Maccabi Tel Aviv owner Katz finally parts ways with club

Katz fell out with his fellow Maccabi owners, Shimon Mizrahi, David Federman and Shay Recanati time and again in recent years.

By ALLON SINAI
maccabi tel aviv 248.88 (photo credit: Maya Spitzer)
maccabi tel aviv 248.88
(photo credit: Maya Spitzer)
After months of much-publicized squabbling between the Maccabi Tel Aviv owners, Ra'anan Katz finally agreed late Saturday night to sell his 33 percent stake in the club to his now former partners. Katz, a partial owner of the NBA's Miami Heat, fell out with his fellow Maccabi owners, Shimon Mizrahi, David Federman and Shay Recanati time and again in recent years, with the tension between the sides escalating in the last few months after Katz traded insults with Federman and Recanati in the media. Katz initially insisted he would not sell his stake in the club and offered to buy out the other owners if they refused to work with him. However, after understanding that they have no intention of leaving the club and plan to cooperate with him as little as possible, Katz agreed to sell his 33% share for $7.3 million, with Katz himself getting $6.66m. and the remaining $640,000 being donated to Maccabi's youth department. "Despite our differences I always wanted the best for Maccabi," Katz said. "I thank David, Udi [Recanati] and Shimon for a wonderful seven years and I wish the club and the fans a lot of luck. I was happy to be involved with the coaches and Shimon in selecting the players for next season and I'm sure this will be an excellent team." Federman was keen to forget the past and focus on the future. "I think that what happened has happened and now we need to look forward," Federman said. "Matters were eventually resolved in a positive manner and we want to move on for Maccabi Tel Aviv's sake. Ra'anan Katz will be a guest of honor at the Nokia Arena and we will be happy to welcome him." Recanati hinted that Maccabi might be looking for new investors. "I'm sorry that matters got to where they got, but I'm happy that everyone eventually wanted what is best for the team and succeeded in ending this episode," Recanati said. "For the moment the current owners will sustain the team. However, we may look into the option of adding more investors."