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Former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has urged that Israel be removed from European sporting competitions and criticised its conduct in the West Bank as “ethnic cleansing.” His remarks, made on the Path to Power podcast with Matt Cooper, came amid controversy over Ireland’s Nations League fixtures against Israel.
A strong stance on sport and values
Varadkar said Israel should never have been part of European football and called for its expulsion from UEFA. He argued the country does not meet what he described as the standards of a European nation or of “European values,” and suggested it should not participate in events such as Eurovision.
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On the podcast he was blunt: “UEFA should not have allowed Israel to play. They should be expelled from UEFA, in my view.”
What happened at UEFA — and the FAI’s role
The comments followed the row over Ireland’s Nations League fixtures, which intensified debate about sporting ties with Israel. Varadkar praised the Football Association of Ireland for formally raising the issue with UEFA.
He said the FAI’s proposal met little international backing. “There was a vote and a debate on that too. I think only Turkey and Norway sided with us on that,” he told the programme.
Unilateral action only with a clear chance of helping
Varadkar set out a cautious threshold for Ireland to act alone. He said Dublin should consider unilateral measures only if there was a “reasonable chance” those steps would improve the situation for Palestinians and would not cause disproportionate harm.
He added: “Now I don’t mind a bit of harm, a bit of self-harm, if I know it’s going to help the Palestinians.” That, he said, would be a necessary condition for backing independent Irish action.
Push for economic measures
Rather than pursuing sporting exclusions, Varadkar urged a shift towards economic responses. He suggested Ireland should mirror recent measures announced by the UK, describing those steps as having “gone beyond us.”
“That seems to be the kind of thing we should be doing,” he said, adding that matching the UK would offer them practical and diplomatic support: it would give Britain “a bit of help and cover if we’re doing it too.”
Varadkar’s intervention reinforces an ongoing debate in Ireland about the balance between sport, diplomacy and sanctions. The issue is likely to remain contentious as political pressure and public debate continue to intersect with international sporting governance.
