West Midlands Police Chief Resigns Amid Controversy Over Ban on Israeli Football Fans
In a move widely seen as inevitable, West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford has announced his resignation, effective immediately. The decision comes after an official inquiry found that the force used "exaggerated and untrue" intelligence to justify banning fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv from attending a football match in November 2025.
The controversy surrounding the ban began when the police claimed that Israeli fans had been responsible for violence during a match in Amsterdam, but Dutch police disputed these claims. The Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, stated that she had lost confidence in Guildford after the report, which described "devastating" failings on the part of West Midlands Police.
The inquiry's findings revealed that the force had failed to apply proper strategic oversight and had paid insufficient attention to key details at senior levels. The criticism led some of Guildford's colleagues to believe that he should step down, as staying in his position would damage the reputation of policing nationwide and erode public trust.
Guildford served 32 years as a police officer before becoming chief constable in 2022. His salary was over £220,000 per year. The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, described Guildford's decision to resign as "honourable" and said that he had acted in the best interests of the force.
The new interim Chief Constable is Scott Green, who will oversee the process of rebuilding trust with communities in the West Midlands. The Board of Deputies of British Jews welcomed Guildford's resignation, stating that they were ready to work with his successor to restore confidence in policing.
In a move widely seen as inevitable, West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford has announced his resignation, effective immediately. The decision comes after an official inquiry found that the force used "exaggerated and untrue" intelligence to justify banning fans of Maccabi Tel Aviv from attending a football match in November 2025.
The controversy surrounding the ban began when the police claimed that Israeli fans had been responsible for violence during a match in Amsterdam, but Dutch police disputed these claims. The Home Secretary, Shabana Mahmood, stated that she had lost confidence in Guildford after the report, which described "devastating" failings on the part of West Midlands Police.
The inquiry's findings revealed that the force had failed to apply proper strategic oversight and had paid insufficient attention to key details at senior levels. The criticism led some of Guildford's colleagues to believe that he should step down, as staying in his position would damage the reputation of policing nationwide and erode public trust.
Guildford served 32 years as a police officer before becoming chief constable in 2022. His salary was over £220,000 per year. The West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner, Simon Foster, described Guildford's decision to resign as "honourable" and said that he had acted in the best interests of the force.
The new interim Chief Constable is Scott Green, who will oversee the process of rebuilding trust with communities in the West Midlands. The Board of Deputies of British Jews welcomed Guildford's resignation, stating that they were ready to work with his successor to restore confidence in policing.
. The fact that the police chief got busted for making up intel to ban Israeli fans from a football match is just wild 
. Like, what even is the point of having an official inquiry if it's just gonna confirm everything we already knew? 
. On a more positive note tho, I'm glad to see some people speaking out against the misuse of power and corruption in policing 
. It's time for change and accountability, ya know? 
#JusticeForGuildford #PoliceReformNow #AccountabilityMatters
. and yeah, it's good to hear that Simon Foster is on board with Guildford's decision 
. rebuilding trust is key here, gotta make sure West Midlands Police is all about serving & protecting, not just covering up mistakes 
can't believe this dude was allowed to get away with this for so long! 32 years on the force and you still manage to mess up a simple football match ban? 
£220k a year, what a joke... I mean, how much more money do they need to throw at him before someone says enough is enough? 
And now he's just gonna slip away with his head held high, while the public is left to pick up the pieces and wonder what other "devastating" failings are hiding in plain sight. 
At least the new interim Chief Constable seems like a breath of fresh air, fingers crossed he can actually do some damage control and rebuild trust... 
the fact that they used fake intel to ban fans from a match is just unacceptable 
it's not about being pro-israel or anti-israel, it's about doing your job right and respecting everyone's rights 
and now the whole thing has led to the chief constable quitting... maybe this is a good opportunity for some real change in the police force 
. They gotta sort out their act and make sure this never happens again, right? Poor Craig Guildford, he must've known his time was up 
. All those years of service and £220k salary didn't save him, lol 
. Scott Green is a good choice to take over tho, let's see how he does 
. Can't wait for the full report to come out and know exactly what went down 
. The fact that they used "exaggerated" intel to ban fans is just wild 
. It's crazy how much trust was lost over just one bad decision. I mean, who needs £220k+ per year when you can't even get the facts straight? 
The West Midlands Police force needs a serious overhaul, and this is just the beginning. Fingers crossed Scott Green brings some sense to the table 
seems like he had no choice but to step down and save the reputation of the whole force 
hope scott green does better by rebuilding trust with the communities 
And what's with the "exaggerated and untrue" intelligence? Didn't they fact-check anything? 
I guess it's good that some people are speaking out now, like the Board of Deputies of British Jews... seems like a step in the right direction, fingers crossed that Scott Green can fix things 
the fact that some of his colleagues thought he should step down is telling - there's definitely been a lack of accountability in the force. anyway, i think this is a good thing for policing, but it'll be interesting to see how it all plays out with the new interim chief constable. 
. I mean, it's pretty clear that the whole situation was a mess from the start. But at least he took responsibility and stepped down, right? It's all about learning from mistakes and moving forward 
. I guess it's a good thing that there's a new interim Chief Constable, Scott Green, who'll help rebuild trust with communities in the West Midlands 
. And yay for the Board of Deputies of British Jews welcoming Guildford's resignation - let's keep moving forward and support each other 
!