Ireland's Aviva Stadium friendly with Qatar halted by protesters calling for boycott of Israel fixtures

A view of tennis balls featuring the Palestinian flag that were thrown on to the pitch. Picture: Ryan Byrne/Inpho

The Republic of Ireland's friendly clash with Qatar was twice halted after groups of fans threw tennis balls onto the Aviva Stadium pitch in protest against the side's Nations League meetings with Israel.

Tennis balls were thrown down onto the pitch from supporters, accompanied by chants of "stop the game" and "free Palestine".

Ten mins in and the tennis balls are back, seven years after something similar v Georgia. Only the warm-up for protest campaign ahead of (scheduled) Israel double header in Autumn. pic.twitter.com/UEgAu6Hh9W

— John Fallon (@JFallonExaminer) May 28, 2026

Heimir Hallgrimsson's Ireland side are scheduled to face Israel at a neutral venue in late September before hosting the return fixture a week later at the Aviva.

On Wednesday, Hallgrimsson discussed the boycott and asked Irish fans to support their side rather than protest.