This is Maccabi Tel Aviv’s new uniform - what do you think?
Maccabi Tel Aviv FC decided this season to part ways with Penguin Pickup, its shirt partner in the past three seasons, and to carry the name of the real estate giant Israel Canada. Both brands are Canadian, as is the club’s current owner Mitch Goldhar.
Fila continues to be the designer of the uniform, as it had been for the past three years. The big change, however, that had fans talking, is the addition of the legendary and nostalgic team logo, as can be seen above on the shirt and the pants. Also, the faded squares in the background are believed by some of the Fanatics (the largest and most dominant group of Maccabi Tel Aviv fans) to bring luck and success - something they haven’t been doing so far this season.
Maccabi Tel Aviv finished the 2020-2021 season in the dignified second place, a season that was suspenseful until the last round, but the title was eventually granted to Maccabi Haifa FC, one of MTA’s biggest rivals. This is after a two-year championship streak for MTA. The Club also won the State Cup and the Toto Cup (the second most important cup tournament in Israel).
“We must respect and preserve our club’s history, with all its glory,” remarked Goldhar, when the uniform was officially introduced. “We shouldn’t fear changes, though. Change is the way to future glory. I hope we celebrate many successful moments together.”
A bit of history
Maccabi Tel Aviv FC was formed 116 years ago in 1906, even before the city of Tel Aviv and the State of Israel. It currently dominates the national league, with 23 championships and 24 state cups already in its trophy cabinet. The runner up in both categories is the municipal rival, Hapoel Tel Aviv - and if you ask any football fan in the city, they will tell you that this is a very emotional rivalry, and sometimes even a violent one.
In the ‘90s, the club was owned by Israeli businessman Loni Herzikovich, but these years are considered by fans as a dry period with very few titles. The relationship between Herzikovich and the fans was also sour (and that is an understatement), and a protest lasting over five years was staged against him, for what the fans call his lack of care for the team.
2007 saw a new ownership to the club, as Alex Shnaider (yes, another Canadian) bought it from Herzikovich for around $14 million. In the two years Shnaider owned Maccabi, he spent another $20 million on it, but eventually in 2009 passed it on to Goldhar at no cost. When asked about the motives behind his action, Alex Shnaider has repeatedly stated that it was done out of love for Israel and not with any financial goal.
Maccabi Tel Aviv in 2021-2022
This season has so far been more sweet than sour for Maccabi Tel Aviv, which is currently swinging between the third and fourth places in the charts and a good 12 points away from chart leader Hapoel Be’er Sheva. The team’s disappointing capabilities even led to the coach Patrick van Leeuwen being fired early on in October, due to very poor results. Today, Mladen Krstajić is the man on the lines, but it seems that the dream of a championship has sadly become unrealistic this season.
In Europe, the team seems to be doing a bit better. Having finished the previous season in second place, MTA qualified for the UEFA Conference League, the new third-tier competition between football clubs from across the continent. It has managed to reach the playoff round of the competition, to be held in February this year, after finishing second in its group.