PITCH AUTHOR AT JEWISH BOOK WEEK
PITCH AUTHOR AT JEWISH BOOK WEEK
Israeli football expert and journalist Shaul Adar will be discussing his critically acclaimed book, On the Border: The Rise and Decline of the Most Political Club in the World, as part of Jewish Book Week in London.
The event – on 10 March from 3:30pm at Kings Place, 90 York Way, London – comprises 45 minutes of discussion followed by a 15-minute audience Q&A, facilitated by the chair, Mark Glanville (author of The Goldberg Variations).
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About the Book
In December 2020, an Israeli football club made worldwide headlines. The news that a UAE royal had bought 50 per cent of Beitar's shares shook Israel and the football world. Beitar, proclaimed by some of its own fans as 'The most racist club in the country' is a club like no other in Israel. While Israeli football as a whole is a space where Israelis of all ethnicities and foreigners can co-exist, Beitar wouldn't even sign a Muslim player for many years for fear of its own far-right supporters' group, La Familia.
On the Border is the fascinating tale of a club that began as a sports movement of a liberal national Zionism party and became an overt symbol of right-wing views, Mizrahi identity and eventually hardcore racism and nationalism.
The book explores the radicalisation of Beitar and the fight for the soul of the club between the racists and open-minded fans. It is also a story of Jerusalem, one of the most volatile places on earth, and how the holy city and the influence of religion have shaped Beitar.
