LEAGUE OF IRELAND prize money in 2024 has increased by 17%, totalling €765,000 across the men’s Premier and First Division along with the women’s Premier Division.
Last year’s prize money totalled €655,000, with the increase driven by contributions from title sponsor SSE Airtricity and broadcast partners.
The exact breakdown of the money, including how much will go to the three title winners, is to be thrashed out at next week’s meeting of the National League Committee.
While the trajectory in prize money is encouraging, the totals still pale in comparison to other leagues of a similar size across Europe, while Uefa competitions are much more lucrative: Derry City earned €550,000 for going as far as the penultimate qualifying round for last year’s Conference League.
“It’s really positive and hopefully [sees] some more investment into the clubs”, said LOI director Mark Scanlon. “We thank the partners and broadcasters for making it possible. It just shows the continuing growth and interest that’s in the league at the minute.”
The FAI hope to see another significant bump in next year’s prize money, with a new TV broadcast deal going out to tender later this year. Virgin Media have expanded their live coverage for the 2024 season, joining RTÉ and filling a long-open void following the demise of eir Sport. FAI CEO Jonathan Hill last year revealed Sky Sports had expressed an interest in showing LOI games, but a deal was never agreed. Senior FAI figures have previously admitted that facilities at many grounds across the league are hindering the size of broadcast deals.
Clubs have been helped by the FAI’s decision to scrap affiliation fees, which once totalled €250,000 per club. They were initially suspended during Covid, but have now been removed.
“We had the opportunity to reintroduce the affiliation fee and we could have inflated the prize money by the affiliation fee amount but it didn’t make sense”, said Scanlon.
Meanwhile, this season will see club owners subject to binding fit and proper persons test. The FAI did not have an official directors’ test in place prior to last season, but introduced it on a trial, non-binding basis last year.
“We are very happy with how that process went”, said Scanlon. “We reviewed it and made some slight changes and benchmarked with other leagues as well, and are very happy with those changes.
“It is properly on a binding basis from this year as well. All the clubs, all the owners and directors, had to submit the test to us at the start of the year – their declarations – and we are working through a process now ahead of the new season.
“If anybody does not meet the requirements that are in there then there is a process to work through.
“As you will find with owners and directors tests across Europe, they are self-declaration forms. There are things that are publicly knowledgeable to us – that we know about in the first place – but it is reliant on a self-declaration from all owners and directors to make sure they meet conditions set out in the test.”
These declaration forms are checked by the FAI’s legal department.
Any owner who fails the test will be disqualified by the FAI as directors of that club, and if their interests in the club are not dissolved within a certain timeframe, sanctions fall upon the club, up to and including the withdrawal of their licence to compete in the league.
“We don’t envisage getting to that stage with any of the clubs”, said Scanlon. “They are all aware of the process. That’s why we brought it in on a phased basis in the first place. All of the clubs are fully aware that the process is ongoing.”
Andy Pilley, the owner of Waterford FC was last year sentenced to 13 years in prison on fraud charges, with the club insisting they would continue to operate as normal. They subsequently earned promotion back to the Premier Division, and begin their season at home to Shelbourne on Friday week.
Scanlon confirmed there is a “process ongoing” regarding the formal ownership of Waterford. Andy Pilley’s son Jamie is a director at the club.
Waterford are part of a multi-club ownership model, along with Fleetwood Town in England’s third tier.
“Multi club ownership part of the game”, said Scanlon. “We’ve seen that across the world. For us, the most important thing is the right investment into the league. Whether that’s part of multi-club ownership or single ownership, or fan-owned club, it’s about people helping to grow the game. If we have the right people in the clubs, I’m confident the league will continue to grow. I don’t think there’s any right or wrong answer. Some single ownership clubs haven’t worked out great, some multi-club ownerships haven’t worked out great. Others on both sides have worked out really well.”
There is renewed momentum behind the introduction of a new, third tier to the men’s league, a policy initially included in the FAI’s 2022 strategic plan and included as a central part of the new football pathways plan, which will be by director of football Marc Canham unveiled to FAI members at an EGM on Saturday.
“We just want to make sure it is introduced in the correct way and it is holistic for the whole of Irish football and feed the pyramid”, said Scanlon. “So, it is not a second division of the League of Ireland, as some have reported in the past, it is the third tier of Irish football that makes a proper connection between the grassroots game and the League of Ireland.
“We see from the Leinster and Munster Senior Cup games and the early rounds of the Sports Direct FAI Cup that there is a thriving scene within the amateur game clubs are looking to test themselves against League of Ireland teams.”
Scanlon confirmed the third tier may be open to LOI reserve sides. Shamrock Rovers briefly entered a second side, Shamrock Rovers II, into the first division in 2020, primarily to give academy players game time.
The FAI have no plans to reintroduce the League Cup, with title sponsors EA Sports moving their support to the national underage leagues. There are also no plans to move the 2024 FAI Cup final from its date on 10 November nor from the Aviva Stadium. The Irish rugby team last week announced a friendly match with New Zealand at the Aviva, to be held the day before the Cup final.