FAI issue early vote of confidence to Hallgrimsson and make case for State funding at AGM

Gavin Cooney

THE FAI’S LEADERSHIP issued an early vote of confidence to Ireland men’s head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson, while interim CEO David Courell revealed the Association announced his appointment more hastily than they would have liked as they feared losing him to another job. 

Hallgrimsson lost both of his opening games in charge – against England and Greece – with the team booed off after the latter defeat on Tuesday.

Speaking at the FAI’s AGM in Dublin this afternoon, president Paul Cooke said “we made the right choice in appointing Heimir”, adding he “knows it will take time” to effect a turnaround in results.

“We assure him that he has the full and unequivocal support of the board”, added Cooke, saying that the board nor Hallgrimsson will be distracted by “outside noise.” 

This support was echoed by interim CEO David Courell, who acknowledged that Hallgrimsson had made a “challenging start, but it just a start”, saying he had confidence that Hallgrimsson would turn around the fortunes of the team. 

Courell was quizzed from the floor by PFAI representative Stuart Gilhooly about the process of Hallgrimsson’s appointment.

The announcement was made on 10 July, two days after the FAI hosted a press conference addressing historic abuse allegations in the sport that came to light in reporting by RTÉ and the Sunday Independent, and before Hallgrimsson had any of his backroom staff in position.

Courell admitted the timing was not ideal but the FAI wanted to move fast to avoid losing Hallgrimsson to another job. 

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“The timing we recognise was regrettable, and if we could have postponed the announcement further we would have. There were a few different variables at play. Heimir was our primary candidate, however he was being actively sought after by other parties and we needed to effectively tie him down.”

Courell and chief football officer Marc Canham insisted Hallgrimsson was always the FAI’s first choice for the role, and that he was the candidate they hoped to appoint in April, but were precluded from doing so by “existing contractual obligations.” 

Courell was asked about Canham’s recent promotion to a new position, titled chief football officer, and said it was recognition of his roles overseeing the football pathways plan and his role as the line manager of the head coaches of the men’s and women’s team, adding Canham is a “huge asset” to the FAI. He did not answer when asked if Canham has been given a pay rise. 

Courell painted a broadly positive picture of the FAI, saying they will have achieved 79% of the targets outlined in their strategic document by the end of next year. “As things stand, that is a pretty decent score”, he said.

The Association remains without a permanent CEO, following Jonathan Hill’s exit in April. Courell said the recruitment process is ongoing but is entering its final stages. The accounts presented at the meeting said a permanent CEO will be appointed in “late 2024.” 

Courell also said the FAI stand willing to help crisis-ridden Dundalk in whatever way they can. PFAI General Secretary Stephen McGuinness said from the floor that he “personally thinks the club go out of business in the next couple of weeks”, and called for more robust financial safeguards to be put in place by the FAI to protect clubs. Courell pointed out that Dundalk were granted a league licence in November last year, one month before Brian Ainscough completed his takeover of the club, which Courell admitted led to a lesser level of financial due diligence and is a “learning we need to own up to.” 

President Paul Cooke delivered the first address of the meeting, and started his speech by acknowledging the recent media stories concerning historic abuse suffered by Irish footballers. Cooke said the FAI have met those who have come forward, and said the FAI continue to implement their safeguarding system across the game. 

Cooke also urged the delegates in front of him to continue to make the political case for increased funding of the sport, saying they must “grab the opportunity the upcoming general election provides for Irish sport.” Cooke said Irish football deserves a share of the betting levy and a large share of sports capital programme, adding that everyone in the room has worked “bloody hard” to ensure the mistakes of the past are not repeated. 

Courell echoed this call, saying he believes there is an appetite among government to invest in football, stressing they were investing in the game, not in the FAI. “This is not a handout”, he said, “but an investment to kickstart an industry.”

Courell said the FAI are lobbying government to increase the betting levy from 2% to 3%, with would yield an annual revenue increase of €50 million. The FAI are arguing for €30 million of this, stating that football accounts for 31% of all bets placed in Ireland, more than any other sport. 

The FAI are also asking the Irish government to match a Euro 2028 legacy fund committed by the British government to invest in grassroots facilities, which would be worth between €49-50 million to Irish football. 

League of Ireland director Mark Scanlon revealed that the FAI are seeking specific funding of €20 million across 2025 and 2026 for League of Ireland academies, with the monies to come from the Brexit adjustment reserve fund. 

Cooke voiced support for the football pathways plan, the blueprint led by chief football officer Marc Canham which aims to overhaul Ireland’s youth structures and improve elite player production. The pathways plan was not on the agenda at today’s AGM, with Cooke saying it remains in a consultative process. Courell said it was in a consultative and implementation phase, stressing that a working group has been set up to tackle the contentious proposal of aligning the game along a summer calendar. The group has met six times thus far.  

The FAI posted a surplus of €3.5 million in 2023 and lowered debt from €50.9 million to €43.2 million.

The Association’s turnover increased by more than €8 million to €62.3 million, with Ireland’s participation at the women’s World Cup, high-profile Euro 2024 qualifiers against France and Netherlands, and a record crowd at the FAI Cup final helping to more than double match income to €18.6 million. Sponsorship also increased, from €4.6 million to €9.1 million. 

The FAI’s cash balance fell from €10.9 million to €1.6 million, which finance director Dan McCormack attributed to legacy debt payments. He said the FAI remain confident they will have the “headroom” to meet their strategic target of having ringfenced cash reserves of €6 million by the end of 2025. 

Caroline Rhatigan was elected to the FAI board as a representative of the game’s professional chamber, replacing Niamh O’Mahony. 

Packie Bonner and Robert Watt were both re-elected to the board with comfortable majorities.