General News Thread

[leicsmac]

17 minutes ago, bovril said:

'culture war' stuff around e.g identity, traditions etc does matter to people though. I don't think these things are whipped up by populists to distract from real issues, just that for a lot of people economic concerns are not necessarily the most important thing. Like as little as I give a shit about some racist Israelis being banned from a football game, it is obviously more important to me that many of our cities are potential tinder boxes of inter ethnic and religious conflicts than stuff like GDP and inflation. 

Yeah, I don't think that Carville had it right when he said "It's the economy, stupid" either.

 

But then I've said on here multiple times that neither cultural nor economic issues will mean anything at all on a planet that can barely give us food and water, so addressing that rather than so much interspecies pissing contests over much less important stuff is always going to be the biggest thing for me. 

[Mickyblueeyes]

51 minutes ago, Spudulike said:

Have you seen the vile racist stuff that's chanted and displayed every match at Celtic Park? Some of them must be sick. Not defending any group of fans, I'll call it out where ever it comes from.

 

My guess is Celtic fans wouldn't be banned and perhaps even welcomed by some in Birmingham.

Absolutely ban them. In fact - a quick Google search shows that UEFA have carried out bans previously. Im not sure how Celtic in particular are relevant. If they have chanted shit, acted violent - ban them. 
 

However, I can’t work out how “well Celtic did this” so Macabi are some sort of victims - they absolutely should’ve been banned for the incidents/the chanting. The fact they haven’t been is disgusting. But don’t make them out to be unlucky/victimised - applaud the decision despite uefa not having the balls to do it. Putting aside Macabi being and doing what they do, it’s a common sense decision.
 

I mean this Barca fans from just a year ago - https://www.espn.co.uk/football/story/_/id/41469560/uefa-bans-barcelona-fans-champions-league-game-racism

 

Whats the difference ?

 

But yeah, ok, **** Celtic.

[YesNdidi]

Maccabi fans proved in Amsterdam that they are vile, racist cnuts. How much bigger can the elephant in the room be??

[Noahfence]

Why is our Prime Minister such a little b****? 

Edited 17 October 2025 by Noahfence

[bovril]

The UK government appear to have finally found a group of football fans they actually like. 

[Thefox81]

If the ban on the Maccabi fans is overturned i fear a bloodbath on the streets on Brum that night. Now its top of every news broadcast i can imagine its only 10 times worse for people wanting to get involved in any disorder. I dont understand politics very well at all. But i know how football fans react and then add in the local muslim community in Aston it wont end well. My non political opinion is police and local aurothorities are damned if they do and damned if they dont.

[Noahfence]

Why are all our politicians losing their minds over this?!

 

There’s videos of their fans singing about sexually assaulting women for god sake!

[st albans fox]

16 minutes ago, Noahfence said:

Why are all our politicians losing their minds over this?!

 

There’s videos of their fans singing about sexually assaulting women for god sake!

I’d be cautious about translations of chants in different languages. 
 

I think the issue here is that Maccabi fans haven’t been banned by UEFA. Why not ?

 

 Either they’re guilty of things that lead to such a sanction or they’re not.

 

Someone mentioned Frankfurt fans being banned from the Napoli game next month. That is not a uefa  decision. It’s from the Naples mayor based on the fights at a previous game between the two clubs.  I suppose the difference here is the Villa fans not being involved.

 

[Lionator]

4 hours ago, Sampson said:

To get on Bovril's train, it's just the ultimate result of the Americanisation of British and European politics. Because, unlike the rest of the world, America never had a socialist movement and so its divisions were just cultural ones rather than economic debates about the private sector vs the public sector and how much control and intervention the state get into politics. And it's a very sort of reality tv style of politics rather than discussing economic theory

 

And so now because of social media and even before that I also think the success of US tv shows with its very American and black-and-white cultural politics like South Park played a role in it. I think Sarah Palin was a big turning point because she got so much coverage online and on the comedy panel shows in the UK back in the day for her very American cultural views that really were extremely unknown in the UK or European politics at the time, stuff like abortion was just never actual political issues in the UK and now I hear very Americanised arguments for the opposition of it and campaign groups outside abortion clinics that just never would've existed in the UK a generation ago.

