Hapoel Haifa CEO Itai Rak has sent a strongly worded letter to senior officials at the Israel Referees Association, protesting what he described as a series of refereeing errors against the team. On Saturday, the Carmel Reds appeared to take a late 2-1 lead against Maccabi Petah Tikva, only for the goal to be ruled out following a VAR intervention. The Referees Association's Professional Committee later determined that the decision was incorrect and that the goal should have stood. Hapoel Haifa nevertheless went on to win the match, scoring a stoppage-time winner.
“Re: Ongoing injustice against Hapoel Haifa Soccer Club following a series of failures by refereeing teams,” Rak wrote, outlining the incidents in which he claimed the team had been adversely affected by incorrect decisions. “A series of such serious refereeing errors points to the team being treated unfairly through decisions that have caused serious professional harm to the club. We demand to know how the Referees Association intends to respond to the failures of the refereeing teams outlined above. In addition, we call for a thorough internal review and request to receive its findings to ensure that such serious errors do not happen again.”