Bayern Munich soccer game features families of Israeli hostages in Gaza

Each of the guests received the official football shirt of the club, which had been imprinted with the names of the kidnapped children and the slogan “Bring them home.”

 A plaque honors Kurt Landauer at the Allianz Arena, the stadium of FC Bayern Munich.  (photo credit: JULIAN VOLOJ/JTA)
A plaque honors Kurt Landauer at the Allianz Arena, the stadium of FC Bayern Munich.
(photo credit: JULIAN VOLOJ/JTA)

The German soccer team Bayern Munich hosted the families of hostages being held in Gaza by the Hamas terror group during its game on November 11, according to Israeli news site N12.

The gesture at a league game against rival team Heidenheim follows an outpouring of support by the sports team for the Jewish state in the days following the October 7 massacre in southern Israel, N12 quoted German newspaper Bild as saying.  

Representatives from families of the hostages were invited to the game as guests of honor: ten people in total.

The visitors were hosted by soccer club president Herbert Heiner and its CEO Christian Dreizen.

"Bring Them Home"

Each of the guests received the official football shirt of the club which had been imprinted with the names of the kidnapped children and alongside the names was the slogan “Bring them home”.

 The Bring Them Home Now poster featuring photographs of the hostages (credit: BRINGTHEMHOMENOW)
The Bring Them Home Now poster featuring photographs of the hostages (credit: BRINGTHEMHOMENOW)

At half time, the club's spokesperson spoke to the crowd and took the opportunity to ask the families about their loved ones, who have remained more than a month in captivity, to provide the spectators with a more real life understanding of the events that have occurred.

"Bayern is committed to Israel! Bayern wants to send a clear message against terrorism and express full solidarity with the abductees, their families, and the people of Israel," Bild wrote before the game.