A boycott of two upcoming matches between the Republic of Ireland and Israel may have “no impact at all” on FIFA or Israel, Taoiseach Micheál Martin has said.
The Republic of Ireland men’s football team is scheduled to face Israel in two UEFA Nations League fixtures — at a neutral venue on 27 September and in Dublin on 4 October, reports Breaking News.
Paul Weller, Stephen Rea, members of Kneecap, and a number of current and former football players have signed an open letter to the Football Association of Ireland calling for a boycott of the fixtures.
Two sports ministers have said they will not attend the Dublin match, though the Government said it had not sought legal advice on potential sanctions the FAI could face if it chose not to fulfil the fixtures, reports Breaking News.
Asked whether the matches should go ahead, the Taoiseach said: “We don’t want to damage ourselves unnecessarily,” reports Breaking News.
“In other words, concede six points to Israel, our ranking goes down. Irish football has been on an upward curve of late, and so on that side, you don’t want to be self-defeating in terms of any actions,” reports Breaking News.
“The Government doesn’t run FIFA. There is no argument about Ireland’s opposition to what Israel has been doing in Gaza, and everything shouldn’t be reduced to just one match in terms of the articulation of that opposition,” reports Breaking News.
Ireland’s friendly against Qatar on Thursday was halted twice by supporters protesting against the scheduled Israel fixtures.
At least 10% of the 145 delegates of the FAI’s General Assembly signed a document calling for an extraordinary general meeting to discuss the boycott, meaning an EGM could be called within 60 days under the Association’s rules, reports Breaking News.
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