THE NEW MINISTER for Sport Patrick O’Donovan says State funding promised for professional League of Ireland academies is “not imminent.” 

The new Programme for Government document has committed to “explore new mechanisms for the creation of football academies with the FAI and the League of Ireland”, though Minister O’Donovan says he should be asked about the progress of this funding in a year’s time.

The need for investment in professional academies in Ireland has been made urgent by the consequences of Brexit, which now forbids Irish players joining a British club until they turn 18. 

Pre-Brexit, Irish footballers could move to a high-calibre, well-resourced British academy from the age of 16. League of Ireland clubs now have to bridge that developmental gap for those players, and the FAI last year said they require €10 million a year to give Irish football a “realistic chance” of keeping pace with European counterparts in the realm of elite youth development. 

“The Programme for Government is a five-year document. You’ll probably appreciate over the last five weeks I have been preoccupied with other things”, said Minister O’Donovan in reference to recent financial issues at the Arts Council, who also fall under his department’s portfolio. 

“I have a reporting mechanism within each division within the department on progress made against our commitments made in the Programme for Government. It’s better to ask in a year, or definitely after six months, to see how we are getting on with regard to progress on each of these individual headings, rather than just a month in.” 

Asked if this means the academy funding is at least a year away, Minister O’Donovan replied, “No, I didn’t say that at all. What I said was the Programme for Government is a five-year document and were I to count the commitments from my own department alone, there are close to a hundred off the top of my head.” 

When the Minister was then asked whether the funding is at least not imminent, he agreed. 

“At the moment I have a particular issue in my department which I need to settle down, around the expenditure of capital monies to a variety of different agencies and organisations”, he said.

When told that those involved on the ground at these academies are likely to be dispirited by his comments, he replied, “They shouldn’t be. The Programme for Government is a five-year programme, and I don’t think, to be quite honest with you, anybody would expect implementation of the Programme for Government in six weeks.” 

Minister O’Donovan’s portfolio encompasses arts, culture, media, communications, sport, with Charlie McConalogue appointed as a junior minister to the department, with special responsibility for sport and postal policy. 

Asked about the academy funding, McConalogue said, “That’s something I will be engaging closely with the FAI on. Any spending we’re doing, we want it to see it make a significant impact and make a real contribution.

“Obviously it was something that was in my own party’s manifesto and is now in the programme for government and it’s something I intended to step out in terms of scoping out how best we can – working with Minister O’Donovan – see that progress and how best we can bring public money to the table that will deliver a real return in terms of enhanced quality and young people coming through the academy system.” 

Meanwhile, Minister McConalogue said he retains confidence in the leadership of the FAI following the public criticism of their treatment of former women’s national team assistant, Colin Healy.

Healy left the organisation in December when his contract was not renewed, though he contends that chief football officer Marc Canham broke a verbal guarantee that his contract would be extended. This guarantee, said Healy, led him to turn down the opportunity to manage Cobh Ramblers, a job which suited his personal circumstances following the death of his wife from illness last year. Canham says Healy misunderstood their conversation, and that no such guarantee was offered. 

“Yes I do”, replied Minister McConalogue when asked if he has faith in the FAI’s leadership.

“The government has worked very closely with the FAI in relation to supporting it to come through the challenges it has seen in recent years. Obviously the decision around any manager is a decision for national organisations themselves.” 

The Ministers were speaking at the announcement of Sport Ireland’s core funding to national governing bodies for 2025. This year’s total core funding amounts to €18.3 million, a €1 million increase on last year. The total does not include separate funding to the FAI, IRFU, and GAA. 

Special Olympics Ireland receive the biggest single grant, totalling €1.65 million. There follows Athletics Ireland (€1.27 million), Swim Ireland (€1.215 million), Horse Sport Ireland (€1.1 million) and Basketball Ireland (€930,000). 

Sport Ireland also announced this funding will be delivered on a multi-annual basis from 2026. 

Almost €12 million has been invested in the network of 29 Local Sports Partnerships, bringing the total commitment to €31.3 million, a 76% increase in total funding over the course of seven years.

The full funding breakdown is available here.