A member of the ruling class of the United Arab Emirates, businessman Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, purchased a 50% stake in Israel’s Beitar Jerusalem soccer club on Monday.

The team’s owner, high-tech entrepreneur Moshe Hogeg, signed the agreement in Dubai, which committed Bin Khalifa to purchasing 50% of the club’s shares, investing over NIS 300 million ($92 million) in the team over the next ten years. Hogeg traveled to Dubai together with club chairman Eli Ohana.

The agreement was negotiated by Dubai-based Ukrainian-born Israeli businessman Naum Koen, the owner of NY Koen Group.

SHABAT SHALOM pic.twitter.com/yyc1C20BYF

— Naum Koen (@KoenNaum) October 16, 2020

🇦🇪❤️🇮🇱 pic.twitter.com/U1s8OlS3HF

— Naum Koen (@KoenNaum) December 7, 2020

The sheikh’s son, Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Nahyan, is joining the club’s board of directors and will be the family representative for management of the club. He is expected to visit Israel in the coming weeks.

Beitar has a small but influential group of fans, known as La Familia, who are notorious for their violent behavior and racist behavior toward Arabs. The La Familia have refused to allow the club to ever welcome an Arab player, with Beitar remaining the only club in the Israeli league that has never had an Arab Muslim player. Hogeg, who purchased the team in 2018, has been making efforts to end the team’s racism.

The members of La Familia aren’t pleased by the sheikh’s stake in the club and last Friday showed their disapproval by disrupting team training – cursing the team members and demanding that the business deal with an Emirati entrepreneur be called off.

“I am moved to become a partner in this esteemed club…in such a great city, the capital of Israel and one of the holiest cities in the world,” Bin Khalifa said, adding that his purchase represents the fruits of peace and brotherhood between nations. “Yalla [go], Beitar!” he concluded.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)