{"id":84170,"date":"2025-07-06T19:54:59","date_gmt":"2025-07-06T16:54:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/?p=84170"},"modified":"2025-07-05T17:25:48","modified_gmt":"2025-07-05T14:25:48","slug":"football-builds-bridges-everywhere-except-in-jerusalem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/football-builds-bridges-everywhere-except-in-jerusalem\/","title":{"rendered":"Football Builds Bridges Everywhere \u2013 Except in Jerusalem"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a world where football has become a bridge between nations, religions, and identities \u2013 Jerusalem lags behind. Muslim players team up with Christians in Europe, with Jews in the Americas, and top clubs integrate anyone with talent. But in a city that claims a universal mission \u2013 one club still draws the line. Beitar Jerusalem, the city\u2019s flagship team, showed no interest in one of the league\u2019s most sought-after players \u2013 who happens to be Arab<\/p>\n

Football, which is supposed to unite
has become \u2013 in Jerusalem \u2013 a symbol of division<\/p>\n

(Summer in Jerusalem \u2013 and Every Parent\u2019s Worst Fear<\/a>)<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Hammoudi Kana\u2019an: One of the Hottest Names on the Market \u2013 But Not for Everyone<\/h3>\n

Kana\u2019an, 25, from Majd al-Krum, spent five seasons with F.C. Ashdod, scoring 33 league goals and appearing in both the youth and senior national teams. In the summer of 2025, his name came up with only two clubs \u2013 Maccabi Haifa and Hapoel Be\u2019er Sheva. Eventually, he signed with Be\u2019er Sheva in what many view as a major transfer<\/p>\n

But at Beitar Jerusalem \u2013 there was no interest at all
Perhaps it\u2019s a coincidence. Perhaps not
But for many, it feels less like an oversight \u2013 and more like a pattern<\/p>\n

“Pure Forever”: A Message That Still Shapes Policy<\/h3>\n

The slogan once scrawled across Beitar\u2019s stands \u2013 \u201cPure Forever\u201d \u2013 never truly vanished. It still echoes in whispers, in pressure, and sometimes in unofficial decisions. For years, no Arab player has signed with the team, even when relevant professional opportunities arose<\/p>\n

Fan pressure, especially from the \u201cLa Familia\u201d group, has often blocked such moves
When football bows to extremism \u2013 the damage is far more than just tactical<\/p>\n

A Silent Form of Exclusion That Reaches the Whole City<\/h3>\n

When the leading club in a city like Jerusalem avoids considering Arab players \u2013 even unofficially \u2013 it sends a message. Jerusalem is meant to embody diversity, connection, openness. But on its central football field, an ethnic wall is being built<\/p>\n

What might appear as a technical decision
is perceived by the public as a principled refusal<\/p>\n

(From Jerusalem to Gaza: The Bloody Path of Abu Sninah Ends<\/a>)<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Not a Bridge \u2013 Just Another Line of Division<\/h3>\n

Kana\u2019an, a talented, respected Israeli player \u2013 wasn\u2019t even considered by Beitar
Not because of his performance
But seemingly, because of his name<\/p>\n

And if, in Jerusalem 2025, an Arab player is still not seen as a viable choice \u2013 football has failed
But so has the city
And all of us<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Hammoudi Kana\u2019an signed with Be\u2019er Sheva \u2013 but Beitar Jerusalem reportedly showed no interest in the Arab midfielder<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":84171,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_seopress_robots_primary_cat":"none","_seopress_titles_title":"Football Builds Bridges Everywhere \u2013 Except in Jerusalem","_seopress_titles_desc":"Hammoudi Kana\u2019an signed with Be\u2019er Sheva \u2013 but Beitar Jerusalem reportedly showed no interest in the Arab midfielder","_seopress_robots_index":"","_seopress_analysis_target_kw":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[184],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-84170","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-184"},"acf":{"subtitle":"Hammoudi Kana\u2019an signed with Be\u2019er Sheva \u2013 but Beitar Jerusalem reportedly showed no interest in the Arab midfielder"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84170","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/75"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=84170"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/84170\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/84171"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=84170"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=84170"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/jerusalem-online.co.il\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=84170"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}