National Governing Bodies
Dail Éireann — 2026-06-11
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Ruth Coppinger (PBP), Dublin West

My position is not that Irish athletes should have to take a decision not to participate. Israel should be kicked out of all sporting competitions, in the same way Russia was. Does the Minister of State agree with Russia being banned? I would like an answer to that question. Failing the authorities taking action, because they are hugely corrupt, players and athletes may have to take a decision, and they should take a decision. I would prefer if they took it as a collective, and I think they will. We already had Séamus Coleman say the other night that it should not be down to the players, it should be down to the governing bodies and the Government, but the players do know what is right and wrong. They should not be put in that position, however. They should have the full support of their governing body and the State.
The women's football team showed this in 2017 when they went on strike. If the Minister of State recalls, they refused to play against Czechia, which was a World Cup qualifier. They wore jerseys with "respect" written on them because they were facing discrimination in the way they were being treated. The Spanish women's football team refused to play until Rubiales was kicked out, so it can be done. Pressure can be put on to force change.

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Record URI: https://data.oireachtas.ie/akn/ie/debateRecord/dail/2026-06-11/debate/main
Retrieved: 2026-09-14T01:01:05+00:00
Sitting date: 2026-06-11