 

A big obvious example of it is how you see people call liberals "lefties" in the UK nowadays which would've been unheard of in the UK 25 years ago as Liberalism was always about freedom from the state and generally very pro-markets and private enterprise and liberals always used to be considered centrists or right of centre here (John Major and Tony Blair were probably the ultimate liberal PMs in post-war UK politics and they was always considered centre or right of centre back in the day in the UK whenever people were polled).

This is all well and good in America where they have infinite physical and economic resources, compared to here where the system is falling apart. More children are homeless than ever, more people are sicker than ever before, housing prices are spiralling, nobody can afford to retire etc etc. But what we should all really care about is Palestine/Israeli’s and trans people. The left are guilty of this too although Polanski seems to understand the way forward is through targeting economic policies thank god, he’ll make traction with it too. 

Edited 17 October 2025 by Lionator

[leicsmac]

4 minutes ago, Lionator said:

This is all well and good in America where they have infinite physical and economic resources, compared to here where the system is falling apart. More children are homeless than ever, more people are sicker than ever before, housing prices are spiralling, nobody can afford to retire etc etc. But what we should all really care about is Palestine/Israeli’s and trans people. The left are guilty of this too although Polanski seems to understand the way forward is through targeting economic policies thank god, he’ll make traction with it too. 

They really don't, or if they do such resources are distributed wildly unequally. 

 

Their system is entirely broken yet their marketing kudos makes them not only pretty much ignore that in favour of the culture war, but also market the sane concept in a lot of other places including the UK. Darkly remarkable, really. 

[South Shire Fox]

2 hours ago, Thefox81 said:

If the ban on the Maccabi fans is overturned i fear a bloodbath on the streets on Brum that night. Now its top of every news broadcast i can imagine its only 10 times worse for people wanting to get involved in any disorder. I dont understand politics very well at all. But i know how football fans react and then add in the local muslim community in Aston it wont end well. My non political opinion is police and local aurothorities are damned if they do and damned if they dont.

Why would it be a bloodbath? Is the Islamic community of Birmingham not peaceful then?

[Clogger_]

36 minutes ago, South Shire Fox said:

Why would it be a bloodbath? Is the Islamic community of Birmingham not peaceful then?

I'm going to guess that it won't kick off as badly as (for example) the pond life at "asylum hotels" last year. No evidence in the slightest to suggest otherwise. What leads *you* to show this concern?

[Clogger_]

1 hour ago, st albans fox said:

I’d be cautious about translations of chants in different languages. 
 

I think the issue here is that Maccabi fans haven’t been banned by UEFA. Why not ?

 

 Either they’re guilty of things that lead to such a sanction or they’re not.

 

Someone mentioned Frankfurt fans being banned from the Napoli game next month. That is not a uefa  decision. It’s from the Naples mayor based on the fights at a previous game between the two clubs.  I suppose the difference here is the Villa fans not being involved.

 

Wow. You'd excuse *anything*! Could anything *ever* be too much for you?

[Clogger_]

3 hours ago, Noahfence said:

Why is our Prime Minister such a little b****? 

While I don't like the word, I do kind of understand the sentiment. Labour need to step up and confront the scumbags sewing division in our country

[Mickyblueeyes]

2 hours ago, st albans fox said:

I’d be cautious about translations of chants in different languages. 
 

I think the issue here is that Maccabi fans haven’t been banned by UEFA. Why not ?

 

 Either they’re guilty of things that lead to such a sanction or they’re not.

 

Someone mentioned Frankfurt fans being banned from the Napoli game next month. That is not a uefa  decision. It’s from the Naples mayor based on the fights at a previous game between the two clubs.  I suppose the difference here is the Villa fans not being involved.

 

Where the children in Gaza gone means Here’s a bag of beautiful flowers love you darling in Hebrew.

 

Got you.
 

