| Hapoel Jerusalem | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Leagues | Israeli Premier League EuroCup | |||
| Founded | 1943; 82 years ago (1943) | |||
| History | Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. (1943–present) | |||
| Arena | Pais Arena | |||
| Capacity | 11,000 | |||
| Location | Jerusalem | |||
| Team colors | Red, Black, White | |||
| Main sponsor | Bank Yahav | |||
| CEO | Alon Kremer | |||
| President | Matan Adelson | |||
| Head coach | Yonatan Alon | |||
| Ownership | Matan Adelson (90%) Fan association (10%) | |||
| Championships | 1EuroCup 2Israeli Championship 8Israeli State Cups 7Israeli League Cups 1Israeli Super Cup | |||
| Website | hapoel.co.il | |||
Hapoel Jerusalem Basketball Club (Hebrew:מועדון כדורסל הפועל ירושלים), known for sponsorship reasons asHapoel Midtown Jerusalem (הפועל מידטאון ירושלים), is a professionalbasketball club based inthe City of Jerusalem, and competes in theIsraeli Basketball Premier League (the top tier of Israeli basketball), theIsraeli State Cup, and theEuroCup. It has won several titles, including theULEB Cup (now called EuroCup) in 2004, the Israeli Basketball Premier League championship in 2015 and 2017, and seven state Cups. In 2013, a new ownership group took over, and the club has since seen a remarkable advancement and expansion. The team began playing in thePais Arena in 2014.
Hapoel Jerusalem Basketball Club was founded in 1935, and incorporated in 1943.[1][2] It made its first appearance in theIsraeli Basketball Premier League in 1955. Hapoel Jerusalem played in the first division most of the 1950s and 1960s, with notable players such asDavid Kaminsky. The following two decades had ups and downs, as Hapoel Jerusalem toggled between the first andsecond divisions.
In 1986, led by coach Simi Riger, the team advanced to the Premier League, after five consecutive years in the second division.[1] Since then, Hapoel Jerusalem has remained in the Premier League.[1] In 1996 and 1997, Hapoel Jerusalem won theIsraeli Basketball State Cup, defeatingMaccabi Tel Aviv in the finals, at theYad Eliyahu Arena.[1] The team was led byAdi Gordon.[1]
In 2004, Hapoel Jerusalem won its first European title, theULEB Cup (EuroCup), defeatingReal Madrid in the final inCharleroi, Belgium.[3][4]
In 2005, Israeli-Russian billionaireArcadi Gaydamak purchased a large stake in the club.[1] As a result, the team became stronger and signed four American players withNBA records –Tamar Slay,Horace Jenkins,Roger Mason, andMario Austin, as well as Israeli starMeir Tapiro.[1]
In 2007, Hapoel Jerusalem won its thirdIsrael State Cup, defeatingBnei HaSharon.[1] In early 2008 Hapoel Jerusalem came back from being 22 points down in the 4th quarter, to win its fourth State Cup, beating Maccabi Tel Aviv 93–89.[4][1] In late 2008 it won its firstIsraeli Basketball League Cup, beatingIroni Nahariya.[1]
In September 2009, oil tycoonGuma Aguiar became the team's sponsor and helped pay debts left by Gaydamak.[1] On October 8, 2009, Hapoel Jerusalem beat Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Winner Cup finals, winning the club's second cup in a row.[1]
One year after the mysterious disappearance of Guma Aguiar, in 2013 a new ownership group headed by entrepreneur Ori Allon took over.[1] Guy Harel succeeded Dani Klein as general manager.[1]
In April 2014, theNew York Post andThe Wall Street Journal reported that six-timeNBA All-StarAmar'e Stoudemire might join Hapoel Jerusalem after his contract with theNew York Knicks expired at the end of the2014–15 NBA season.[5][6] Stoudemire decided to retire from the NBA in July 2016.[1]
Amar'e Stoudemire signed a two-year contract with Hapoel Jerusalem on August 1, 2016.[7][8] In his first season with the team he helped it win the Israeli Basketball League Cup, defeating Maccabi Tel Aviv.[8]
On June 20, 2014, the club signed coachDanny Franco.[1] That same day, the club also signed season MVPDonta Smith.[9] On June 25, 2014, the executive board ofEuroleague Commercial Assets agreed to give Hapoel Jerusalem awild card to compete for a spot in theEuroLeague qualifications.[10]
On June 25, 2015, Hapoel Jerusalem won theIsraeli Basketball Premier League Championship for the first time in their history, defeatingHapoel Eilat in theFinal.[1] On June 15, 2017, the club won the Israeli Championship for the second time, defeating Maccabi Haifa in the IsraeliFinal.[1][11]
On June 1, 2023,Matan Adelson purchased a 90% stake of the club for $20 million, with the remaining 10% held by the Hapoel fan association.[12] Among his goals were to expand the brand internationally and enter theEuroleague, alongsideMaccabi Tel Aviv.[13]
Brigade Malcha is the officialultras organization of Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. In Malha Arena, the Brigade was located behind the south side basket. At the Pais Arena, the Brigade is located in stands #1 and #12. The Brigade has close connections with the team itself, and is consulted by management on instrumental decisions, such as changing the team logo, and planning events with the community.
