Tennis balls carrying Palestinian flags and “#StopTheGame” stickers were thrown onto the pitch shortly before the 20-minute mark, forcing referee Allard Lindhout to temporarily stop play. The players were subsequently taken for a hydration break while the balls were cleared.
The disruption came amid calls for Ireland to boycott their Nations League meeting with Israel, which is scheduled to take place behind closed doors at a neutral venue in Serbia on Sunday.
A second interruption occurred around the 35th minute when a protester entered the pitch carrying what appeared to be a Palestinian flag. Security personnel quickly removed the individual.
On the pitch, Ireland made a fast start through Troy Parrott. The forward opened the scoring in the 12th minute after a brilliant individual run, beating several Austrian defenders before finishing through goalkeeper Florian Wiegele.
Parrott doubled Ireland’s advantage just before half-time from the penalty spot after Ryan Manning was brought down in the box. The goal was confirmed following a VAR review.
Austria responded strongly after the interval and pulled one back through Alexander Prass in the 71st minute. The goal was initially ruled out for offside but was subsequently awarded following a VAR review.
The visitors completed the comeback six minutes later when Michael Gregoritsch found the net to make it 2-2.
Ireland pushed for a late winner but Austria held on for a point, leaving Heimir Hallgrímsson’s side third in Nations League Group B3 at the halfway stage, behind Austria and Kosovo.
The result also brought renewed attention to the controversy surrounding Ireland’s two Nations League fixtures against Israel.
Ireland had already defeated Israel 3-0 in Debrecen, Hungary, in their previous match. Their return fixture, officially designated as Ireland’s home game, was moved to Serbia and will be played without spectators. The Football Association of Ireland cited operational reasons for the relocation.
The FAI had faced calls from campaigners to cancel the fixture, while Ireland goalkeeper Gavin Bazunu had made himself unavailable for the matches against Israel. Ireland’s players, however, decided to fulfil the fixtures.
The protests at the Aviva Stadium therefore added another chapter to a politically sensitive international window for Irish football, while on the field Austria recovered from two goals down to claim a valuable point in Dublin.