Gaza interrupts the match between Ireland and Austria twice.

The UEFA Nations League match between Ireland and Austria in Dublin was halted twice on Thursday for brief periods due to pro-Palestinian protests.

In the 19th minute, fans threw tennis balls covered with stickers bearing the colors of the Palestinian flag onto the pitch. The players left the field for a few minutes before the match resumed.

In the 35th minute, a man stormed the field waving a Palestinian flag, leading to another brief stoppage of play.

The match ended in a 2-2 draw.

Icelandic coach Heimir Hallgrimsson commented after the match: “No one is happy about these protests; but I understand and respect them.”

These events follow the controversy surrounding the Nations League match between Ireland and Israel on Sunday.

After lengthy discussions about boycotting the match in protest against the war in Gaza, the Irish players ultimately decided to play the game, which took place in Hungary on neutral ground with nearly empty stands.

The Irish players wore black armbands during the match, which they won 3-0; while the captains of both teams did not shake hands or exchange flags before the match started.

The return match is scheduled for Sunday, again on neutral ground in Serbia, after the Football Association of Ireland deemed hosting the match at home to be highly sensitive.

On Thursday evening, around 200 protesters gathered outside Dublin Arena as part of a campaign dubbed “Stop the Match.”

Joan Doyle, a 56-year-old primary school teacher and one of the protesters, said: “I strongly oppose holding these two matches against Israel; because it essentially means using sports to justify genocide, sports has a political dimension. It has happened repeatedly that people have boycotted sporting events.”

Mark Comey, a 26-year-old engineer, added: “Ireland should not cooperate with genocide. We have already played a match against Israel, which is committing genocide, and we have crossed the Palestinian barrier calling for a boycott.”

Dublin officially recognized the State of Palestine in 2024, alongside Spain and Norway, and has repeatedly criticized Israel during the war in Gaza.