Overview
- West Midlands Police told MPs that intelligence showed 500–600 Maccabi supporters targeted Muslim communities in Amsterdam, with 5,000 Dutch officers deployed and mass arrests, claims Dutch authorities say are not true.
- Dutch police publicly rejected the specific account attributed to them, saying the information circulated in Britain was inaccurate.
- The local Safety Advisory Group barred visiting supporters for the November 6 match at Villa Park based on West Midlands Police advice, and Maccabi Tel Aviv later declined any allocation citing safety concerns and a toxic atmosphere.
- Greater Manchester Police chief Sir Stephen Watson said he would have policed the game with scaled resources rather than ban away fans, calling blanket prohibitions practically and tactically problematic.
- Prime Minister Keir Starmer said he is very concerned about apparently inaccurate information used in the assessment, as MPs pressed West Midlands Police for explanations while the force defended its evaluation and noted meetings with Dutch counterparts.