Ireland soccer coach criticized for 'stupidity' by Israel FA after comments

Republic of Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson is being criticized for "stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy" after he commented about playing Israel in the upcoming UEFA Nations League. The two countries are scheduled to face each other twice in League B, on Sept. 27 and Oct. 4.

When his squad was announced on Thursday, Sept. 17, Hallgrimsson fielded questions about the tournament. Per BBC, when asked about his team's focus, he said, "We're not playing with genocide, we're playing against genocide. We're playing against Israel, we're not playing with Israel."

The Israel Football Association responded to the manager on social media on Monday, Sept. 21 and threw his words back at him.

"Unfortunately, we have not yet found a cure for stupidity, ignorance and hypocrisy displayed by Ireland’s national team coach," the organization said in a statement published on X and Instagram. "We’re not playing with ignorance, hypocrisy and stupidity, We’re playing against the coach who embodies them."