The national teams of Israel and Ireland have decided to forgo any friendly gestures during their upcoming UEFA Nations League encounters.
The Football Association of Ireland will cancel all media activities scheduled before the second leg on October 4. The local broadcaster RTE will air only the match live, without any studio coverage, expert analysis, or additional programming. Furthermore, according to The Independent, both Ireland’s head coach Heimir Hallgrímsson and Israel’s manager Ben Shimon will skip the customary pre-match handshake.
Tensions between the two federations escalated following Hallgrímsson‘s remarks that Ireland would be playing against genocide in their match against Israel, referencing events in Palestine. In response, Shimon called him a foolish man. As a consequence, both matches will take place on neutral grounds. On September 27, the teams will meet in Debrecen, Hungary, and on October 4, the return fixture will be held in Bačka Topola, Serbia.
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