Delaney’s debt-free pledge as Denis O’Brien is named life president
JOHN DELANEY yesterday reaffirmed his 2020 debtfree vow to members at the Football Association of Ireland’s annual general meeting in Cork.
The chief executive is adamant they will shed €34m in loans over the next two-and-a-half years based upon projected income from commercial and ticketing revenue, particularly from UEFA.
Cuts were applied across all sectors of the game, especially League of Ireland prize-money, as debts for their contribution to the Lansdowne Road development costs spiked to €70m.
Interest and associated charges for venturing into a borrowing phase that hadn’t been anticipated in 2008 when they launched their ambitious 10-year premium ticket scheme have seen over €30m lost to Irish football.
However, Delaney was adamant yesterday that the eight-year period of austerity is over.
‘We are pleased to outline a clear position that the board will continue the objective of investing in the game and being free of debt by end of 2020,’ he vowed.
‘There will be no compromise here. Our investment in the game will continue at pace.’
Almost a third of the FAI’s €49m in turnover during 2017 was derived from UEFA, through centralised television rights deal and grants including the hattrick fund for infrastructural projects.
They will also attempt to bolster their ticketing income through a successor scheme to the failed Vantage Club.
Rather than the €32,000 which the FAI sought for 10year tickets on the halfway line in 2008, they are now available at €5,000. Punters can shell out €3,000 for the five-year version and €2,000 for a three-year deal.
The FAI’s financial ills would have been much worse had Denis O’Brien not offered to share the salary costs of the senior management team.
Starting off with an even 50/50 split on Giovanni Trapattoni’s first contract in 2008, the billionaire businessman stumped up a larger proportion the Italian’s second deal.
The same arrangement was in place for the two contracts granted to Martin O’Neill and Roy Keane between 2013 and 2017. Now that his sponsorship has ended, O’Brien was present at the Rochestown Park Hotel yesterday to be honoured as the FAI’s firstever life President.
Donal Conway has become the current President, succeeding Tony Fitzgerald yesterday on a four-year term. Into Conway’s place as vice president comes Dubliner Noel Fitzroy, a veteran of the junior football circuit.