BERLIN — When Makkabi Berlin became the first Jewish club to compete in the German Cup last year, it was a moment of pure joy and pride for a team founded by Holocaust survivors.
A year later, Makkabi is again on the verge of the same feat, but the emotions are very different this time, following the war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
If Makkabi wins the local cup final for Berlin teams on Saturday, the fifth-division club will once again gain a ticket to the prestigious tournament that includes the likes of Bayern Munich and other top teams. The excitement, however, was tempered by fear and concern that players and club members could be targeted with the Star of David on the team’s shirt.
Anti-Semitic incidents have risen sharply in Berlin since Hamas’ October 7 attacks on Israel and the ensuing conflict in Gaza.
Makkabi, who attracted global headlines for his feat last year, is keeping a low profile this time to avoid unwanted attention. Club members were reluctant to speak publicly and social media posts were kept to a minimum.
“I am often asked what is Jewish about our club or our team and what our values are. And unfortunately this is one of them, that we often cannot play or live as we want,” Makkabi captain Doron Bruck told the Associated Press.
Makkabi is the successor to Bar Kochba Berlin, a club founded in 1898 to promote Jewish participation in sport, but which was banned after the Nazis came to power.
Makkabi Berlin was formed in 1970 and although its Jewish identity and mission are still central to its identity, it is open to players of all religions. Many of the non-Jewish players have gained an insider’s perspective on what it means to be Jewish in Germany.
Makkabi stopped playing immediately after October 7 and only resumed playing under police protection. Training also takes place under police protection.
“For me, as a Jew living in Germany, unfortunately, it was nothing I didn’t know. Since school, I have been under police protection, and all Jewish institutions are,” Bruck said. “More so for the non-Jewish players… who had to play under police protection, it was new. And they asked me what was happening and if they needed to worry, or how serious this situation was. So I think overall it affected the team. It impacted the entire season.”
Some players even thought about leaving the club.
“There are players who fear that their families in Iran or other countries are being persecuted or threatened because a member of their family is playing in Germany for a Jewish club,” Bruck said. “Muslim players who are influenced by their society are being told they shouldn’t play for a Jewish club.”
Senegalese defender Papa Alpha Diop, who joined the club in 2017, is one of them.
“I played for this team for about six years. I have a lot of Makkabi shirts like this,” Diop said, pointing to the Star of David on his chest. “Sometimes I take it outside to go to the gym or train. People look at me. They know I’m Muslim. They say, ‘Are you crazy?’
It was different last year, when Makkabi won the Berlin Cup for the first time to secure their place in the first round of the German Cup, a competition founded under the Nazis in 1935.
“If these people from before, the Nazis, knew, everyone would be turning in their graves,” said Marian Wajselfisz, co-founder of Makkabi, laughing. “Jews in the cup and so on. So we are very, very proud.”
Wajselfisz, 86, who is Jewish, only survived the Holocaust thanks to a Polish couple who hid his family in their basement for almost two years.
Makkabi faced Volkswagen-backed Bundesliga side Wolfsburg in the first round last August, losing the match 6-0 but amplifying the club’s core message of openness and tolerance.
Volkswagen used forced labor during the war. But Wajselfisz said at the time of the match that such matters were in the past.
It’s the present that’s causing problems now.
“We have the same training, we have almost the same team, but because of the luck we had last year, this year we are not lucky,” said Makkabi coach Wolfgang Sandhowe. “Dear God sometimes forgets us. I hope he’s there at the weekend.”
On Saturday, Makkabi plays against Viktoria Berlin, a team that finished third in the fourth division of German football. Makkabi beat Viktoria in the semi-finals of the competition last year in the run-up to the German Cup, but will be underdogs against a team playing in the division above.
“Viktoria is the favorite,” Sandhowe said. “But first they will have to defeat us.”
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