FAI’s unified calendar plan to face backlash

Director of Football Marc Canham is poised to encounter resistance to his plan of introducing a unified calendar schedule across the FAI’s affiliates by January 2026.

A similar overhaul instigated by his predecessor Ruud Dokter fell asunder during the downfall of John Delaney’s reign in 2019 but Canham will contend the desire exists to synchronise the start and end dates generally with the version operated by the men’s and women’s national leagues, from senior down to underage.

They run from February to November, colloquially known as summer football, whereas the vast majority of grassroots leagues are wrapped around the school timetable from September to May.

Amateur adult football also tends to mirror that schedule, the predominant format across Europe.

Canham’s aim is a feature of the Football Pathways Plan (FPP) he’s been devising since joining the FAI from the English Premier League in June 2022.

Last year’s consultation process undertaken through a nationwide roadshow was sparsely attended, with FAI staff often accounting for a large portion of the small attendances in various parts of the country. Their feedback, along with various interviews and research projects, framed the final blueprint.

To ‘Create a new games programme’ from January to December is listed under the Participation category, with a ‘Calendar working group’ to be established.

It’s noteworthy that the word season is excluded. Split seasons are believed to be under consideration, with a break for the peak holiday season of July and possibly August.

One of the complaints during the pilot period under Dokter was the drop-off rates in teams with little to play for following that lull.

Canham’s end-product has been gradually shared, initially