Basketball Ireland CEO: Boycott wouldn't make blind bit of difference to Israel

NO BOYCOTT: Basketball Ireland CEO John Feehan has again defended the decision to proceed with a EuroBasket qualifier against Israel. Pic credit: Laszlo Geczo, Inpho.

Basketball Ireland CEO John Feehan has again defended the decision to proceed with a EuroBasket qualifier against Israel by insisting any boycott would amount to a gesture that would achieve nothing but the destruction of the women’s game here.

The sport has come under significant pressure ahead of this week’s fixture with various sources calling for the Irish team to be withdrawn in response to Israel’s ongoing actions in Gaza where thousands of people have lost their lives since October.

“What’s happening in Gaza is dreadful, we all acknowledge that,” said Feehan on Tuesday afternoon and a day after a Basketball Ireland statement that claimed any boycott would prove “ruinous” for the sport here.

“The issue is whether this is going to make a difference to the Israeli government and, quite frankly, we don’t believe this would make a blind bit of difference. What it will do is destroy our women’s international game for the next ten years.”

The game, originally set for Dublin late last year, has been refixed for Riga this week. The Ireland squad arrived in the Latvian capital on Monday and reported all players to be fit and available for the game after training on Tuesday morning.

They travelled without injured captain Edel Thornton and it has been reported that five squad members opted not to take part. Feehan and head coach James Weldon pointed out that others are not taking part due to work and study commitments.

Feehan and Weldon both held discussions with the players as the controversy was unfolding and the CEO has made it clear that any of the players who decided not to travel will not face any “consequences” as a result of their stands.

Basketball Ireland was vocal in its support of Ukraine when the country was invaded by Russia in 2022 and wrote a letter to FIBA, the game’s governing body, in May of that year stating they would not play a tie against Belarus due to that country’s support of Russia.

That was before FIBA made the decision to withdraw Russia and Belarus from their competitions but Feehan, when asked about accusations of double standards, explained that the letter had been sent on FIBA’s behest and that other countries did likewise.

FIBA had also taken the temperature around Europe at the time of the Russian invasion and found a groundswell of support for Russia to be banned and Feehan said that there was no such appetite to be found on the continent in terms of Israel.

“We would have asked if there was an alternative and we were told no. We have to fulfil the fixture. I am pretty certain they went around Europe to see how people felt about Russia and Belarus and they found that the vast majority of federations wished to ban.

“Again, I can’t speak for FIBA but, quite frankly, the support is not there to ban Israel. And it’s not there from any other sport either: the IOC, FIFA, UEFA. You name your sports organisation, none of them have banned or boycotted Israel.”

Basketball Ireland would face fines of up to €180,000 if it were to decide not to play the game against Israel while its women’s senior team would be liable to a five-year ban from competitions.