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Israelis are HUGE sport fans - We’ll give our heart and soul for our local teams, and we love and cheer our national teams like crazy. Tel Aviv sports the country’s hottest teams and best stadiums, and also hosts most of the national sporting events. This makes it the perfect place to get a taste of the Israeli sports scene!!

Maccabi Tel Aviv Euroleague Basketball at Nokia Arena
If you’re an Israeli sports fan at Thursday evening at around 20:45, there’s only one thing you can be doing - watching Maccabi Tel Aviv play basketball in the Euroleague. In case you’re part of Tel Aviv’s Elite, or a die-hard Maccabi fan, or if you were lucky enough to get your hands on some tickets, this magical ride is best experienced at the world class Nokia Arena in Yad Eliyahu. If not, it’s still a lot of fun to watch the game at one of the many sport bars around town. Maccabi may be a local team, but since winning its first European championship in 1977, its been upgraded to national status and renamed “The Country’s Team”. This means that people from all over the country, and even fans of other Tel Aviv teams, will usually chime in to see what Maccabi is up to. Even fans of the rival Hapoel team will watch the games, desperately hoping Maccabi will drop a game. This team is the real deal, sporting world class players and a very serious back office which considers every season without a championship a complete failure. The results show - since 1977, the team has won five European Championships, and is a constant contender for a sixth title. When that happens, the crazed fans jump into the fountain at Rabin Square to kick off the celebrations. What is it that makes these games so fun to watch? Other than tradition and a sense of natural pride, for some reason these game are always really close, with crazy comebacks and buzzer beating half court shots. Don’t miss it!!

This season (2007-2008) Maccabi have made it to the Euroleague Final Four which will take place in Madrid on May 2-4, 2008. Maccabi will play Siena on May 2nd at 18:00, and hopefully make it to the finals on May 4th at 21:00. All of Tel Aviv will be watching, so grab a seat at any local pub and enjoy the atmosphere. In case they win it all, the celebration will start at the fountain in Rabin Square!

The Tel Aviv Football Derby at Bloomfield Stadium
Football is the most popular sport in Israel; Ask any Israeli and they’ll tell you which team they hold close to their heart. Yet not all games are created equal - The Tel Aviv Derby features the tradition rich battle of Tel Aviv’s giants - Maccabi and Hapoel, and it’s THE game to attend. It doesn’t really matter if the teams are having a good season - this game is sure to fill up Bloomfield Stadium in Jaffa with 20,000 crazed fans coloring the stands in yellow and red. The experience is really like no other in Israeli sports - the amount of noise and energy generated between the walls of this gorgeous venue is sure to make you a fan of Maccabi or Hapoel. To complete the experience, make sure you grab a bag of sunflower seeds and start cracking - this is the delicacy of the Israeli football stadium. After the game, make sure you head over to the ledendary Abulafia bakery on Yefet street for the best Sambusek baked on a sizzling taboun oven.

World Cup 2010 Qualifying Round at Ramat Gan Stadium
Since 1970, the only time Israel took part in the sport world’s biggest event, Israel is dreaming of another World Cup appearance. Yet every four years, it’s the same story - Israel receives a decent drawing in the qualifying round , everyone believes the national team has a chance to make it to the big show, the team scores some big wins against giants like France, but eventually falter and lose the final games, staying home for another summer. Can this time be different? The 2010 World Cup will take place in South Africa, and Israel will battle Switzerland, Greece, Moldova, Luxembourg and Latvia for a ticket to the royal rumble. The games will take place between September 2008 and October 2009 at the national stadium in Ramat Gan. So put on your blue and white and join 42,000 Israelis to push Israel into the World Cup!

Israel’s first game will be against Switzerland on September 6th, 2008 at Ramat Gan Stadium. You can see the entire qualifiying schedule here.

International Tennis in the Ramat Hashron
For some crazy reason, Israelis are REALLY good at Tennis. It started with Amos Mansdorf in the 80s. who made it to #18 worldwide, and continued with Anna Smashnova who made it to #15 worldwide before retiring in 2007. But the real stars tennis stars of Israel are still before their peak - Shachar Peer is only 21 years old, and she’s already been ranked #15 in the world. Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich, a doubles team known as “Andyoni”, won the Australian Open doubles title, the first Grand Slam title for Israelis! Harel Levy and Dudi Sela are also up and coming tennis stars. The best way to experience the tennis stars of today are at the International events - The Davis Cup for men and the Federation Cup for women - that take place at the national tennis stadium at Ramat Hasharon. It’s a lot of fun and you can count on the Israelis to turn even the respectable game of tennis into a loud fanfest..

The next tennis event will take place this weekend - Between April 26-27, the Israeli women’s tennis team will host the Czech Republic in Ramat Hasharon as part of the Federation Cup. Shachar Peer (Currently ranked #18 in the world) will be among the women representing Israel. You can buy tickets here.

Israeli Handball League
Handball is a rather obscure sport that holds the title of Israel’s third most popular league sport, after football and basketball of course. The rules are quite simple - Each team has six players and a goalie. Like football, the idea is to get the ball into the opposing team’s net; like basketball, you use your hands to pass the ball and advance it towards the goal. The Israeli handball league includes 12 teams, and ends with an exciting 4 team playoff. Rishon Lezion is Israel’s “Handball Capital”, with Hapoel and Maccabi Rishon Lezion controlling the league, along with ASA Tel Aviv and AC Nes Ziona. If you’re a handball fan or want to catch a more obscure sport in Israel, this could be the event for you.

The Israeli Handball League is in the midst of its playoff series. Maccabi Rishon Lezion has just made it to the finals after beating ASA Tel Aviv, and will play the winner of the 3rd and final games of the semifinals between Hapoel Rishon Lezion and AC Nes Ziona, which will take place on April 29th, 2008.