Former Irish basketball chief believes boycotting games would trigger severe Uefa punishment and bury Irish messageScarred by his own experience of trying but failing to have Israel banned from international competition in basketball, former FAI CEO Bernard O’Byrne says that refusing to play Ireland’s Nations League games against Israel in the autumn would be an “empty gesture”. But the former football chief, adamant that under no circumstances should Ireland agree to play the away tie in Israel itself, says that a Dublin clash with the Israelis should be used to demonstrate the level of opposition in Ireland to Israeli government policies in Gaza and to contribute to the “isolation” of Israel as a state.

Source: Irish Independent February 17, 2026 07:20 UTC