1,500 Israeli fans expected for Limassol derby

An estimated 1,500 Israeli basketball fans are expected to travel to Limassol for Thursday’s EuroLeague clash between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Hapoel Tel Aviv. According to Israeli media reports, the majority of those travelling to Cyprus are Maccabi supporters, while Hapoel has reportedly secured 150 tickets for its fans, all of which have sold out. Cypriot authorities have authorised Maccabi to distribute up to 3,000 tickets to its supporters for each of its upcoming matches in Limassol, with a further 1,500 tickets available to the Cypriot public. Thursday’s match, scheduled for 9.05pm at the Spyros Kyprianou Athletic Centre, will take place under heightened security measures, including a police presence and strict checks at stadium entrances. Maccabi Tel Aviv is set to play its home EuroLeague matches in Limassol after spending the past three years playing in Belgrade because of the security situation in Israel. Speaking to Israeli news website Walla, Maccabi coach Oded Katash expressed hope that the change of venue would provide a welcome boost for the team. “We had good times in Belgrade, but returning to the same place all the time was difficult. Maybe a new place would be refreshing,” he said. Katash stressed, however, that the team’s ultimate goal remained returning to play in front of its supporters in Israel.