Hapoel Beit She'an ( he, הפועל בית שאן) is an Israeli football club based in

Beit She'an Beit She'an ( he, בֵּית שְׁאָן '), also Beth-shean, formerly Beisan ( ar, بيسان ), is a town in the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. The town lies at the Beit She'an Valley about 120 m (394 feet) below se ...

. The club spent several seasons in the top division in the 1990s, but after several relegations, folded in 2006, and was refounded in 2009.

History

The club was founded in 1953, and was renamed Hapoel Beit She'an/Sde Nahum in 1969, as it merged with Hapoel Sde Nahum, which played in

Liga Bet Liga Bet ( he, ליגה ב', lit. ''League B'') is the fourth tier of the Israeli football league system. It is divided into four regional divisions. History League football started in Israel in 1949–50, a year after the Israeli Declaration of ...

, but reverted to their old name two years later. They remained in Liga Bet until 1976 when they were promoted to

Liga Alef Liga Alef ( he, ליגה א', , League A) is the third tier of the Israeli football league system. It is divided into two regional divisions, north and south. History League football began in Israel in 1949–50, a year after the Israeli Declar ...

, and in 1978, to

Liga Artzit Liga Artzit ( he, ליגה ארצית, lit. ''Country League'') is the defunct third division of Israeli Football League, beneath its highest division Premier League and the second division Liga Leumit. Before being cancelled in 2009, it was run b ...

, then the second tier. The club was relegated back to Liga Alef at the end of the 1983–84 season, but returned to Liga Artzit in 1986. Although they were relegated again, they returned to the second tier in 1993 under the management of

Elisha Levy Elisha Levy ( he, אלישע לוי; born on 18 November 1957) is a retired Israeli association footballer and currently the manager of Hapoel Haifa F.C., Hapoel Haifa. Career Player Levy was born in Jerusalem, Israel, to a Jewish family. In the ...

. In 1993–94 they finished second, and were promoted to

Liga Leumit Liga Leumit ( he, ליגה לאומית, lit. ''National League'') is the second division of the Israeli Football League, and below its Premier League. Structure There are 16 clubs in the league. At the end of each season, the two lowest-place ...

(then the top division) for the first time. Following promotion, the club played its first four home matches in

Tiberias Tiberias ( ; he, טְבֶרְיָה, ; ar, طبريا, Ṭabariyyā) is an Israeli city on the western shore of the Sea of Galilee. A major Jewish center during Late Antiquity, it has been considered since the 16th century one of Judaism's Fo ...

whilst their stadium was upgraded. In their first season in Liga Leumit the club survived on the final day of the season, coming from 2–0 down to

Maccabi Haifa Maccabi Haifa ( he, מכבי חיפה) is one of the biggest sports clubs in Israel and a part of the Maccabi association. It runs several sports clubs and teams in Haifa which have competed in a variety of sports over the years, such as Football ...

(who were playing to win the title) to win 3–2. A film was made about the campaign, entitled ''Underdogs: A War Story''. Levy left the club in 1995 but returned in 1997. On 2 May 1998 the club played

Beitar Jerusalem Beitar Jerusalem Football Club ( he, מועדון כדורגל בית"ר ירושלים, Moadon Kaduregel Beitar Yerushalayim), commonly known as Beitar Jerusalem () or simply as Beitar (), is an Israeli football club based in the city of Jeru ...

(a match held at Kiryat Eliezer in

Haifa Haifa ( he, חֵיפָה ' ; ar, حَيْفَا ') is the third-largest city in Israel—after Jerusalem and Tel Aviv—with a population of in . The city of Haifa forms part of the Haifa metropolitan area, the third-most populous metropol ...

on police advice) in a game that became known as the " Shoelaces Match", as Beit She'an were accused of allowing Beitar to win the match (and the title). After several lower mid-table finishes, Hapoel were relegated at the end of the 1998–99 season. In 2001–02 they finished bottom of the second tier, and were relegated again. A third relegation occurred in 2003–04, this time to

. At the end of the 2005–06 season they were relegated from Liga Alef, and folded, although the club's youth teams were still active. In 2009 the club merged with Hapoel Kvalim Mesilot to form Hapoel Beit She'an Mesilot, which took Mesilot's place in

.Hapoel Beit She'an Mesilot Opens the Season
Tomer Rona, mynet.co.il, 21 October 2009 A year later the team absorbed the local rival Maccabi Beit Shean, which gave up its place in

.Shaken 'Arara
Amos Keles, Doublepass, 4 September 2010 The club was promoted to

after winning

North B division.

Current squad

:''As of 6 February 2020''

Honours

League League or The League may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Leagues'' (band), an American rock band * ''The League'', an American sitcom broadcast on FX and FXX about fantasy football Sports * Sports league * Rugby league, full contact footba ...

Cup competitions

References

External links

Hapoel Beit She'an Mesilot
Israel Football Association {{Football in Israel Beit She'an

Association football clubs established in 1953 Association football clubs disestablished in 2009 1953 establishments in Israel 2009 disestablishments in Israel