Robbie Keane’s wife says she fears for her family’s safety after her husband was targeted following his spell in charge of Israeli football club Maccabi Tel Aviv.
Online abuse against Keane intensified this week after he was invited to the Republic of Ireland football team’s international training camp to present players with their caps.
Claudine Keane said in a social media post on X: “I would just like to remind a certain small group of individuals: my family, my children and I live in Ireland, this is our home. I feel extremely uncomfortable and sometimes intimidated by some messages again from a small group that are hurtful, threatening and dangerous.
“They not only genuinely put our safety and wellbeing as a family at risk, they are using a sportsperson as a political pawn and in doing so inciting hatred by making absolutely outrageous accusations.
“I always felt safe in Ireland until now.”
The abuse aimed at Keane comes after Maccabi fans were attacked in Amsterdam last week, with Dutch and Israeli officials condemning the actions as anti-Semitic. In the aftermath, at least 67 arrests were made and Israeli authorities arranged for six rescue flights to evacuate fans caught up in the chaos. The violence served as a painful reminder of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
As the toxic climate escalated on social media, Keane became the target of serious insults, including being labelled a “****”, “blood money Robbie”, and a “Zionist rat”.
In June this year, former Tottenham Hotspur and Republic of Ireland captain and striker Keane left his post at Maccabi Tel Aviv after leading them to the Israeli league title.
The Dubliner – who is Ireland’s most capped player and record goal scorer – stayed at the club for only a year and helped them achieve their first league title since 2020. The side also won the Toto Cup and reached the last 16 of the Europa Conference League – their best performance in European competition. This was despite the team having to play matches on neutral grounds abroad because of the conflict in the Middle East.
Keane faced a harrowing exit from Israel following the horrific events of October 7, requiring evacuation to Greece amid escalating violence. He has returned to live in Ireland with his wife and two sons.
Former model and columnist Claudine added in a post: “They are using a sportsperson as a political pawn and in doing so, inciting hatred by making absolutely outrageous accusations. We love our country; we are not politicians; we have never done any wrong.
“None of us signed up to this situation that happened months into his role, it was a nightmare. Please stop this absolute witch hunt and consider that politicians should not get to tell you where you can and cannot work. Is the UK, America, Saudi ok? We all want peace.”
She went on to “apologise” to readers online for what she called a “long winded” message, adding: “This is what years of a bully campaign and witch hunt feels like.
“It almost breaks you. To the logical people, thank you and to the others, you are picking on wrong person/family. Enough is enough.
“I would also say my children were in the Irish hotel during cap presentation. They are Irish citizens and play schoolboys and League of Ireland football. Are they too not welcome because of a manager’s job their father resigned from? It’s all totally hypocritical to say the least.”
