PICKING UP RIGHT where last week’s column left off — straight in, no messing about today — Fifa’s plan to sell off a major stake in the World Cup has been defeated by a boycott (which the FAI was a part of), while Ireland’s matches against Israel are slated to go ahead (because the FAI won’t boycott them). Go figure.

The FAI further confirmed this week that while some Israeli fans will be able to attend their ‘home’ game against Ireland, which will take place in Hungary, no tickets will be made available to Ireland fans for either match. Our ‘home’ game will take place in Serbia, because apparently we were only allowed to choose countries that were responsible for setting in motion the chain of events that led to World War I. 

Now, at the risk of positioning myself as moral arbiter for the world, nobody should want to attend these matches. Yes, there may be some territorial sense of injustice that Israel will have their fans present for at least one match, and yes, that won’t be pleasant for the Irish staff or players, but lest we forget, those staff and players do also have the option of boycotting these matches. Second of all, think of how much you’d have to pay for a ticket if a limited amount were put on sale anyway.

And I know what you’re thinking. But Carl, don’t you remember five years ago, when Fine Gael ended the scourge of ticket touting once and for all? And I understand where you’re coming from, reader whom I’ve invented for rhetorical purposes. After all, in July 2021, the Fine Gael Facebook page proudly declared: “Ticket touting is now ILLEGAL in Ireland. The bill was first introduced over 4 years ago by Noel........

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