On Saturday 26 September 2026, in Debrecen, Hungary, the Ireland national team's press conference was delayed by more than five hours. The next day the team was due to face Israel in a Nations League match, and the players discussed at their hotel whether to take the field. The discussion began with the decision of goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu, 24, born in Dublin and playing for Bolton, who told head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson he did not want to play.
Bazunu explained his decision in a message on Instagram.
«My decision is based purely on my personal belief that the killing of innocent people is wrong.» (Gavin Bazunu, IG)
He clarified that his position is not directed against the Israeli people or the Jewish community, but against the atrocities in the region. He added that he is a person of strong faith and considers it wrong to take part in the matches against Israel.
The team's decision
The match has been on the calendar since February, when UEFA drew Ireland and Israel in the same group. Since then the Irish football federation, the FAI, has received calls for a boycott. In November 2025, 93 per cent of FAI members voted for a motion asking UEFA to suspend Israel. A poll by the Irish players' union in February showed that 63 per cent of respondents did not want Ireland to play. In July an extraordinary general meeting of the FAI approved the line of honouring the fixtures, because of the risk of consequences for the federation. Ireland is co-hosting Euro 2028.
Among the promoters of the boycott is the Stop the Game campaign, which describes itself as a broad initiative of supporters, players, coaches and administrators in Irish football. It draws on the sporting boycott launched by the Palestinian BDS movement (Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions), which calls for Israeli teams and institutions to be excluded from international sport. According to the campaign, playing against Israel amounts to treating it as a normal participant in competitions, and grants it a recognition that the boycott seeks to withdraw. The campaign describes Israel's war in Gaza as genocide; an open letter titled Stop the Game, promoted by the group Irish Sport for Palestine, was signed by more than 160 Irish athletes.
Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin had given the green light to the matches.
«I think sport is an area that can be challenging when it crosses into the realm of politics.» (Micheál Martin, Irish prime minister, to The Irish Times)
On Saturday the players voted. The FAI's chief executive, David Courell, spoke of a «significant majority» in favour of playing, without giving the numbers.
Bazunu did not take part in the vote. Former Ireland manager Brian Kerr, who said he had spoken with the goalkeeper, called his choice «a very legitimate position» and «a heroic decision», reporting that Bazunu was «feeling quite low» and «shunned by some of the players and the FAI». Former British Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn wrote on X that the goalkeeper showed «immense moral courage and integrity».
Stop the Game also intervened before the match, with a statement calling for Courell's resignation. One of its activists, Cieran Perry, recalled that a few days earlier Prime Minister Martin had told the United Nations that the truth about Gaza «will shame the world», and spoke of hypocrisy in letting the match go ahead. Another, Brendan Ogle, said:
«David Courell must resign. The FAI leadership is not fit for purpose.» (Brendan Ogle, Stop the Game activist)
A third activist, Lar Ó'Tuama, claimed that players unwilling to take the field were under pressure from their agents. Courell announced the measures agreed by the squad: black armbands in memory of all lives lost in the conflict, no handshakes or exchange of pennants before kick-off, no media commitments for the players. The FAI and the players also plan to donate the match fees to charity.
In the days before, Hallgrímsson had said: «We're not playing with genocide, we're playing against genocide». The Israeli federation had replied by accusing him of ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity. On Saturday the coach called that word «wrong» and explained that playing does not mean accepting what is happening in Gaza.
The Israeli federation commented on Ireland's decision to play with a statement read at a press conference.
«What we have seen today is that football has won. The separation between football and politics must continue.» (statement from the Israeli federation)
Amnesty International, in a statement on Israel's participation, has instead argued that «when rules are broken, when occupation, apartheid and genocide are ongoing, we cannot look the other way».
On the pitch in Debrecen
On Sunday evening, in Debrecen, the match was played in an almost empty stadium. UEFA has not allowed Israel to play at home since September 2023 for security reasons, and the match was held at a neutral venue. The Irish players wore black armbands. During the Israeli anthem they lowered their gaze, and captain Dara O'Shea did not shake hands with Israel's captain Manor Solomon, who spoke as follows after the match:
«I don't want to talk about the Irish players. If I say what I think of them, I'd likely be suspended for a few matches. Obviously they hate us. We don't like them. We have a country ten times better than theirs, stronger, an amazing country with amazing people. We are proud to wear the team shirt and to be Israelis. We are proud of our state and of our soldiers.» (Manor Solomon, Israel captain, as reported by the Times of Israel)
Ireland won 3-0, with goals from Parrott in the 13th minute, Idah in the 16th and Moylan in the 25th. Gavin Bazunu was not at the stadium.
After the match, head coach Hallgrímsson said: «Nobody was questioning his decision. It was only the timing that was difficult for us to react to». He added that by playing, Ireland «makes some people unhappy and others happy».
Why Israel plays in Europe
Israel is geographically in Asia, but the Israeli national team has been affiliated with UEFA since 1994. Before the founding of the State in 1948, football in the region was represented by the team of the British Mandate of Palestine, which had taken part in World Cup qualifying in 1934. After 1948 the Israeli national team began playing under the aegis of FIFA and joined the Asian confederation, the AFC.
In those years many national teams from Muslim countries refused to face it, especially after the Suez crisis of 1956. In qualifying for the 1958 World Cup, Israel's opponents in the group withdrew, and FIFA had to find an alternative solution. The phenomenon continued in the 1960s, and FIFA placed Israel in mixed groups with Oceania. With this formula the team qualified for the 1970 World Cup, its only appearance.
In 1974 the AFC expelled Israel, by majority vote on a motion tabled by Kuwait and North Korea. For twenty years the team played qualifiers as an independent side, facing mainly European and Oceanian teams, without ever qualifying for another World Cup.
In 1994 UEFA accepted Israel's application to join. It was mainly the clubs that pushed for the solution, in order to gain access to European cups. Since then the national team has taken part in qualifying for the European Championship and the World Cup. It has not yet qualified for a European Championship and has not returned to a World Cup.
Irish Sport for Palestine argues that the Israeli federation has breached the UEFA and FIFA statutes by allowing teams to play on occupied Palestinian territory, and calls for Israel to be excluded from both bodies.