AI Copilot Made Up a Football Match. West Midlands Police Used It to Ban Israeli Fans. Now They’re in a Hole.

UK police admitted using Microsoft Copilot to fabricate a 2023 Europa Conference League match between West Ham and Maccabi Tel Aviv. This AI-generated lie formed the basis of an intelligence report justifying a ban on Israeli fans from a real match. The incident has sparked political outrage and calls for accountability.

West Midlands Police Chief Constable Craig Guildford initially denied AI use, claiming "we do not use AI." The fabricated match was cited in a report that helped justify the fan ban, which some politicians have labeled antisemitic due to conflicting interpretations of prior fan violence.

Lord Mann, a government adviser, demanded Guildford’s resignation, calling the AI-generated untruth "shocking." The Home Office is set to receive a formal letter from HMIC about the incident, which highlights the risks of AI hallucinations in high-stakes decision-making.