Maccabi—From Sports Association to a Political Party

Abstract

Maccabi was the first sports organization in Palestine. It started out as a national Zionist sports organization. In the 1930s, it was knocked off this pedestal in Palestine by the growing strength of Hapoel, the sports association that operated under the aegis of the powerful Histadrut workers Union. Unlike organizations such as Hapoel, which were founded as part of the recruitment mechanism of political-ideological movements, Maccabi was avowedly independent. This independence exacted a price—loss of direction. The leadership of Maccabi recognized the political weakness of the civic camp and believed that the time was ripe to take charge of it. Maccabi’s transformation into a political party in the 1944 elections was due to a combination of factors: Maccabi found itself sidelined from the pan-Zionist role it had played in Europe and was forced to grapple with the question of its political and class orientation. In the 1930s there was a large wave of immigration from Europe. Among the immigrants were many sports activists from Germany and Austria. They were absorbed in the leadership of Maccabi and encouraged the association to enter the political arena, hoping to translate Maccabi’s national legacy into electoral power. Among the parties that competed in August 1944 for a spot in the Fourth Assembly of Representatives of the Jewish Yishuv, the pre-state Jewish community in Palestine, was Maccabi. The elections were a total failure. Maccabi won five out of 171 seats. The bid to become a political party harmed Maccabi’s public and national image. It also harmed its standing as a sports organization. From then on, the issue was no longer whether Maccabi could influence the Yishuv politically, but whether it would survive as a sports association. Entry into the political arena signaled the conclusion of its historic role as the national sports association of the Jewish people.