Jerusalem football club to change racist culture

For general manager and founder Uri Sheradsky, the co-operative model is an antidote to the destabilising effect of big money in football. He says: “Few people want to invest in clubs, and many of those who do are strange people and you can’t rely on them. Now, you don’t rely on one person, you rely on hundreds.”

The progressive ethos at the club is not limited to its ownership structure. It seeks to change the demographic attending football, from a predominantly adult male crowd. All under-13s attend games for free, and they have become family affairs with far more women and children than elsewhere in Israeli football. In a bid to be a team for all local residents in a city with such a large religious population, Hapoel Katamon Jerusalem has insisted in holding games on weekdays, not on Shabbat. As a result, it has a large religious following.

The club is also running the only girls’ team in jerusalem.

In terms of Arab involvement, the club is a stark contrast to the dominant Jerusalem team.

Beitar Jerusalem has never had an Israeli Arab or Palestinian player. In fact, some Beitar fans were so outraged by the signing earlier this year of two foreign Muslims that there was an arson attack at the club and a mass walkout from the stadium when one of them scored his first goal.

At Hapoel Katamon Jerusalem there are Arabs among the owners, and on the senior and youth teams.

Mr Sheinfeld says: “There are all sorts of peace programmes, but that isn’t what this is — it’s just people from different sides who would never normally co-operate doing so for football.”