Union Saint-Gilloise will be forced to play their Europa League home clash against Hapoel Beer-Sheva somewhere else after the mayor of Leuven, Mohamed Ridouani, rejected an application to stage the match.
The Belgian club was expecting to entertain Israel’s best in Leuven on the 22nd of October, having been drawn into the Europa League 36-team group stage format; Union, who would have played all four of their home group fixtures at the venue due to not meeting the UEFA stadium capacity rules at their own Brussels ground, received the bad news that they would not be welcomed in Leuven.
Ridouani cited ‘safety reasons’ for the rejection, although even behind closed doors a safety risk would still be present, he believed, and added he was taking the same stance as he had with regards to any Belgian national team fixtures against Israel being scheduled in the city.
UEFA has confirmed that they are aware of Leuven’s position and that it is down to the home team to identify another stadium for the match.
“It is the home club’s responsibility to find a replacement venue and the location of the new stadium will be confirmed in the coming days,” UEFA confirmed.
Since the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023, Israeli club teams and nations have been playing European home ties on neutral ground; both of Hapoel Beer-Sheva’s Champions League qualification matches against Maccabi Haifa this year were played in Hungary and Romania, respectively.
This displacement for an away fixture, however, is unprecedented for an Israeli team.
