The second Maccabiah was organized and held in the early years of Nazi rule in Germany and after Hitler came to power in 1933. Maccabi used the games as a way to illegally bring Jews to Eretz Yisrael and to effectively bypass the British White Paper. It was for that reason that the games were nicknamed the "Aliyah Olympics". The games faced strong opposition by the British Mandatory government due to concern of mass illegal immigration. One of the most notable examples was the Bulgarian delegation, where all 350 of its members stayed in Palestine; even the entire Maccabi Bulgaria orchestra that came with them and performed at the opening and closing ceremonies stayed. Only their sports equipment and musical instruments were shipped back. Additionally, the majority of the German and Polish team took the opportunity to stay in Palestine.