Aodhán Ó Ríordáin (Dublin Bay North, Labour) | Oireachtas source

I appreciate that. The general point is that if one thinks about where football is, its interaction with the education system is minimal compared to other codes. There is greater energy and atmosphere around the League of Ireland than there has been for a number of years. I look forward to going to Dalymount Park on Friday evening to support Bohemian FC. The infrastructure around the League of Ireland is not perfect. It is only five years since the women's team effectively went on strike because of the lack of respect it was getting from within the association. We also know of the all controversies that have taken place heretofore.

Football is so important and so powerful. We have such diverse senior teams in women's and men's sides representing this country. A Traveller woman plays for the Irish women's team and a number of lads with various ethnic backgrounds play for the senior men's team. This is an exciting time for Irish football. The issue really is that we grab that and invest in a different way than with the big prize of hosting a big tournament, the benefits of which are unknown.

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