Israel State Cup

Israel State Cup
Founded 1928 (1928)
Region Israel Israel (IFA)
Current champions Bnei Yehuda
(3rd title)
Most successful club(s) Maccabi Tel Aviv
(23 titles)
Website State Cup
2016–17 Israel State Cup

The State Cup (Hebrew: גביע המדינה‎‎, Gvia HaMedina), is a knockout cup competition in Israeli football, run by the Israeli Football Association.

The State Cup was first held in 1928 as the People's Cup. Because it involves clubs of all standards playing against each other, there is the possibility for "minnows" from the lower divisions to become "giant-killers" by eliminating top clubs from the tournament, although lower division teams rarely reach the final. The current holders of the State Cup are the Israeli Premier League club Bnei Yehuda, who beat Maccabi Tel Aviv in the 2017 final on May 25th, 2017.

Maccabi Tel Aviv have 23 titles, having the record for most titles won. Hapoel Tel Aviv in 1937–1939 and 2010–2012 are the only club to have retained the State Cup for three consecutive seasons.

Format

The competition is a knockout tournament which includes all of the Israeli league clubs with pairings for each round drawn at random – there are no seeds, and the draw for each round is not made until after the scheduled dates for the previous round. The draw also determines which teams will play at home.

Each tie is played as a single leg. If a match is drawn, the game is settled with extra time and penalty shootouts, though until 1964 replays would be played until one team was victorious. Some ties took as many as three matches to settle.

There are a total of 13 rounds in the competition—nine rounds, followed by quarter-finals, semi-finals, and the final. The competition begins in September. which are contested by the lowest-ranked clubs. Clubs playing in the Liga Alef are given exemption to the Fifth Round, and Liga Leumit teams are given exemption to the Eighth Round. The 18 winners from that round join the 14 clubs from the Israeli Premier League, at which point there are 32 teams remaining in the competition.[1]

As well as being presented with the trophy, the winning team also qualifies for the UEFA Europa League. If the winners have already qualified for the UEFA Champions League via the Israeli Premier League, the UEFA Europa League place goes to the State Cup runners-up. If they also have qualified for the UEFA Champions League, the place goes to the next highest placed finisher in the league table.

The draw

The draw for each round, performed by drawing the clubs name from a jar, is a source of great interest to clubs and their supporters, and is broadcast live on the internet. Sometimes two top clubs may be drawn against each other in the early rounds, removing the possibility of them meeting in the final. Lower-ranked clubs with reputations as 'giant-killers' look forward to meeting a top team at home, although in some cases the expense of providing policing for a game can outweigh any financial windfall from larger crowds. Mid-ranked teams hope for a draw against a peer to improve their chances of reaching future rounds. Top-ranked teams look for easy opposition, but have to be on their guard against 'giant-killers' and lower teams with ambition. The balls are being drawn by the officials of the Israel Football Association.

Semifinal & Final

The semifinals and the finals were traditionally held in the national Ramat Gan Stadium in the middle of the week (Tuesday or Wednesday). The semifinals take place on the same day, with the stadium split to four sections for each supporter set, and a single ticket valid for both matches – the fans can enter the stadium whenever they want to, and stay for the second game if they wish. This practice is known in Israel as hatzaga kfula (lit. double show), and was common in Israeli football in the past. During the last few years, both the semi-finals and the final have been played in other, newer stadiums, such as Teddy, Sammy Ofer and Netanya.

For the final, the two winning teams of the semifinal play a single final game, with the winning team being awarded the State Cup from the President of Israel. The president's role is traditional, and entered the Israeli sports lexicon, with meeting the president being an expression equal to saying winning the cup.

Notable events in the State Cup

Year Event
1928 Foundation of the People's Cup.
1928 Hapoel Tel Aviv and Maccabi Hasmonean Jerusalem were the first teams to win the cup and the only teams who shared the cup.
1930 First final where a Non-Palestine team reaches the final, having the 48th Battalion of the British Army club losing to Maccabi Tel Aviv 4–0.
1932 First final where a Non-Palestine team wins the cup, having the British Police club beating Hapoel Haifa 3–0.[2]
1948 Renaming of the cup to the Israeli State Cup.
1952 Maccabi Petah Tikva became the first club to win the State Cup after Israel declaration of independence, beating Maccabi Tel Aviv 1–0.
1958 Exhibition games for the decade of independence, two finals for each of the top two divisions:
Hapoel Haifa 2–0 Hapoel Jerusalem (Liga Leumit); Hapoel Tiberias 7–1 Hapoel Be'er Sheva (Liga Alef).
1973 Exhibition games for the 25th anniversary of independence, two finals for each of the top two divisions:
Maccabi Petah Tikva 1–1 (4–2 pen.) Maccabi Haifa (Liga Leumit); Hapoel Yehud 2–0 Hapoel Ramat Gan (Liga Alef).
2003 Hapoel Ramat Gan became the first club outside the top division to win the State Cup, beating top flight Hapoel Be'er Sheva 5–4 on penalties after a 1–1 draw.
2004 Bnei Sakhnin became the first Arab club to win the cup and the first club from the Northern District to win an Israeli cup after beating Hapoel Haifa 4–1.

Winners

References and notes

  1. ↑ http://www.one.co.il/Article/202483.html
  2. ↑ Abandoned at 0–1 to Hapoel Haifa who walked off when a penalty was awarded to British Police; cup duly awarded to British Police.
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