Maccabi Tel Aviv Ownership Battle Escalates With Threats of Federal Prison
The power struggle over Maccabi Tel Aviv escalates as main sponsor Arieh Shtulman threatens American investor Jason Levin with federal prison over a disputed club buyout.
The battle for control of the Maccabi Tel Aviv basketball club is escalating sharply. Arieh Shtulman, CEO of Rapid and the club's main sponsor whose plan to become a shareholder was blocked, launched a particularly aggressive attack on X against the Recanati faction and American investor Jason Levin.
In the background is majority shareholder Udi Recanati's attempt to sell significant ownership stakes to Levin, a move met with fierce legal resistance from Shtulman. Now, the Rapid CEO is stepping up pressure and hinting at potential criminal trouble overseas.
In a dramatic post, Shtulman wrote: "Reminder, I know Recanati is the boss, but your emails and the 4 versions of the documents must be submitted." He then warned of serious consequences for Levin in the United States: "Otherwise Jason ends up in federal prison."
Shtulman concluded with a direct jab, making it clear Levin would be updated: "(Maybe you don't care, but I'm sure Jason does). He will be updated on the matter in the morning US time."
Twitter threats are not the only legal front Levin faces. VR Capital Group, holding 17.5% of club shares and headed by Richard Deitz, filed a lawsuit against ENDVR MTA owned by Jason Levin, and against Guy Harel, who mediated the share purchase deal with the Recanati family and Shimon Mizrahi.
The lawsuit demands $2.55 million in damages. Pressure on the Recanati group and its investors is mounting, and power struggles surrounding the yellow basketball empire are expected to continue providing dramatic turns.
