Kenny Cunningham Advocates for Ireland-Israel Match in Dublin
Kenny Cunningham believes the Republic of Ireland should face Israel in the Nations League – and that the home leg should never have left Dublin.
The former Ireland captain, speaking at the launch of Premier Sports’ 2026/27 coverage, backed the decision to play the fixtures at neutral venues but made it clear he feels the Aviva Stadium should have hosted the October tie.
“I think the games should go ahead, and I think the home game should have gone ahead in Dublin, that’s my opinion,” he said.
Ireland are due to meet Israel in Debrecen, Hungary, on September 27th, before a “home” fixture behind closed doors in Bačka Topola, Serbia, on October 4th. The Football Association of Ireland moved the game from Dublin after the tennis ball protest during May’s friendly against Qatar, citing “operational challenges that could impact on the delivery of the [Israel] game on home soil.”
Cunningham understands the politics swirling around the fixture but does not believe shifting or cancelling it advances the wider debate.
“I think there is a perception about how Irish people feel about Israel and Israeli foreign policies, and the Palestinian issue,” he said. “That is pretty much out there already. We all know where people stand, so I don’t feel cancelling this game takes the argument any further.”
For him, the power of the occasion lay in what might have happened at Lansdowne Road.
“I think it would be a good thing to see the Israeli team come on to the pitch in the Aviva. I think it would be a good thing to see the Israeli national anthem respected inside the Aviva, because that for me would send a signal, maybe from the Irish people to the Israeli people who have suffered as well in this conflict.
“On a human level, we are actually together here,” he continued. “There are politicians making decisions around this, but genuinely between the Israeli people and the Irish people there is a bit of understanding there on a human level about what has been happening.
“We will respect your national anthem for those reasons. We’ll respect what you have been through on October 7th, the people you lost in harrowing circumstances, which precipitated the recent stage of the conflict.”
Israel have not hosted an international since October 7th, 2023, when Hamas attacks killed 1,200 Israelis. Their subsequent fixtures have largely been staged in Hungary. Israel’s offensive in Gaza has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials, with more than 1,300 Palestinians reported killed there since a ceasefire came into force last October.
Cunningham believes Irish supporters are capable of holding that grim context in mind while still extending basic respect to visiting players.
“I think the Irish public can show respect to the Israeli people, some of whom may actually agree to a certain extent with the opinions of Irish people,” he said. “Maybe some of the Israeli players are disgusted with their government and the conflict.
“It is messy, but I think the game should have gone ahead in Dublin. It’s a very complex thing. I read as much as everybody else, I read my paper and I try and educate myself as best I can. It’s not just about the last two years, it’s about the last 50 years.
“I’m not sure what the answer is to the conflict, but I don’t think us denying the Israelis a game in Dublin, or even cancelling the game, moves things any way forward in a positive way.”
On the pitch, Cunningham’s thoughts turn quickly to what Ireland do next. The Nations League campaign opens in Kosovo on September 24th, with Heimir Hallgrímsson set to name his squad on September 17th, and the former defender wants to see a bolder approach up front.
He is unconvinced by the manager’s preferred 3-4-2-1, particularly the narrow front three.
“I’m not a big fan of the narrow three up front, I think we can play with two central strikers, but then we never saw it in the summer so that was an opportunity missed,” he said.
The key, in his view, is finding a way to unleash Troy Parrott and Evan Ferguson together as Ireland build towards Euro 2028.
“If Evan gets himself fit are we going to play him and Troy, our two best strikers of the generation, in a partnership or is one of them shifted left of a front three and how’s that going to work?”
It is a tactical question Hallgrímsson cannot dodge for much longer. The politics around Israel will dominate the headlines for now, but Ireland’s manager still has to solve an old football problem: how to fit his best players into a system that can carry the team into the next tournament cycle.
