During May’s friendly win over Qatar<\/a>, tennis balls were thrown onto the Aviva Stadium pitch at various intervals as part of ongoing protests by the ‘Stop The Game’ campaign<\/a>.<\/p>\n However, a motion in favour of proceeding with the fixtures was passed<\/a> at an FAI EGM in July.<\/p>\n At last week’s squad announcement, Hallgrimsson said the fact the players have accepted call-ups for the impending window is a sign of “team spirit” as he acknowledged that some individual players’ are “uncomfortable” about the prospect of playing against Israel<\/a>.<\/p>\n When asked about the difficulty of keeping his players focused on football ahead of the two highly contentious games against Israel, he said:<\/p>\n “I\u2019ve said before, we\u2019re not playing with genocide, we\u2019re playing against genocide. We\u2019re playing against Israel, we\u2019re not playing with Israel.”<\/p>\n While it has been reported the Israel FA are considering filing a complaint to Uefa over Hallgrimsson’s comments, in a post on their official X account, they have publicly hit out at the Irish manager’s comments.<\/p>\n We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields, earning an impressive number of Nobel Prizes along the way. Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by @IrelandFootball<\/a> team coach. We’re not playing with\u2026<\/p>\n \u2014 ISRAEL FA (@ISRAELFA) September 21, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n “We have contributed to the world and humanity in countless fields, earning an impressive number of Nobel Prizes along the way. Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by @IrelandFootball team coach. We\u2019re not playing with ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity, We\u2019re playing against the coach who embodies them.”<\/p>\n The FAI declined to comment this evening to Israel’s social media post, with Hallgrimsson likely to field questions on the topic at his Wednesday press conference ahead of the Kosovo game.<\/p>\n A group campaigners gathered outside the team’s hotel in Dublin on Monday evening, urging the FAI to reverse its decision to proceed with the fixture.<\/p>\n ‘Stop the Game’ protests have been taking place outside the Republic of Ireland team hotel this evening, calling for them not to fulfil Sunday’s clash with Israel.<\/p>\n Anna Caplice, one of over 160 sporting signatories on a letter calling for the same, spoke to RT\u00c9 Sport. pic.twitter.com\/oVZe4F6cWK<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 RT\u00c9 Sport (@RTEsport) September 21, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n Over 160 Irish sportspeople have signed an open letter to the Irish senior men’s national football team, urging them to “act collectively with conscience” and refuse to participate in their upcoming games against Israel<\/a>.<\/p>\n The letter penned by the Irish Sport for Palestine Group calls on players to ‘seize the moment’ and boycott the Israel fixtures.<\/p>\n The letter also states the FAI, UEFA, and the government have failed the players and should never have put them in this position.<\/p>\n Watch Kosovo v Republic of Ireland in the UEFA Nations League on Thursday from 7pm on RT\u00c92 and RT\u00c9 Player. Follow our live blog on RT\u00c9.ie\/sport and RT\u00c9 News app<\/p>\n \n Listen to the RT\u00c9 Soccer podcast on Apple Podcasts<\/a>, Spotify<\/a> or wherever you get your podcasts<\/a>.<\/p>\n ![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/00247153-614.jpg\"\/)
\nA tennis ball protest took place during the friendly against Qatar in May<\/p>\n