Under a heavy police presence the match between Maccabi Tel Aviv and Turkey's Besikats kicked off in Istanbul, with the Turkish team scoring the first point within minutes. The Turkish team went on to score their second point shortly after, and won out against Israel 5 to 1. The Israeli team and suppporters received a warm welcome in Istanbul despite the political tensions between the two countries. Thousands of police were deployed inside and outside of the Istanbul stadium filled mainly with Turkish fans wearing the black and white colors of their team. The few Israeli supporters who arrived especially for the match sat in a fenced off area surround by a heavy police presence. Turkish media on Thursday said despite tensions between Ankara and Jerusalem, the football pitch is not the place to resolve the problems and warned Turkish supporters to refrain from "racist gestures" towards the Israeli team.
