UEFA probes claim Israeli soccer player spat at Ireland staff member during match

UEFA is investigating possible player misconduct by Ireland and Israel around their bad-tempered Nations League match on Sunday.

UEFA announced on Tuesday it had appointed an ethics and disciplinary inspector after “the official reports which contained an allegation of an incident in or around the tunnel at halftime.”

The European soccer governing body didn’t immediately offer more details.

The Irish Times previously reported that Ireland head of athletic performance Damien Doyle alleged an Israeli player spat at him when the teams were leaving the pitch at halftime of a game that ended 1-1 in neutral Backa Topola, Serbia.

Ireland coach Heimir Hallgrimsson said after the match Israel players were trying to intimidate his team from the start.

Ireland beat Israel 3-0 in the first match on September 27 in Debrecen, Hungary, and the Irish again wore black armbands, bowed their heads during the Israeli anthem, and refused to shake hands with their opponents to protest Israel’s actions in the war against Hamas in Gaza.

The Israeli players also wore black armbands in memory of those killed in the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, in which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage.

On Saturday, an Israeli journalist stated during the pre-match press conference that the Irish players called the Israeli players “monkeys” during the first game, leading to an immediate rebuke from Irish communications officer Kieran Crowley, who said it was “a lie” and ended the press conference.

Sunday’s game was supposed to be played in Dublin, but the Football Association of Ireland moved the game to neutral Serbia for “operational reasons” in June following widespread calls for a boycott.

The FAI resisted the boycott calls, arguing the team could be hit with punishing sanctions by UEFA. Ireland is co-hosting the 2028 European Championship with England, Wales and Scotland.