Israeli supporters have been accused of directing racist chants towards Republic of Ireland player Adam Idah and were filmed raising military slogans during the teams’ UEFA Nations League football match, but have evaded disciplinary action from the competition’s organisers.
Ireland defeated Israel 3-0 in the politically charged encounter at Nagyerdei Stadium in Debrecen, Hungary, with Idah among the goal scorers in the controversial European clash on Sunday.
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The 25-year-old Ireland international, born to a Nigerian father and an Irish mother, was targeted with “monkey chants”, as videos circulating on social media showed, but the fans’ behaviour has gone unpunished by UEFA.
An Israeli supporter also led chants about his country’s military from the stands as he attempted to brush aside the team’s drubbing on the football pitch.
Al Jazeera has reached out to European football’s governing body, UEFA, and the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) for comment on the incident and whether the Israeli fans will face any sanctions for their actions.
According to reports in the Irish media, UEFA confirmed that racist abuse by Israeli fans towards Idah occurred, but that the matter cannot be investigated because the protocols were not followed by Irish players and officials.
Ireland midfielder Jayson Molumby, who heard the racist chants before half-time, asked the referee and the fourth official to listen to the alleged monkey chants, an FAI spokesperson was quoted as saying by The Irish Times.
However, a UEFA delegate informed the FAI that an investigation could not be opened as Molumby did not explicitly mention racism to the officials and they had not heard any chanting.
The allegations of racism from Israeli fans came after calls to boycott the match drew international attention.
Military sloganeering
Youseph Haddad, a member of an Israeli right-wing party, filmed himself in the stands with other supporters as they chanted about the Israeli military amid the team’s abysmal performance on the field.
“Yes, we lose in football, but where we don’t lose,” Haddad says in the video, answering himself: Israeli forces.
“So maybe the football Irish team beat us on the football field, but they will never, ever break the Israeli spirit,” adds Haddad, who is a candidate for the upcoming Israeli parliamentary elections.
It remains unclear whether chanting about the Israeli military would be categorised as “negative behaviour” under UEFA’s rules on spectator behaviour.
According to UEFA’s disciplinary regulations, penalties for national associations whose fans are found guilty of breaking the rules can range from fines to stadium closures and bans on away ticket sales.
However, such sanctions are announced following a disciplinary investigation into the matter.
Al Jazeera has asked UEFA whether the Israel Football Association will face a disciplinary inquiry due to its fans’ sloganeering.
The match itself had been a point of contention for months and on Saturday, the day before the match, it was uncertain whether the game would go ahead, with the FAI and the national team under pressure for months to boycott the fixtures due to Israel’s genocide in Gaza and Ireland’s status as a Palestine ally.
But after hours of talks and a vote among the team, the match went ahead, with Ireland players wearing black armbands in support of Palestinians killed during Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.
Irish players also bowed their heads during Israel’s national anthem and did not shake the hands of the Israeli team, while Ireland’s captain, Dara O’Shea, pledged to donate all of his earnings from the match to aid Gaza.
Ireland’s first-choice goalkeeper, Gavin Bazunu, was the only player who publicly opted out of the fixture and posted a statement on social media, saying he felt “it would be wrong to participate in the upcoming fixtures against Israel”.
Bazunu withdrew from both legs of the fixture, including the next match set to take place on October 4 in Backa Topola, Serbia.
Ireland and Israel are in Group B3 of the ongoing UEFA Nations League.
