Irish footballers, celebrities urge boycott of Israel match

Leading Irish footballers have joined celebrities in a campaign urging the Republic of Ireland to boycott a UEFA Nations League match against Israel later this year.

An open letter from campaign group Irish Sport for Palestine to the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) accuses Israel of participating in ‘genocide’ in the Gaza war and of breaching UEFA and FIFA statutes by allowing teams to play on occupied Palestinian land.

In November 2025, 93 percent of FAI members voted in favor of his leadership to pressure UEFA to suspend Israel under those statutes. Mandate campaigners say Ireland’s governing body must ‘respect and represent’.

Israel has denied that its forces committed genocide during the war in Gaza.

Reuters has contacted the FAI and the Israeli Football Association (IFA) for comment.

The letter, titled “Stop the Game”, was signed by League of Ireland players, former men’s coach Brian Kerr and two-time women’s player of the year Louise Quinn.

Irish rock band Fontaines DC, hip-hop trio Kneecap and singer-songwriter Christy Moore were among the other signatories, along with Oscar-nominated actor Stephen Rea.

Ireland will host Israel at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on October 4, while a September 27 match, designated as Israel’s home match, is expected to take place at a neutral venue.

The letter includes a statement from Roberto Lopes, captain of Shamrock Rovers and chairman of the Professional Footballers’ Association of Ireland.

“We cannot ignore the humanitarian catastrophe in Palestine; the enormous loss of life there must take priority over any sporting consideration,” said Dublin-born Lopes, who will play for Cape Verde at the World Cup in June.

“Ireland has an opportunity here to lead and do what others are not doing.”

Israel has played in UEFA competitions since the early 1980s after being excluded from Asian Football Confederation (AFC) competitions in the 1970s when several countries refused to play Israel.

Irish Prime Minister Michael Martin said the two matches against Israel should go ahead.

“We have been critics and very strongly opposed to the Israeli government’s policies in Gaza in particular. We have condemned the Hamas attack on Israel, which was absolutely horrific,” the Taoiseach told the Irish Times.

“I think sports is an area that can be challenging when it crosses the line into politics.”

In February, FAI chief executive David Courell said the national team had no choice but to meet its obligations or risk damaging the long-term sporting interests of Irish football, including possible disqualification from future competitions.

A poll by the Irish Football Supporters Partnership found that 76 percent of respondents were against the match.