Israeli Player Signs for UAE Soccer Team Listed as Romanian

 

The official website for the UAE Pro League soccer team Al Ain now includes a profile for the club’s newest member, Israeli midfielder Omer Atzili, who signed a three-year contract with the team on Wednesday, but his nationality on the website is listed as Romanian.

The 29-year-old was born in Israel but holds a Romanian passport that he obtained in 2015, according to the Israeli publication Mako, which added that Atzili is now the first Israeli Jew to play in the United Arab Emirates.

Some Al Ain fans expressed dismay on social media after the team signed the Israeli player and criticized the team’s attempts to mask Atzili’s Israeli background.

“Al-Ain does not tell you that it was an Israeli player who was signed and not Romanian. Al-Ain’s shame continues,” an Emirates media outlet reported, as cited by Mako.

Ahmed Al Nuaimi, the president of the association against the normalization of relations between the United Arab Emirates and Israel, was also quoted saying, “Al-Ain is forcing its fans to cheer for a player they’ve never wanted. The Israeli player will damage the image of the club.”

Atzili, a two-time consecutive Israeli Footballer of the Year, signed with Al Ain for a salary that is reportedly almost four times what he earned with his previous team, Maccabi Haifa. The athlete, who also previously played for Beitar Jerusalem, made some requirements in his contract related to his religious observance and as a result he will be allowed to not play or train during some Jewish holidays, including Yom Kippur, according to i24News.