Beitar Jerusalem FC competes in Shield of Honor program

Beitar Jerusalem FC is known for its problematic image in Israeli football fans' eyes. This first division team, suffered a few severe crises regarding racist and violent incidents.

But in the last few years, they have decided to turn it all around, as Beitar Jerusalem is participating for the third year in the Shield of Honor program.

The Shield of Honor, led by Value Sports and endorsed by the President of Israel, is a competition to which Israeli football clubs apply. It encourages implementation of educational processes to eradicate violence and racism according to a set of 11 measurable educational standards, promoting values such as tolerance, acceptance, dialog and cross-sector collaborations. 

Since Beitar Jerusalem FC joined the program, it has undergone a real change and has even won last year's Shield of Honor award for its significant educational work.

One of the highlights of the club's educational activity took place two weeks ago in a friendship tournament hosted by the club and included groups of Arab and Jewish children from different neighborhoods in Jerusalem.

The president met the children and said with a smile: "When we are on the field everyone wants to win, each team wants to be the champion, but we do it with respect to others. You prove once again that the joint effort pays off. It is possible to play football free of violence and racism."

Hagar Ohana, community relations manager and Beitar Jerusalem FC’s representative for the Shield of Honor said: " The Shield of Honor program is the engine for our community and educational work, driving us to a much better future. Beitar Jerusalem is the most influential football club in Israel. If Beitar changes, it can really change the face of Israeli society and our ability to live together. Thanks to the Shield of Honor, that's exactly what we're doing."