Now that the Irish Professional Footballers Benevolent Association (IPFBA) has been officially launched, the crucial next stage is hatching a range of fundraising initiatives.
While charity collections at various events have kickstarted the pot, the scalability rests within larger ticket items such as percentage of Ireland match ticket revenue and donation of match fees from international players.
Various guises of this concept have come and passed but the misfortune that befell former Shamrock Rovers defender and three-times capped Ireland international Jacko McDonagh prompted the current committee to form and press their case for financial support.
That Monday’s launch was held at FAI headquarters suggested unity of purpose and all agreed the necessity of cooperation with the IPFBA and Players (FAI) for this venture to succeed.
The group, led by Chairman Harry McCue, contend they are an outlier to other sports and require assistance from within the game to prosper.
Though reluctant to divulge details of proposals, it’s understood funding mechanisms being explored include a small percentage of net profits from senior men’s and two senior women’s internationals, tariffs on tickets for glamour friendlies and a cut of all fines imposed on national league clubs.
“The one that got me was the friendly last July between Manchester United and Athletic Bilbao,” asserted Stephen McGuinness, secretary of the PFAI.
“This was in our national stadium on a League of Ireland weekend so we wondered what Irish football was getting from this? I would have liked to see something from what the fans paid for tickets distributed to our game.
“It’s great that the FAI covers funeral expenses for former internationals but there’s nothing for
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