Aston Villa have issued a statement condemning hatred after their Pesach Facebook greeting was met with 27,000 “angry” emoji responses and a torrent of anti-Israel comments.
The graphic, which featured the Villa logo, a sky blue Star of David and the words “happy Passover” set against a background in the club’s signature claret, was posted with the caption “Chag Pesach Sameach”.
It was soon flooded with anti-Zionist and antisemitic messages, including one person who wrote “Israel is the country of terrorism and killing children” while another said “this is the biggest evidence that the Sawiris family is supportive of the Zionist entity.”
Egyptian businessman Nassef Sawiris is Villa’s co-owner and chairman.
Podcast host Jonny Gould, a director of the Aston Villa Supporters Trust, said he immediately wrote to Villa’s Chief Corporate Affairs officer, Paul Tyrrell, after seeing the replies.
“I’m Jewish and, unfortunately, I’m a Villa fan,” joked Mr Gould.
He added: “Aston Villa have signed up for the IHRA definition [of antisemitism], and by not reacting to the messages, they hadn’t honoured it.
“There was breach after breach after breach of the IHRA definition [in the comments].”
Mr Gould said Mr Tyrrell responded to him within “about seven minutes” and promised to issue a response on Facebook, which the club did.
Villa updated the post with a message reading: “The club deplores religious intolerance of any form and is an inclusive organisation who welcomes people of all faiths.”
Mr Gould said he requested the club reaffirm its commitment to IHRA in the statement, which it did not.
And though Mr Gould called Villa’s response “impressive”, he warned of the negative impact incidents like these could have on his beloved team. He explained: “It damages Aston Villa’s reputation. There aren’t 33,000 racists at Villa Park. These are coming in from elsewhere.”
Mr Gould hoped the incident would not deter the club from posting similar messages in the future. He said: “I asked him [to] please, please continue wishing Jews happiness. Don’t be cowed by fascists.
“I said, ‘Don’t hide from these people.’”
He later tweeted: “Warning to football clubs: When a player signs for your club with a bigger social media following than you, anticipate and prepare for it.
“Expect pile-ons, even racist libels. Protect the reputation of your club and its fans."
The JC has contacted Aston Villa FC for comment.
