Maccabiah Games in Israel Postponed to 2026 as Iran War Continues

The 2025 Maccabiah Games scheduled to take place in Tel Aviv next month will be postponed until 2026 because of the Israel-Iran war, it was announced this week.

Often referred to as the “Jewish Olympics,” the international multi-sport event for Jewish athletes is held every four years in Israel. It was set to officially begin on July 8. This week, the official website for the sporting event featured a message on its homepage that said due to Israel’s war against Iran, dubbed Operation Rising Lion, the Maccabiah Games will instead take place in July 2026. “Same values. Same vision. Just a little more time,” read the message.

A total of 8,000 athletes from 55 countries were scheduled to compete in the Maccabiah Games this year in 45 sports, including tennis, rhythmic gymnastics, futsal, volleyball, judo, karate, swimming, ice hockey, and wheelchair fencing. The event is organized by the Maccabi World Union.

Flights to Israel remain grounded and Israel has declared a nationwide state of emergency that will remain in effect until at least June 30 amid the war with Iran that started a week ago.

“Despite our strong desire to hold the Maccabiah in the summer of 2025 as a symbol of hope, we are forced to postpone it due to the complex security situation created by the attack on Iran, the instructions of the Home Front Command, the continued suspension of flights to Israel, and the necessary security measures required of all of us,” Maccabiah Chair Assaf Goren said in a statement.

“Together with the Ministry of Culture and Sports, and after considering several alternatives, we realized that although we are almost at the starting line, the most prudent step from a security, safety and logistical perspective is to postpone the event by a year to a quieter and safer time,” he continued.

“Following our operation in Iran and after numerous assessments of the situation, we have concluded that it is inevitable to postpone the Maccabiah until next year,” said Israel’s Minister of Culture and Sports Miki Zohar. “I thank all the Maccabiah organizers for their willingness and joint efforts, the Jewish organizations around the world, and the sports unions. I am confident that we will gather here next year with a stronger and braver Israel than ever before.”

Following the cancellation, USA Fencing announced that it will accept late entries to the national tournament scheduled to start in Milwaukee in July, and will waive late penalties for athletes who were scheduled to compete in the Maccabiah Games.

First held in 1932, the Maccabiah Games took a 15-year break between 1935 and 1950 because of tensions surrounding World War II and the establishment of the State of Israel. The 2021 Maccabiah Games were also postponed until the following year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

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