 

[Mickyblueeyes]

1 hour ago, South Shire Fox said:

Why would it be a bloodbath? Is the Islamic community of Birmingham not peaceful then?

Are Macabi fans peaceful ? 

[st albans fox]

43 minutes ago, Clogger_ said:

Wow. You'd excuse *anything*! Could anything *ever* be too much for you?

I’m just referring to the law and process 

I don’t speak Hebrew - I don’t know what they’re actually chanting. if it’s true then it’s ugly and inexcusable. I would add that football fans anround the world (including these shores) are known to chant some pretty grim stuff from time to time.   What examples are there over the years where a whole group of fans have been banned for what some have chanted ?  My point was simple - uefa are not usually slow at throwing charges at clubs. WMP are entitled to ban them on the basis of public safety - I’d like them to make it clear what the reasons are. at the movement, many different groups are saying it’s for several different reasons.
 

at the moment I’m not clear whether these fans are being excluded for the safety of our fans or them. 

 

 

Edited 17 October 2025 by st albans fox

[davieG]

[Blueman1967]

8 hours ago, CosbehFox said:

The banning of Maccabi Tel Aviv fans to Villa Park is a story being made too much of. 

 

It's common place right across Europe where police forces believe they may have overwhelmed. It's not particularly unprecedented in the UK either - ourselves back a few years ago were banned from visiting Millwall and vice versa. So we were Birmingham if memory services me correctly. 

 

Italian authorities are pulling Schegen rules for 48 hrs soon for the visit for Eintracht Frankfurt and the French authorities have on more than one occasion affectively banned away supporters from city centres (happened to Spurs in Rennes). 

 

Commonsense approach. 

Israel is not in Europe, so should not be in the competition any way. 

[westernpark]

They have not been banned because of their own behaviour (admittedly this is not always good). They have been banned because the authorities do not believe the fans can be kept safe when visiting this country. That is very wrong and the game should be played behind closed doors if this is believed. Whilst I think clubs from their country should have been banned from European competition this season, this does not alter my opinion that if we cannot keep someone safe because of a situation out of their control, they should not be punished as a result. 

[st albans fox]

19 minutes ago, westernpark said:

They have not been banned because of their own behaviour (admittedly this is not always good). They have been banned because the authorities do not believe the fans can be kept safe when visiting this country. That is very wrong and the game should be played behind closed doors if this is believed. Whilst I think clubs from their country should have been banned from European competition this season, this does not alter my opinion that if we cannot keep someone safe because of a situation out of their control, they should not be punished as a result. 

I think the threat comes away from the ground 

I don’t think banning home fans aswell makes any difference to their safety 

 

 

[South Shire Fox]

1 hour ago, Mickyblueeyes said:

Are Macabi fans peaceful ? 

Are they any worse then any other club who plays in European competition with a hooligan element like Napoli, Roma, Frankfurt etc? Or are they banned because the Police cant guarentee their safety from the local mobs? 

[Mickyblueeyes]

16 minutes ago, South Shire Fox said:

Are they any worse then any other club who plays in European competition with a hooligan element like Napoli, Roma, Frankfurt etc? Or are they banned because the Police cant guarentee their safety from the local mobs? 

You tell me. Roma, Napoli, Frankfurt or whoever if they were carry out racist or cheering child murder would not be questioned if banned so what’s the difference. Are they peaceful ? 

[Raj]

1 hour ago, Blueman1967 said:

Israel is not in Europe, so should not be in the competition any way. 

Yeah they should feck off and play with the surrounding Arabian countries!!

 

Sure they will be welcomed with open arms!!!🤣🤣🤣

 

 

[South Shire Fox]

4 minutes ago, Mickyblueeyes said:

You tell me. Roma, Napoli, Frankfurt or whoever if they were carry out racist or cheering child murder would not be questioned if banned so what’s the difference. Are they peaceful ? 

Fans have been killed at Roma matches and they havent been banned from matches in England? Id say thats slightly worse 😂

Edited 17 October 2025 by South Shire Fox