Maccabi Tel Aviv Co-Owner Udi Recanati Speaks Out Amid Bitter Ownership Dispute
A leaked conversation involving Maccabi Tel Aviv co-owner Udi Recanati reveals bitter disputes with former partners, objections to Arik Shtilman, and details on bringing in new investor Jason Levien amidst an ownership battle.
Israeli businessman Udi Recanati, 77, a prominent scion of one of the country's leading banking and financial families and co-owner of the R.G.E. television channels group, has rarely spoken publicly about his business affairs and partners. He has traditionally taken great care to avoid direct quotes reaching the media. However, a shareholder dispute that erupted in recent weeks regarding Israel's most titled basketball club, Maccabi Tel Aviv—which he and his son Shay control with a 58% stake—has prompted him to speak out.
A recording and transcript of a conversation he recently held with G., an organizer of a fan protest against the business and managerial steps of the Recanati family, were submitted this week to the Tel Aviv District Court as part of a petition to appoint an arbitrator in the shareholder dispute. The documents reveal rare and candid statements by Recanati regarding his former partners, David Federman and his son Dani; Arik Shtilman, founder of the fintech company Rapyd who attempted to acquire a stake in the club; his prospective new partner, Jason Levien, former CEO of the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies; and the budget and financial situation of Maccabi Tel Aviv.
The Battle for Control and the Federman Family Exit
At the heart of the court petition is the Recanati family's decision last month to sell 29% of the ownership stake they recently acquired for $50 million from their former partners in Maccabi, the Federman family, to the Jewish-American businessman Jason Levien for an identical sum. Businessman Richard Deitz, who holds a 17.5% stake in Maccabi, opposes the transaction and demands to exercise a right of first refusal. Represented by attorney Zohar Lande, Deitz approached the court on Sunday seeking temporary injunctions and attached the transcript of Recanati's conversation with fan G. Judge Ariel Zimmerman subsequently referred the parties to arbitration, as stipulated in their shareholder agreements.
One of the central topics in the conversation, which sparked the power struggles, concerned the Federman family—the late David Federman and his son Dani—and Recanati's relationship with them. The Federmans, who served as sponsors and entered as controlling owners of Maccabi in 2000, decided in May to sell half of their holdings in the club (29%) to Shtilman, Maccabi's sponsor via Rapyd. The Recanatis decided to block the deal, exercised their right of first refusal, and in July the Federmans sold their entire holdings to them for $50 million. The recording reveals that the 26-year partnership did not end on amicable terms.
«There was Federman—referring to Dani, who previously served as the club's CEO—who didn't fit with us! Why didn't he fit with us? Because we didn't get along with him. I loved his father very, very much; he was a very, very close friend of mine for 50 years. But I can tell you that regarding the management of Maccabi, the directions there were unequivocally under the table, behind our backs. It was very hard. Instead of uniting everyone together, they did exactly the opposite, okay?»
Recanati also addressed the long-standing disputes over the club's budget, which is crucial for competing against major European clubs. «How much money did we spend this year, do you know? $31 million, $31.8 million is our cost,» he said, adding that «the one who was usually the obstacle to increasing the budget was always the Federmans. They wouldn't let the budget be increased.»
Rejecting Arik Shtilman and Welcoming Jason Levien
When the budget issue arose, Recanati shifted to discussing Shtilman, who bought a share from the Federmans and ultimately remained on the outside. Shtilman has granted numerous interviews in recent weeks criticizing Maccabi's management and budget.
«I'll tell you the truth, Shtilman, from the first day I met him, came as a sponsor, right? I immediately told Shimon Mizrahi: You should know one thing, he really doesn't look to me and Shay like the right person to be our sponsor. He's too aggressive, he tries to take over and do things, and that's what matters to him. It's not what happens at Maccabi first of all. And by the way, I know he's been a fan all his life and so on and so forth. Now, when we saw that, we said okay, right now he's not going for any ownership, he's only going for the sponsorship. And the sponsorship between us was good... But he would interfere. Pushing his nose into all sorts of things he shouldn't have.»
The situation escalated in May when Shtilman acquired 50% of Fedpenco—the company through which the Federmans held control—making him supposedly a shareholder. The Federmans appointed him as a director for two or three meetings. According to Recanati, Shtilman began dictating how things should be run, prompting Recanati, Mizrahi, and Shay to conclude he could not remain an owner, which drove Recanati to buy out the Federmans' shares.
Addressing calls for the older generation to step aside, Recanati stated: «I don't want to control the club! I'm not blind, I'm 77 and Shimon is 87. We want young partners. We said we must have someone serious, someone with management experience, management experience in sports, who is also connected to the NBA, because the NBA is a very, very important part of Maccabi's future. And someone with means, with great means.»
Recanati praised Jason Levien as a 52-year-old Zionist, a warm Jew who loves Israel, and noted his commitment to invest $10 million annually into the club for three years on top of covering any deficits. «I'm not looking to control Maccabi. If I drop to 5% and we have amazing ownership of wonderful people doing it, I'm ready for that too,» Recanati concluded.
