UEFA investigate alleged spitting incident during Ireland v Israel game

Ireland is one of Europe’s most outspoken critics ​of Israel’s War in Gaza and that spilt over in their Natons League fixtures this past fortnight. | Photo Credit: AP

UEFA will investigate an alleged spitting incident from Sunday’s Nations League game between ​Ireland and Israel, in which an Israeli player was ‌accused of spitting at a member of ​the Irish coaching staff as the ⁠teams left the pitch at halftime.

“Following a review of the official reports which contained an allegation of ‌an incident in or around the tunnel at half-time, a UEFA Ethics and ‌Disciplinary Inspector has been appointed to conduct ‌the ⁠appropriate disciplinary investigation regarding potential misconducts from ⁠player(s) on the occasion of the UEFA Nations League 2027 League Phase match between Republic of Ireland and Israel, ​played on 4 October ‌2026 in Backa Topola, Serbia,” a UEFA statement said.

The game, which ended 1-1, was played in Serbia after the Football Association ‌of Ireland (FAI) opted to host the fixture ​in a neutral venue behind closed doors following protests in Ireland over fulfilling ⁠the matches due to Israel’s war in Gaza.

Israel and Ireland met in Hungary the previous ‌week, in a game which went ahead after the Irish squad held a vote following goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu’s withdrawal from the contentious fixtures between the sides. Ireland won that match 3-0.

There were no pre-match handshakes or exchange ‌of pennants between the sides in either fixture, and both ​teams wore black armbands in Serbia. Ireland wore them in both games commemorating ⁠all the victims of the conflict in Gaza, with ⁠Israel sporting black armbands on Sunday in memory of the victims of the ‌October 7 attack that sparked the war.

Ireland is one of Europe’s most outspoken critics ​of Israel’s War in Gaza.