FAI urged to increase board size to 14 to meet gender-balance requirement

The FAI have been requested by way of rule change to increase their board size from 12 to 14 in order to facilitate compliance with the Government’s gender-balance requirements.

As it stands, the association only has four of the required five female directors ahead of their annual general meeting on October 21.

Chairman Roy Barrett assembled a swiftly-arranged meeting of the board, where it was decided by the tightest of 6-5 margins to reject nominations submitted for directorships at the summit.

All five of the candidates were male, they being Paul Cooke and Joe O’Brien for President, uncontested John Finnegan as Vice-President, Nixon Morton for national bodies and Tom Browne as the rep of the schoolboys/girls sector.

There had been no specific request for females issued when seeking candidates and all were submitted in accordance with the rules by the deadline.

Since the marginal board decision, no updates have been furnished to the General Assembly, the body who will vote to ratify or reject candidates at the AGM.

It is understood the power of the board to override the nomination process in this instance has been subject to conflicting legal opinion around the top table.

As that schism unfolds – and an interesting opponent to Barrett’s pleas was senior civil servant Robert Watt – the Irish Universities Football Union (IUFU) have proposed a solution to FAI company secretary.

Their constitutional change tilt centres on adding two directors early next year – after the State’s Memorandum of Understanding with the FAI document expires – creating a board composition of eight males and six females. Nixon Morton, one of those impacted by the board’s intervention, has also called for this expansion.

Sports Minister