An American university ice hockey team has issued an apology for guidance advising fans not to wear “green” or any clothing containing “Irish symbolism” while travelling around Belfast as it may be “deemed offensive”.
The team took to social media last night to apologise for the post, which has since been deleted, saying it was made out of an “abundance of caution”.
Notre Dame Hockey, whose team is called Notre Dame Fighting Irish men’s ice hockey team, is the college team of the University of Notre Dame.
They are set to play alongside the Belfast Giants as part of the Friendship Four 2024 tournament from the 29 to 30 November.
In the now-deleted social media post, the hockey team asked fans to avoid wearing green, anything with the terms “fighting Irish” or “Irish” or anything which may features shamrocks, leprechauns or the Ireland flag.
In a post on X on Tuesday night, the team said: “Out of an abundance of caution, we posted guidelines on social media for fans wishing to express support for the team during its upcoming trip to Northern Ireland.
“The guidelines were not properly reviewed and should not have been posted. Our game in Belfast is meant to bring people together and build bridges through sport, we apologize to fans and to the people of Northern Ireland for any confusion or offense.”
The original post read: “We can’t wait to see your Notre Dame in Belfast gear inside SSE Arena,” the team posted.
“Just a reminder to avoid our Irish symbolism, that may be deemed offensive to some, while out around town.”
They also advised fans they can wear the team’s colours – navy and gold, or anything with their logo while around the city.
Read more
The post was deemed “embarrassing” by some in the replies, with one fan writing: “My kids have travelled all over Ireland in all the gear you say not to wear and received nothing but love. As a Notre Dame graduate married to an Irish woman this is embarrassing and you should take down the post immediately.”
Another said: “This tweet is more offensive than any American university t-shirt abroad ever would be. If the fans of the Fighting Irish should be made to feel embarrassed of their programme, then don’t schedule the trip” while another replied: “This tweet far more offensive than anything that an actual fan might do with a shirt or whatever.”
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a private Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana in the United States and one of the oldest university’s in the state.
All of the school’s athletic teams are referred to as the ‘Fighting Irish’ with the mascot being a leprechaun.
Earlier this month the team released a special ice hockey jersey for the upcoming tournament at the SSE Arena at the end of the month with the letters and numbers on the jerseys are detailed to look like those in the Book of Kells with the Celtic knot running through them, along with a new logo for the team specifically for the tournament.
Notre Dame has been contacted.