The Republic of Ireland have delayed their pre-match news conference ahead of Sunday’s Uefa Nations League meeting with Israel in Hungary, a fixture that campaigners have called on them to boycott.
Heimir Hallgrimsson’s side are scheduled to face Israel in Debrecen at 19:45 BST, with the return fixture set for Backa Topola in Serbia on 4 October.
Hallgrimsson and a player had been due to speak to the media at 09:15 BST (10.15 local time) on Saturday, before the squad trained. Shortly beforehand, a Uefa official entered the media room to inform waiting journalists that the news conference had been postponed until after the training session, which would have been at about 11:30 BST (12.30 local time).
Soon afterwards, however, the same Uefa official returned to announce that the Republic of Ireland’s training session had also been postponed, with no indication given as to when it might take place. No confirmed time has been set for the news conference either. It has since emerged that the news conference, originally scheduled to be held at the stadium, is now set to be staged at the team hotel, with Uefa unable to provide information about the delay.
The fixture has been mired in controversy since the two teams were drawn against each other in Group B3. There have been calls for the Republic of Ireland to withdraw from both games because of the ongoing Israel-Gaza war, with a “Stop The Game” campaign organised by the pressure group Irish Sport for Palestine gathering pace. Among those to have backed the calls for a boycott are the former Republic of Ireland manager Brian Kerr and the ex-international James McClean. There are, however, also Irish supporters — perhaps less vocal — who have consistently believed the match should be played with supporters in attendance.
On Friday, a team meeting was held so that players could air their views on Sunday’s game and the return fixture in Serbia. The players had been expected to release a statement at Saturday’s news conference, but the delay has introduced further uncertainty, alongside reports that at least one player wishes to withdraw from the squad.
The background to the fixture is the war that began when the armed Palestinian group Hamas attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. In response, Israel launched a massive military offensive in Gaza, during which more than 73,000 people have been killed, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the United Nations.