Retired chief constable Craig Guildford has been referred to the police watchdog over the decision to ban Maccabi Tel Aviv football fans from attending a match against Aston Villa last November, just days after he left his post due to the scandal.
The 52-year-old announced his retirement from the force on Friday after home secretary Shabana Mahmood said she had lost confidence in the senior police boss after a “damning” watchdog review showed “confirmation bias” and a “failure of leadership” in West Midlands Police.
Following Mr Guildford’s retirement, West Midlands Police and Crime Commissioner Simon Foster, who had the power to sack him but did not, said he had acted with honour.
But in a statement on Monday, after meeting West Midlands Police’s acting chief and acting deputy chief constables, Mr Foster confirmed he had made a voluntary referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC).
“These matters have had a significant impact on public confidence, and the confidence of particular communities in the West Midlands. This is unacceptable”, he said.
“I will therefore today make a voluntary referral to the Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) regarding any conduct matters by the former chief constable in relation to these events.
“Continuing to hold the force to account for its actions, arising from the ban on away supporters from attending the football match on 6 November remains a top priority.”
The police watchdog confirmed on Monday that it will investigate the decision to ban the Israeli football team’s fans from attending the November Europa League match.
The IOPC said it will determine if any officer or staff member may have a case to answer for misconduct, saying questions remain about individual roles, duties and planning for the game.
But it is understood the IOPC has not yet received any referrals from the office of the Police and Crime Commissioner in relation to Mr Guildford.
Both the Tories and the Liberal Democrats had been pushing for an IOPC probe, with shadow home secretary secretary Chris Philp dubbing the chief constable’s move to retire “simply not good enough”.
“He should now face gross misconduct proceedings through an IOPC investigation – which can continue even after retirement or resignation”, he said.
Last year, Maccabi Tel Aviv fans were barred from travelling to the game at Villa Park in November by the local safety advisory group (SAG), which cited safety concerns based on advice from the police force.
But a review by chief inspector of constabulary Sir Andy Cooke, ordered by the home secretary, found eight “inaccuracies” in a report from the force to Birmingham’s Sag, including a reference to a non-existent game between Tel Aviv and West Ham, found to be an “AI hallucination” produced by Microsoft Copilot.
The home secretary described the report as “devastating” and said it sets out failures that let down “our entire Jewish community”.
Ahead of the review’s publication, Mr Guildford also apologised for giving incorrect evidence to the Home Affairs Committee, where he appeared twice over the controversy and said it was “never his intention” to mislead MPs.
Rachel Watson, IOPC director general, said: “In the last 24 hours we’ve received new information from West Midlands Police around their initial assessment of any potential misconduct. We have also requested more evidence from HMICFRS (His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services).
“There are many unanswered questions and it’s right for accountability and public confidence for us to independently investigate.
“We will now undertake a full assessment of the evidence, and gather more where necessary, to establish if any of the officers may have breached police professional standards in relation to duties and responsibilities.
“Our investigation will examine the briefings and intelligence report provided to the Safety Advisory Group which underpinned the decision to ban supporters. HMICFRS found it contained inaccuracies. We will go beyond that to understand who was involved in its preparation, how information was obtained, and what checks were in place.”
Announcing his retirement, Mr Guildford – who first became a police constable in 1994 and had served as the head of West Midlands Police since 2022 – said the “political and media frenzy” around his position had “become detrimental to all the great work undertaken by my officers and staff”.
