding trophy to Beitar Jerusalem, Herzog says it should have been ‘much happier’

President Isaac Herzog at an event celebrating winners of the Israel Football State Cup, at the president's residence in Jerusalem on May 24, 2023. (Yonatan SIndel/Flash90)
President Isaac Herzog at an event celebrating winners of the Israel Football State Cup, at the president's residence in Jerusalem on May 24, 2023. (Yonatan SIndel/Flash90)

President Isaac Herzog says that the events which occured last night after Beitar Jerusalem won the championship cannot become the norm.

All those involved in the sport in Israel must work to “eradicate this sick evil from the fields,” Herzog says, ahead of his delayed awarding of the trophy to the team.

Following Beitar Jerualem’s win last night, a crowd of fans stormed the field forcing Herzog to be evacuated under heavy security.

Herzog says that the awarding of the trophy was supposed to occur last night “in a much happier manner,” but the “violent dramas” which unfolded prevented it from happening.

The president adds that sports-linked violence has long been a problem, and “the fact that we have not yet paid in human life is a miracle that should not be trusted.”

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