Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv
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| Bnei Yehuda | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv Football Club |
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| Nickname(s) | HaShkhuna (The Neighbourhood), HaZehuvim (The Goldens) |
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| Founded | 1936 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Ground | Bloomfield Stadium, Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Israel |
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| Capacity | 20,000 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Chairman |  Hezi Magen |
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| Manager | Nitzan Shirazi |
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| League | Ligat ha'Al | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2005-06 | Ligat ha'Al, 4th | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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FC Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv (Hebrew: מועדון כדורגל בני יהודה תל אביב, Moadon Kaduregel Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv) is an Israeli football club from the Tikvah Quarter (Hebrew: שכונת התקוה, Shkhunat HaTikva), Tel Aviv's most notorious slum. The club was formed in January 1936 in south Tel-Aviv, by Nathan Sulami and his friends[1].
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[edit] History
Since reaching Liga Leumit (then Israel's top division) in 1959, Bnei Yehuda has spent most of its history in the top flight. However, it has been overshadowed by the two giants of Israeli football in Tel Aviv, Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Tel Aviv, and usually been considered a bottomfeeding club.
In 1968 the club won the State Cup, its first major honour in its history. In 1981 they won the State Cup for the second time under the guidance of the legendary Shlomo Sharf, who would go on to revolutionise Maccabi Haifa, creating the juggernaut that rules football in Israel today. Their greatest achievement came in 1990, when Bnei Yehuda shocked the Israeli football establishment by winning the National League Championship, under the guidance of Giora Shpigel and Rami Levi, and led by Israeli legend Moshe Sinai.
During the first years of the 1990s, the club maintained its role as a major competitor in the heights of Israel's top league, though was not able to retain its title as champion. Led by legends such as the "Aeroplane" Alon Mizrahi, Haim Revivo and Ukrainian Nikolai Kodritzki, the team was considered one of Israel's best offensive teams. On March 16, 1994, Kodritzki was killed in a car accident, while returning from viewing a friendly match between the Israeli and Ukrainian national football teams. After his death, the team faced a grave crisis, from which it recovered only years later.
During the end of the 1990s, the club fought for its position in the top league. In the last three seasons of the decade, the team was on the verge of being relegated, only to save itself from that fate in the last circle, three years in a row.
When the new decade came, Bnei Yehuda continued its decline. This time, it was unable to save itself, and in 2001 the club was relegated to the second tier. Due to management changes, the team managed to bounce back the following season. Since then, Bnei Yehuda has experienced a revival in its fortunes and popularity under the ownership of Hezi Magen, the Strauss Ice Cream Company sponsors, and managed by the young Nitzan Shirazi.
[edit] Fans and stadium
The club is mostly known for its fanatical fan base, which often makes more noise than the larger crowds that back Maccabi Tel Aviv, Beitar Jerusalem, and other clubs with a national fanbase. The sure stronghold of HaTikva assures them an audience when other clubs have watched theirs evaporate. Current stars include Nigerian national team goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, former Maccabi veteran midfielders Eli Biton and Reuven Oved, Croat striker Mate Baturina, former Beitar Jerusalem striker Moshe Biton and homegrown midfielder Assi Baldut.
For most of its existence, the team has played at the HaTikva Neighborhood Stadium in the Tikva Quarter of Tel Aviv. In season 2004/05, the team moved their home matches to the Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa, though the club offices, the team's practice grounds and most activities within the club are still held in the HaTikva stadium.
Aside from crosstown nemeses Maccabi and Hapoel (the latter is considered more bitter), Bnei Yehuda also have a deep enmity with Beitar Jerusalem, which has risen in the last years. However, veteran fans of Bnei Yehuda and Beitar consider this as a false statement, claiming that the opposite is true, and that a closeness between both fan bases is more evident through the history. In the broader picture, though, there is no one club that pairs with them in their rivalry, and most enthusiasts of Israeli football view them as mavericks due to the fans' hostile attitude, no matter which opponent is on the grass with them. The fact that Bnei Yehuda lags behind Hapoel and Maccabi in respect to facilities, budget, and fanbase has translated into a smaller youth program than the other two, though in the premier league they have often finished higher than both of them.
[edit] Trophies
- Championship
- 1 (1989-90)
- National Cup
- 2 (1968, 1981)
- Toto Cup
- 2 (1992, 1997)
[edit] Current first team squad
As of April 28, 2006
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[edit] Squad changes for 2006/07 season
- In
- Eliran Elkayam - signed from Hapoel Nazareth Illit
- Yaniv Basson - signed from Ironi Ramat Hasharon
- Lior Asulin - on loan from Maccabi Herzliya
- Out
- Kfir Udi - signed with Hapoel Tel Aviv FC
Ernest Oben-Etchi - signed with Hapoel Lod- Ronney Gafney - signed with Beitar Jerusalem FC
- Moshe Biton - signed with Maccabi Tel Aviv FC
- Other
Mario Lucic signed from Dinamo Zagreb before the start of the season, but was released shortly after its beginning.
[edit] Notes and references
- ^ Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv Official Website. Bnei Yehuda Tel Aviv. Retrieved on 2006-09-02.
[edit] External links
- Official website (Hebrew/English) - Contains a Hebrew Wiki with full history.
- Bnei Yehuda Fan's site ([[Hebrew language|Hebrew- Contains a Cellular an Video contents.
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