FAI president defends Israel fixture decision after Republic of Ireland's 3-0 win in Hungary

The Football Association of Ireland’s president Paul Cooke has defended the organisation’s management of the controversy surrounding Sunday’s Nations League fixture against Israel, saying officials “handled the week quite well” after the Republic of Ireland secured a 3-0 victory in Hungary.

The match had been in serious doubt on Saturday morning after goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu withdrew from selection, stating in an Instagram post that he felt it would be “wrong to participate”. His decision triggered an emergency squad meeting, with FAI chief executive David Courell confirming that a “significant majority” of players voted to proceed. The game was played in Hungary in front of approximately 150 Israeli spectators and a small number of Irish supporters.

Cooke praised the squad’s composure in difficult circumstances. “I think we’ve handled the week quite well,” he said. “If you look at the courage, the performance, the way they conducted themselves — everybody that was here tonight, those 20-odd players walked out as a nation, as a country, as a footballing organisation. We should be so proud of the difficulties that they’ve encountered.”

The fixture had already been sanctioned at an extraordinary general meeting on 8 July, where the FAI general assembly voted 75-32, with three abstentions, in favour of a motion to fulfil its obligations by playing Israel, “while acknowledging the strength of feeling regarding support for Palestine”.

Delegates were warned of the consequences of forfeiting, with the FAI previously cautioning in June that refusing to play “could lead to relegation to League C in the Nations League, and weaken our qualifying potential to Uefa Euro 2028”. A financial impact of at least €5.5 million (£4.7m) was also cited ahead of the EGM.

Cooke acknowledged that Uefa had “never communicated anything specifically” regarding potential sanctions beyond its published guidelines, noting that the precise consequences of non-fulfilment remained vaguely defined even after Sunday’s result. Under standard Uefa regulations, a team that forfeits a match receives an automatic 3-0 defeat.