Niall Quinn’s Football in Ireland Visionary Group have laid out an ambitious plan for a complete overhaul of Irish football, with a fully professional League of Ireland by 2026 and a 7.5% year-in-year increase in participation among the aims.
The group’s submission to the Governance Reform Group of the FAI – which has been seen by RTE Sport – calls for a UEFA style governance structure for the association and the harnessing of new commercial revenue streams to create a sustainable Irish football industry, with greater support from government, the education sphere and regional bodies.
Chaired by former Republic of Ireland striker Quinn, the nine-strong group’s other members include former League of Ireland footballers Kieran Foley and Gerry Muldowney and the CEO of Sunderland’s Foundation of Light, Lesley Spuhler.
The group make the case that a reorganisation of the FAI is required to allow it to ‘adapt more flexibly’ and suggest a UEFA/FIFA style structure with age and term limits of board members and responsibility for operational and commercial issues to lie with an administration team that answers to the board.