Craig Guildford, the chief constable who oversaw the decision to ban Israeli football supporters from a European match in Birmingham, retired with immediate effect on Friday after senior inspectors found serious failures in how the ban was justified and communicated.
Guildford stepped down from his post at West Midlands Police after Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood publicly withdrew confidence in his leadership. The controversy relates to the exclusion of supporters of Maccabi Tel Aviv from a Europa League fixture against Aston Villa at Villa Park in November.
Guildford was not dismissed. Instead, the West Midlands police and crime commissioner, Simon Foster, allowed him to retire, praising him for having “acted with honour” and stating that formal dismissal would have required a lengthy legal process.
A preliminary review by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary concluded that West Midlands Police exaggerated and retrofitted intelligence to justify the ban. The report found that police cited a previous Maccabi Tel Aviv fixture against West Ham United that never took place, issued misleading public statements, and failed to properly engage with the Jewish community.
Guildford later acknowledged that the fictitious fixture had been generated using Microsoft Copilot, an AI tool, despite earlier telling MPs that the information had been sourced through standard online searches. He apologised to the Home Affairs Committee and said there had been no intention to mislead.
Inspectors said the force demonstrated confirmation bias, focusing on intelligence that supported a decision to ban away supporters while not giving sufficient weight to contrary evidence. The review also found that West Midlands Police withheld certain information from public statements in order to avoid escalating local tensions.
Police documents cited concerns about potential disorder in predominantly Muslim areas of Birmingham if Israeli supporters were allowed to attend. Critics, including Jewish organisations, said this showed the force prioritised avoiding unrest over protecting Jewish fans.
Gideon Falter, chief executive of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, accused police leadership of “victim-blaming Jews” and said threats from Islamist or pro-Palestinian extremists were not treated with sufficient seriousness. Other critics argued that Guildford’s relationships with community figures influenced the handling of the match, though police leaders have said their actions were aimed at preventing disorder.
Mahmood described the inspectors’ findings as “damning” and said the episode had harmed trust in policing. She also announced plans to restore powers allowing home secretaries to dismiss chief constables.
Despite Guildford’s retirement, the Independent Office for Police Conduct confirmed that its investigation into the matter will continue and could still lead to misconduct proceedings.
For critics, the case has raised broader questions about accountability when senior police officers rely on flawed intelligence in high-profile public order decisions.
