DUBLIN (AP) — Protesters against Ireland playing its Nations League games against Israel interrupted the team's match against Austria on Thursday by throwing tennis balls onto the field.
Referee Allard Lindhout sent the players for a hydration break as soon as the balls bearing Palestinian flags landed on the grass with Ireland 1-0 up after 19 minutes played.
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People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
Troy Parrott had opened the scoring in the 12th with a brilliant individual goal, playing the ball through the legs of one defender and then eluding another before shooting the ball through the goalkeeper’s legs.
The game resumed after a four-minute break.
Protesters also gathered before the match because of Israel’s actions in Gaza. A small group of campaigners from the “Stop the Game” initiative set up close to the stadium and displayed a Palestinian flag and banners in support of Ireland player Gavin Bazunu, who decided Saturday to boycott both of his team’s matches against Israel.
The Ireland-Palestine Solidarity Campaign also organized a protest outside the stadium, as well as other protests around the country.
They’re calling for Ireland to boycott its remaining Nations League match against Israel — Ireland’s “home” game though it’s set to be played without any fans present in in Backa Topola, Serbia on Sunday.
The Football Association of Ireland moved the game to an neutral venue for “operational reasons” in June following widespread calls for a boycott. It also followed the FAI’s own motion the previous November calling on UEFA to ban Israel from club and international competitions.
The “Stop the Game” initiative, which on Wednesday issued an open letter to the squad and its coach Heimir Hallgrimsson asking them not to play on Sunday, has also asked the Irish government and FAI to cancel the game.
Ireland already played Israel’s “home” game in Debrecen, Hungary last Sunday, when the Irish players wore black armbands and scored three first-half goals to win 3-0.
The players deliberated for hours Saturday on whether they should play at all after Bazunu informed the coach that morning that he wished to withdraw from both games.
FAI chief executive David Courell said the players voted and that a “a significant majority” were in favor of playing. Widespread reports suggested the vote was 14-8 in favor, excluding Bazunu, who had already departed.
Bazunu, Ireland’s reserve goalkeeper, was back in the squad for Austria’s visit.
Finn Azaz, whose mother has Israeli heritage, was back in the team after being left out against Israel.
The team has been coming under increasing pressure in Ireland, where affinity with Palestinians is strong, to boycott both games against Israel.
The FAI has resisted the calls, arguing the team could be hit with punishing sanctions by UEFA. Ireland is co-hosting the 2028 European Championship with England, Wales and Scotland.
Irish fans threw tennis balls onto the field during Ireland’s friendly game against Qatar in May to protest against the games against Israel going ahead.
See AP’s full soccer coverage here
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
People call on the Football Association of Ireland to boycott Sunday's soccer game against Israel near the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (Cillian Sherlock/PA via AP)
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Four astronauts rocketed into orbit Thursday on a space station mission that will stretch until spring, among them a Canadian whose wife will give birth while he’s away.
SpaceX launched commander Jessica Watkins and her crew for NASA after a three-week delay to fix their Dragon capsule’s leaking fuel system. Thick clouds threatened all morning to halt the countdown but in the end, the skies cleared enough to allow for a safe liftoff.
Although their stay at the International Space Station will last a long six months, the flight there promised to be the quickest yet for Elon Musk’s company: a mere eight-hour transit with an arrival well before bedtime.
With the late morning liftoff from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station, Watkins became the first Black woman to lead a crew to orbit. A geologist who worked with NASA’s Mars rover Curiosity a decade ago, Watkins is making her second trip to the space station following a lengthy stay in 2022.
“Thanks for an amazing ride,” Watkins radioed after reaching orbit.
The others are newcomers to space: NASA’s Luke Delaney, a retired Marine; Canada’s Joshua Kutryk, a colonel in the Royal Canadian Air Force; and Russia’s Sergey Teteryatnikov, a former submariner. They will replace four astronauts who have been living at the orbiting laboratory since February.
This was the 13th crew launched by SpaceX for NASA, not counting 2020's test flight. All four embrace their Crew-13 designation that pays homage in their mission patch to Apollo 13. The harrowing 1970 moonshot ended with the astronauts’ safe return.
References to the number 13 abounded Thursday. Watkins and her crew rode to the launch pad in black Teslas bearing plates that read “Lucky 13.” What's more, they carried up a small crocheted golden dragon named Lucky with a four-leaf clover around its neck.
“We figured it wouldn't hurt to bring a little of our own luck just in case, but clearly we don't need it,” Watkins said from orbit, noting they were “four of the luckiest humans on or off planet Earth.”
Kutryk will become the fourth man to become a father while orbiting Earth. Wife Heather is due to give birth to their third child in late November. The Canadian Space Agency promises plenty of support for the entire family when the big day comes.
“A lot of life-changing things can happen over six months,” NASA manager Dana Weigel said on the eve of liftoff, noting that the space agency will do its best to keep Kutryk looped in to his family.
In 2004, NASA provided a radio link between space station astronaut Mike Fincke and his wife’s delivery room during the birth of their daughter. Five years later, Randy Bresnik, commander of next year’s Artemis III mission, dialed in to his wife’s hospital from orbit.
The happy news traveled more slowly for Austrian astronaut Franz Viehbock. His daughter was born a few hours after he launched to the Soviet Union’s Mir space station in 1991. He was not informed until the next day.
SpaceX, meanwhile, is on a roll. Three hours after Crew-13 blasted off, SpaceX launched a Falcon rocket from California with more than 100 mini satellites. Another Falcon was set to soar late Thursday night from Florida, with a classified satellite for the National Reconnaissance Office. All this comes the same week that the company's massive Starship reached orbit for the first time.
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Astronaut Joshua Kutryk, of Canada, leaves the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
The booster from a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket returns to pad 40 after launching the crew capsule at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 with a crew of four launches from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with a crew of four launches from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with a crew of four launches from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, of Russia, greets family and friends as he leaves the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Pilot Luke Delaney, left, and commander Jessica Watkins leave the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Commander Jessica Watkins greets family and friends as she leaves the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
Astronauts, from left, Joshua Kutryk, of Canada, pilot Luke Delaney, commander Jessica Watkins and Cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, of Russia leave the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
Astronauts, from left, Joshua Kutryk, of Canada, pilot Luke Delaney, commander Jessica Watkins and Cosmonaut Sergey Teteryatnikov, of Russia leave the Operations and Checkout Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Terry Renna)
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket with a crew of four launches from pad 40 at the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/John Raoux)