Since the founding of the club in 1943, Hapoel Jerusalem has developed a major rivalry withTel Aviv's leading basketball clubMaccabi Tel Aviv. Throughout the years, many games between the two teams became a part of the 'Hall of Fame' of Israeli basketball. The rivalry between the teams is very deep and emotional. Due to its vast size, the Pais Arena has brought Israel's largest basketball rivalry to a whole new level.
When Hapoel Jerusalem was founded, it initially played in a small court on Histadrut Street, in the city center, before moving to theJerusalem International YMCA arena. In the mid-1950s, it moved to the onlyindoor arena in Jerusalem at that time, "the Straus Arena," in theHistadrut building, onStraus Street.Malha Arena was used as Hapoel Jerusalem's home area from 1985 to 2014. It has a seating capacity of 3,000 seats, with 2,540 seats in its lower tier, an additional 460 seats in its upper tier. With its small size, the arena traps in noise, and distracts the opposing team. This gives a boost to players towards the end of the game when they need it most, according to the former head coach of Hapoel Jerusalem,Oded Kattash.
Former Mayor of Jerusalem, andPrime Minister of Israel,Ehud Olmert, proposed the master plan for the arena in 2004, and it took ten years to build. Though thePais Arena is less than two kilometers from the team's previous home, which was opened in 1985, it is exponentially larger. The arena features 11,000 seats, four times as many as inGoldberg Arena, and all the modern amenities expected of a modern basketball venue. The stadium has twelve corporate boxes, each listed for $100,000 per season. The site was chosen far back, but the building only took place in recent years. With an eye towards what the future might bring, the arena has been built toEuroLeague standards. Playing in the EuroLeague in the next few years, is a goal that the team has publicly set for itself.[14] The Pais Arena was opened in the 2014–15 season.
The team's main corporate sponsor is Bank Yahav. Secondary sponsors includeGivova, Prima hotels.[15]
Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility atFIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
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| Players | Coaches | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Updated:September 21, 2025 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Source:basket.co.il
Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility atFIBA-sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationalities not displayed.
