Premier League clubs were roundly criticized for how long it took them to officially release a statement on the latest round of conflict in the Middle East, although perhaps no club faced a more troubling task to find the right words than Tottenham Hotspur.
You see, the situation surrounding Tottenham is unique, given their rather strong links to the Jewish community of North London.
Having reclaimed the word ‘Yid’ to use often in their own chants and songs, a large section of the Spurs fan-base was historically of the Jewish faith.
As such, there has been a real passion amongst sections of the fan-base to show a united front in support of the Israeli cause after the initial terror attacks on recognized Israeli soil on October 7.
However, the fact that a war has developed across the region, which has seen fatalities increase in both Israel and Palestine, many of whom are civilian, the North London club has been faced with trying to toe the line of the Premier League, whilst not alienating their core fan-base.
What did Tottenham Hotspur eventually say on the topic of Middle Eastern war?
It took Spurs five days to compose their official response to the terror attacks in Israel, following the lead from the Premier League, who had also taken the same amount of time to figure out their own public relations plan.
“The club and our footballing family is shocked and saddened by the escalating crisis in Israel and Gaza, and strongly condemns the horrific and brutal acts of violence against innocent civilians,” a post from the official Spurs Twitter account read.
Premier League teams can’t be seen to be taking sides in the conflict, irrespective of the position of their own supporters.
Furthermore, the only Israeli player in the Premier League is Manor Solomon, who happens to play for Tottenham Hotspur, but no mention was made of him in the club’s statement.
What comes next for Tottenham?
Unfortunately, Spurs will find themselves more intrinsically linked with this war than any other club in the Premier League.
They have a Jewish chairman in Daniel Levy, and some fans have thrown criticism and both Levy and the club’s PR department for their response to the latest incident in Israel.
“Tottenham fans in Israel feel betrayed,” explained the chairman of the Israel Spurs Supporters’ Club in an exclusive interview with The Athletic.
“I can tell you that quite a few Israeli fans have decided to cancel their membership.”
Spurs have been strongly influenced by the Premier League on this matter, whilst also not wanting to alienate their own Arabic supporters.
When the Premier League returns, Spurs host Fulham on Monday evening and will host the Premier League-mandated minute of silence for the victims of the conflict thus far.
Given the highly charged nature of the Spurs’ fan-base with regards to this issue, albeit far smaller than in the 1980s, it will be yet another uneasy moment for the club when that moment of silence rolls around.
