The football team refused to play on Shabbos - and was fined

Youth football team, 'Ironi Kiryat Gat', refused to report for the game held on Shabbos against the rival – and were fined.


The group, playing by 'Zav Piyus' and the players are religious, were forced not to play this time against the opposing team MS Beer Sheva because the game fell on a Shabbos. The opposing team refused to move the game to a weekday, and therefore the National Association decided to fine the football team and impose a technical loss on them.


Under the laws of association, there is no charge to any group to transfer the games to weekdays because of religious reasons. However, usually the groups are considerate of the religious groups and move the games to weekdays. Despite this the association refuses to that in the case that one of the groups has several religious players – the games will take place on weekdays.

"We approached the Beer Sheva group and unfortunately we ran into a spiteful wall," says Shaul Meisels chairman of the football teams of 'Zav Piyus' in conversation with Ma'ariv, "because there is no regulation today that requires a rival team to play against us during the week, so everything is based on good will. The Association usually helps us in these matters, so I'm puzzled by the decision to prosecute a group who simply do not want to violate Shabbos.

"Most people who are involved in sports support the idea of moving the games to weekdays. Most of them are traditional and the issue of Shabbos is close to nearly everyone," says Meisels, whose son also plays in one of the groups of 'Zav Piyus', "it does not seem logical to me that the Jewish state will provide disciplinary action against players who choose to keep the sanctity of Shabbos."

'בחדרי' גם ברשתות החברתיות - הצטרפו!