Kyrie Irving offers to pay NFL star’s fine for anti-Israel eyeblack

Irving was at the center of an antisemitism scandal in 2022 after he shared an antisemitic film online and initially refused to apologize.

By Jacob Gurvis, JTA

NBA star Kyrie Irving said he would cover an $11,941 fine that the NFL imposed on Houston Texans Pro Bowl linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair for writing Hind Rajab, the name of a Palestinian girl killed by Israeli forces, on his eyeblack during Sunday’s game.

Irving said Wednesday on social media that he would “take care of his fine.”

The NFL fined Al-Shaair, who is Muslim, a similar amount last season when he wrote “STOP THE GENOCIDE” on his eyeblack during a playoff game in January and an appearance on ESPN.

According to the NFL rulebook, players are “prohibited from wearing, displaying, or otherwise conveying personal messages either in writing or illustration, unless such message has been approved in advance by the League office.”

The rule also states that the league “will not grant permission” to players displaying a message “to political activities or causes, other non-football events, causes or campaigns, or charitable causes or campaigns.”

Irving, who plays for the Dallas Mavericks, has been outspoken in his support for Palestinian causes.

He was also at the center of an antisemitism scandal in 2022 after he shared an antisemitic film online and initially refused to apologize.

He was subsequently suspended and fined, and he issued an apology.

Rajab was five years old when she was killed along with six members of her family in a 2024 shooting that the Israeli Defense Force is investigating.

“The Voice Of Hind Rajab,” a documentary about the killing, was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe, and won a top prize at last year’s Venice Film Festival.

Al-Shaair supported the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund through the NFL’s “My Cause, My Cleats” program in 2023, 2024 and 2025, and has worn cleats that read “FREE” on one side, referring to the “Free Palestine” movement, and “Surely to Allah we belong and to him we will all return” on the other.

The cleats also featured the text, “AT LEAST 41,788 Palestinians killed, 10,000+ estimated to be under the rubble, 96,974 wounded.”

The Texans named Al-Shaair winner of their 2025 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, which recognizes “players who excel on the field and show exceptional dedication to uplifting their communities with consistent, positive impact.”