Maccabi completed their task on Saturday as they won the league title. Shortly after the everything was decided, the time has come to dive into the stats behind the amazing achievement of Robbie Keane and his charges.

This is the 25^th championship in Maccabi’s history – the record holder of Israeli football. This is also the 20^th championship since the state of Israel was established and the 7^th under the format of the current Ligat Ha’al (1999/00).

Maccabi secured the championship two matches before the end of the season. Seven times in the club’s history, the championship was won earlier.

Robbie Keane guided Maccabi to 79 points with a goal tally of 70-25 and a 77.4% success rate – more than any of the three recent league titles.

A historic start to the season

Maccabi started the season with 12 victories and a draw – to equal the best start in the history of Israeli football together with Hapoel Petah Tikva (1954/55), Maccabi Tel Aviv (1993/94) and Maccabi Haifa (2005/06).

Robbie Keane holds the record as the best start for a coach in his debut season.

Between September 2023 and January 2024 Maccabi recorded 10 league victories in succession (for the first time since March 2021). Only 7 clubs in Israel’s recorded longer runs: Maccabi Tel Aviv (4), Maccabi Haifa (2), Hapoel Petah Tikva (1). Maccabi holds the record with 20 successive league victories in 1951.

Between November 2023 to January 2024, Maccabi won 12 successive matches in all competitions for the first time since the new Millenium.

In December 2023 Maccabi played 7 league matches winning all 7 by a single goal margin. The longest stretch by a single goal in the league’s history.

Yeini’s record:

This is Sheran Yeini’s 6^th league title at Maccabi which makes him the player who won the most championships in the clubs’ history. The 37-year-old captain has made 555 appearances for Maccabi in all competitions and is ranked second in the all-time appearance chart.   

Only five players in Israeli football won more championships: Arik Benado and Alon Harazi (9 championships each), Eitan Tibi, Yaniv Katan and Nir Davidovic (7 championships each).

Eran Zahavi is Maccabi’s leading scorer with 17 league goals . Zahavi reached 162 league goals (7^th in the all time goal scorers chart) and 36 in all competitions.

Zahavi is also the Israeli who scored the largest number of goals with 420 career goals.

Maccabi’s derby dominance

Maccabi’s local dominance in the Tel Aviv derby continued in the 2023/24 campaign. Maccabi’s unbeaten record against Hapoel Tel Aviv continued for the 10^th year in succession – since April 26^th 2014.

Maccabi set a new record this season by stretching their unbeaten run-in derbies to 22 matches – a club record against any opponent.

For our arch city rivals this is their record winless run against any opponent in – with their 13 match long winless run against Beitar Tel Aviv set in 1974.

Of the last 22 derbies, Maccabi won 15 matches and drawn 7 with a staggering goal record of 50-8.

In the two derbies played this season, Maccabi scored nine goals and conceded two. The number of goals scored and conceded created a margin which is amongst the highest in the history for two matches in one season.

 

Maccabi met Hapoel Be’ersheva 150 times in all competitions winning 77 matches, drawing 39 and losing 34 with a total goal record of 220-124.

Both teams faced each other for a 131 league encounters with Maccabi winning 62, drawing 38 and losing 31. The goal tally in the league currently stands on 183-111.

Since the 2018/19 championship winning season, Maccabi hosted Be’ersheva 11 times winning 7 and drawing 4 with a goal tally of 15-3.

The two clubs were teamed up only once on MD34 during the 2017/18 season at Turner stadium. A Dor Peretz winning goal ended Be’ersheva’s 51 match long unbeaten home run in domestic competitions to dampen the hosts’ championship celebrations.

Be’ersheva secured their championship in the 2016/17 season with a 2-1 victory over Maccabi in the Netanya stadium.

Maccabi on the other hand, won the league title twice in the past at Be’ersheva. An Alon Brummer winning goal on the final day of the 1994/95 season gave Maccabi a 1-0 victory and the 17^th league title. An Eran Zahavi brace on MD33 of the 2013/14 season gave Maccabi a 2-1 victory over Hapoel Be’ersheva at Vassermil stadium to win the 21^st championship in the club’s history.

Memorial Day, is Israel’s national day of mourning to commemorate the fallen soldiers of the State of Israel and victims of terrorism is observed across the country on Sunday evening and Monday. Maccabi is also marking this day with a deep sense of reverence and solemnity, at the Avi Cohen Youth Academy complex in Kiryat Shalom.