Bnei Sakhnin, whose players did refuse to play, was not only punished with a monetary fine, but was also denied the right to receive points in the game against Hapoel Be'er Sheva, and it too had a game score of 0:0 without points.
In fact, the penalty for not playing the game is the same for both teams - 0:0 without points.
Hapoel Be'er Sheva's implicit assumption in this claim, according to which it would have won points if the game had taken place, contradicts the spirit of sports and the spirit of football, and it is certainly possible that if the game had taken place, it would have been Bnei Sakhnin who would have won the three points. Thus, for example's sake only, it occurred on December 6, 2023, the day Hapoel Be'er Sheva lost to Bnei Sakhnin at the Turner Stadium in Be'er Sheva by a score of 1:2.
Hence, the penalty of 0:0 with no points does not create an imbalance.
- As for the imbalance in the matter of deducting the point due to the aggravating circumstances of the fans' riot, as I mentioned above, there was indeed room to deduct a point from Bnei Sakhnin's balance sheet as well. However, in my opinion, this is not enough to cancel this punishment for Hapoel Be'er Sheva, and it certainly does not constitute a reason for the court to intervene in the judgment of the Association's Supreme Court.
- As stated, Hapoel Be'er Sheva's second argument on this issue is that such a result creates serious and severe consequences as well as uncertainty, when the phenomenon of refusal and self-judgment develops. As explained above, not only is the claim incorrect, but the Supreme Court's judgment sends the opposite message.
All the judges of the court make it clear that when a referee orders a team to go up to play on a pitch, the players, or the teams, have no discretion not to carry out his orders. Moreover, if they do so, they will be convicted of the offense of refusing to play a game, for which the minimum penalty is 0:0 without points, to the extent that there is also liability for the other team, or a technical loss, when the other team is not responsible.