International Friendly, Aviva Stadium, Dublin 28/5/2026
Republic of Ireland vs Qatar
A view of a tennis ball featuring the Palestinian flag that was thrown on to the pitch
Soccer
Ireland friendly with Qatar disrupted twice by protesters urging a boycott of Israel games
Groups of fans threw tennis balls on the pitch Aviva Stadium and chanted support for Palestine.
THE REPUBLIC OF Ireland’s international friendly with Qatar was halted twice by fans protesting against the Nations League games with Israel.
Tennis balls rained down on the Aviva Stadium pitch from supporters in the upper tiers of the West, East and South Stand.
A coalition of League of Ireland fans who were involved with the protest have since released a statement saying that their actions sends a “strong message” to the FAI and the Irish government.
“The Nations League fixtures between Ireland and Israel must be cancelled,” the statement continues.
“Supporters of all the main LOI clubs in the capital were joined by fans of Cork City, Drogheda United, Dundalk FC, Galway United, Sligo Rovers and Waterford for the action, during which tennis balls emblazoned with the demand to #StopTheGame were thrown onto the field of play.”
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The tennis balls rain down again and this time there are chants of Free Palestine and Stop The Game. Some fans groan/jeer initially but when it becomes clearer what’s happening there is more applause. pic.twitter.com/ZvUSWEqCPV
“It is unconscionable that these games would go ahead as the apartheid Occupation regime continues to perpetrate genocide against the Palestinian people. We would be literally playing football with likely war criminals.
“Military service is mandatory over there, so most of their Nations League squad will have served in the ‘Israel Defence Forces’. They have slaughtered more than 1,000 athletes and coaches, including at least 421 football players, in Gaza since October 2023, while also destroying or damaging 265 sports facilities.”
There were also chants of Stop The Game and Free Palestine.
Some fans around those in the West Stand initially jeered what was happening until more realised the protesters’ cause. Others than rose and clapped in support as stewards, security officials and Gardaí got involved.
Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson spoke about the issue of a boycott on Wednesday and urged the Irish fans not to protest and back their team instead.
The 42 revealed on Wednesday that the FAI looks to face formal opposition from its own membership regarding its stance to fulfil the Nations League fixtures with Israel later this year.
In a letter sent to the 145 delegates of the association’s General Assembly – one of its three core governing pillars representing the professional, amateur and underage game – members are being asked to back a motion which would compel the FAI to convene an Extraordinary General Meeting.
A brief tennis ball protest during a break in play here. Seems a Stop The Game (referring to Israel boycott) was also hung over the side where the balls came from. pic.twitter.com/yyNusuz75i
The correspondence, seen by The 42, wants to bring forward a motion as soon as possible calling on the FAI to refuse to participate in the two scheduled games against Israel “on both legal and moral grounds”.
The motion has been proposed by the Professional Footballers’ Association Ireland (PFAI), Irish Football Supporters Partnership (IFSP), CK United, Cork City and Bohemian FC.
Ireland are due to play Israel on neutral territory on 27 September, followed by a meeting in Dublin on 4 October.
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Ireland friendly with Qatar disrupted twice by protesters urging a boycott of Israel games
LAST UPDATE | 28 May
THE REPUBLIC OF Ireland’s international friendly with Qatar was halted twice by fans protesting against the Nations League games with Israel.
Tennis balls rained down on the Aviva Stadium pitch from supporters in the upper tiers of the West, East and South Stand.
A coalition of League of Ireland fans who were involved with the protest have since released a statement saying that their actions sends a “strong message” to the FAI and the Irish government.
“The Nations League fixtures between Ireland and Israel must be cancelled,” the statement continues.
“Supporters of all the main LOI clubs in the capital were joined by fans of Cork City, Drogheda United, Dundalk FC, Galway United, Sligo Rovers and Waterford for the action, during which tennis balls emblazoned with the demand to #StopTheGame were thrown onto the field of play.”
One participant commented:
“It is unconscionable that these games would go ahead as the apartheid Occupation regime continues to perpetrate genocide against the Palestinian people. We would be literally playing football with likely war criminals.
“Military service is mandatory over there, so most of their Nations League squad will have served in the ‘Israel Defence Forces’. They have slaughtered more than 1,000 athletes and coaches, including at least 421 football players, in Gaza since October 2023, while also destroying or damaging 265 sports facilities.”
There were also chants of Stop The Game and Free Palestine.
Some fans around those in the West Stand initially jeered what was happening until more realised the protesters’ cause. Others than rose and clapped in support as stewards, security officials and Gardaí got involved.
Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrímsson spoke about the issue of a boycott on Wednesday and urged the Irish fans not to protest and back their team instead.
The 42 revealed on Wednesday that the FAI looks to face formal opposition from its own membership regarding its stance to fulfil the Nations League fixtures with Israel later this year.
In a letter sent to the 145 delegates of the association’s General Assembly – one of its three core governing pillars representing the professional, amateur and underage game – members are being asked to back a motion which would compel the FAI to convene an Extraordinary General Meeting.
The correspondence, seen by The 42, wants to bring forward a motion as soon as possible calling on the FAI to refuse to participate in the two scheduled games against Israel “on both legal and moral grounds”.
The motion has been proposed by the Professional Footballers’ Association Ireland (PFAI), Irish Football Supporters Partnership (IFSP), CK United, Cork City and Bohemian FC.
Ireland are due to play Israel on neutral territory on 27 September, followed by a meeting in Dublin on 4 October.
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