Ireland will wear black armbands in their June 18 match against Italy at the European Championship to commemorate the 18th anniversary of shootings in Northern Ireland that killed six people.
The match falls on the exact date of the attack
and is especially poignant as it happened while the victims were
watching Ireland play Italy in the 1994 World Cup on television in the
rural village of Loughinisland.
European football’s governing body UEFA has granted permission for the armbands to be worn.
“What
happened in Loughinisland in 1994 was an awful tragedy and deeply
moving for all football fans,” said Irish football’s chief executive
officer John Delaney, in a statement released before the tournament. “I
would like to thank UEFA for assisting us in commemorating this atrocity
and take the opportunity to remember all those who lost their lives in
the troubles.”
Among the victims of the shooting was 87-year-old
Barney Greene, one of the oldest victims of sectarian violence in
Northern Ireland.
“The families are touched that this tragic event
can be commemorated on such a poignant day, the 18th anniversary of the
atrocity,” added Niall Murphy, a solicitor working for the victims’
families. “We would like to thank the FAI and UEFA for their assistance
in providing a forum to recall the awful events that took place on that
fateful day when Ireland played Italy in 1994.”
Ireland captain Robbie Keane has also backed the move.
“It’s
only right we wear the armbands in respect of everyone’s families and
to let them know as a team and as a nation we’re thinking of the
families,” Keane said June 17.
Ireland lost its first two matches at Euro 2012 and has no chance of making the quarterfinals. Italy needs a win to progress.