| Criteria |
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To appear in this section a player must have either:
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David Kaminsky7 seasons: '58–'63, '77Israel Berlinsky11 seasons: '59–'70Itzhak Neumann11 seasons: '59–'70Yoel Steinberg13 seasons: '63–'76Doron Shefa10 seasons: '80–'81, '89–'94, '96–'00
David Blatt1 season: '86–'87Pini Levi9 seasons: '87–'94, '95–'97Erez Hazan5 seasons: '88–'93
Emir Mutapčić2 seasons: '89–'91Shalom Turgeman11 seasons: '89–'96, '97–'01Hubert Roberts4 seasons: '90–'91, '93–'96Adi Gordon6 seasons: '91–'94, '95–'98Norris Coleman3 seasons: '92–'94, '95–'96Miki Berkovich1 season: '93–'94Billy Thompson3 seasons: '94–'97Jon Dalzell3 seasons: '94–'97Moti Daniel2 seasons: '96–'98H Waldman4 seasons: '96–'00
Radisav Ćurčić2 seasons: '97–'99Kenny Williams4 seasons: '97–'01Derrick Hamilton2 seasons: '98–'00Erez Katz6 seasons: '98–'04
Tony Dorsey1 season: '00–'01Haywoode Workman1 season: '00–'01Meir Tapiro6 seasons: '00–'03, '05–'07, '12–'13Demetrius Alexander1 season: '01–'02Moshe Mizrahi5 seasons: '01–'04, '10–'12
Andrius Jurkūnas1 season: '02–'03
Tunji Awojobi1 season: '03–'04Kelly McCarty1 season: '03–'04Doron Sheffer2 seasons: '03–'05Will Solomon2 seasons: '03–'04, '10–'11Ido Kozikaro3 seasons: '03–'06Yuval Naimy4 seasons: '03–'04, '09–'12William Avery1 season: '04–'05Matan Naor3 seasons: '04–'07Raviv Limonad3 seasons: '04–'06, '12Roger Mason, Jr.1 season: '05–'06Horace Jenkins2 seasons: '05–'06, '07Mario Austin2 seasons: '05–'07Terence Morris1 season: '06–'07
Jurica Golemac1 season: '06–'07Dror Hagag2 seasons: '06–'08Erez Markovich3 seasons: '05–'08Guy Pnini2 seasons: '06–'08Timmy Bowers3 seasons: '06–'09Jamie Arnold1 season: '07–'08Ramel Curry1 season: '07–'08Marcus Slaughter1 season: '07–'08Sharon Shason3 seasons: '07–'10Omar Sneed1 season: '08–'09Travis Watson1 season: '08–'09Eugene Jeter1 season: '09–'10Tre Simmons1 season: '09–'10Dijon Thompson2 seasons: '09–'10, '16–'17Yogev Ohayon4 seasons: '09–'11, '17–'19Uri Kokia4 seasons: '09–'13Jason Rich1 season: '10–'11Brian Randle3 seasons: '10–'12, '17D. J. Strawberry1 season: '11–'12Elishay Kadir2 seasons: '11–'13Ramel Bradley1 season: '11–'12Adam Ariel5 season: '12–'15, '20-'22Jacob Pullen1 season: '12–'13Courtney Fells1 season: '12–'13Josh Duncan3 seasons: '12–'14, '15–'16Rafi Menco4 seasons: '12–'16
Samardo Samuels1 season: '13
Artsiom Parakhouski1 season: '13–'14Derwin Kitchen2 seasons: '13–'15Yotam Halperin5 seasons: '13–'18Lior Eliyahu6 seasons: '13–'19Bracey Wright1 season: '14–'15Tony Gaffney2 seasons: '14–'16Donta Smith2 seasons: '14–'16Bar Timor7 seasons: '14–'20D'Or Fischer1 season: '15–'16E. J. Rowland1 season: '15–'16Amar'e Stoudemire2 seasons: '16–'17, '18–'19Curtis Jerrells1 season: '16–'17Jerome Dyson2 seasons: '16–'18Tarence Kinsey2 seasons: '16–'18
James Feldeine2 seasons: '18–'20Tamir Blatt3 seasons: '18–'21TaShawn Thomas3 seasons: '18–'21J'Covan Brown3 seasons: '18–'21Suleiman Braimoh3 seasons: '19-'22John Holland1 season: '19-'20Shelvin Mack1 season: '20Emanuel Terry1 season: '20Deividas Sirvydis1 season: '20Chris Kramer1 season: '20-'21Stanton Kidd1 season: '21Ray McCallum Jr.1 season: '21Jalen Adams1 season: '21-'22
Retin Obasohan1 season: '21-'22Itay Segev2 seasons: '21-'23K. C. Rivers1 season: '22
Mareks Mejeris1 season: '22-'23
Siim-Sander Vene1 season: '22-'23Brandon Brown1 season: '22-'23Zach Hankins2 seasons: '22-'24Levi Randolph2 seasons: '22-'24JaCorey Williams1 season: '24Alex Tyus1 season: '24.jpg)
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Total titles: 16
