Israel FA says Republic of Ireland coach has ‘stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy’ after genocide comments

The Israel football association says the Republic of Ireland head coach has displayed “stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy” after Heimir Hallgrimsson said his team would be “playing against genocide” when the countries meet in the Nations League. The Republic of Ireland are set to face Israel twice over the international break, with the first game due to be played on September 27. Advertisement On the weekend Hallgrimsson said in a press conference that the team were “not playing with genocide, we are playing against genocide”. “So we’re playing against Israel. We’re not playing with Israel,” he added, per the Times. “Hopefully we can play good football. That’s my job here. I’m hired here to think about the football things and others on other things.” The Israel FA replied on social media to the head coach’s comments on Monday, saying “we’re not playing with ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity, we’re playing against the coach who embodies them”. “We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields, earning an impressive number of Nobel Prizes along the way,” the statement read, tagging the official Republic of Ireland football team page. “Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by Ireland’s national team coach.” The Athletic has approached the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) for comment. Over 70,000 people have been killed in Gaza, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7. About 1,200 people were killed in Israel during the attack, according to the Israeli authorities, who also said around 250 people were taken back to Gaza as hostages, in figures reported by the New York Times. A U.N. investigative body concluded in 2025 that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, but Israeli officials deny that and say they have allowed humanitarian aid. The statement from the Israel FA is the latest development in the tensions surrounding the fixtures, with FAI chief executive David Courell saying on Friday a request to avoid the sides meeting in future had been rejected by UEFA. European football’s governing body defended their policy in a statement to The Athletic. Advertisement “Decisions to avoid certain teams being drawn against each other are made taking into consideration several factors, especially conditions between the two countries leading to structural risks for security,” a UEFA spokesperson said, adding it “handles every situation very carefully on its own merits and monitors all facts and developments”. Israel has not hosted UEFA matches since October 2023 due to security issues. Their designated ‘home’ game against the Republic of Ireland will take place in Debrecen, Hungary on September 27. The return fixture on October 4 has been moved away from Dublin to a behind-closed-doors venue in Serbia.