Mark Ward (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein)
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7. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment to set out the level of funding allocated to League of Ireland clubs for academies; if this funding will be increased in budget 2026; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [52515/25]

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I ask the Minister to set out the level of funding allocated to League of Ireland clubs for academies and to state whether such funding will be increased in the budget. Sinn Féin very much supports the Global Findings Report recommendations produced by Double Pass as part of its audit of the League of Ireland academy system. We urge the Government to commit significant funding to same, as promised in the programme for Government. Separately, has the Minister had any communication with the FAI or the LMETB in relation to the youth training programme being run out of Oriel Park which is to cease at the end of the month? I do not think this is the-----

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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Sorry, what question are we on?

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Tá brón orm. Táimid ar Ceist Uimh. 7.

Conor Sheehan (Limerick City, Labour)
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Deputy Ó Murchú is substituting for Deputy Ward on Question No. 7.

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Within the context of the question, I will ask a supplementary question about a training programme in Dundalk.

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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As outlined in my reply to an earlier question, the operation of the League of Ireland and its academies is fundamentally a matter for the Football Association of Ireland which, like all national governing bodies of sport, is an independent, autonomous body responsible for the organisation and development of its own sport.

At present, no specific funding is allocated for League of Ireland academies. However, the programme for Government commits to exploring new mechanisms for the creation of football academies. An additional funding grant of €1 million, which was provided by my Department to the FAI, enabled it to produce the recently published League of Ireland Global Findings Report. The funding also enabled the appointment by the FAI of an academies administrator to support the development of new academy programmes and to track their impact. The Global Findings Report benchmarks Irish football academies against international standards based on an audit of existing academy structures and needs. My Department continues to engage with the FAI regarding this report. A pre-budget submission focusing on academies has recently been submitted to me by the FAI. This will be given due consideration, taking account of the range of requests across the sports sector for additional support and, ultimately, the outcome of the budget process.

While the FAI has sought significant State funding to support its academies, it is important to note that sizable financial support has been directed to the FAI and to football more generally over recent years. Over €75 million in State funding was allocated to the FAI between 2019 and 2024, including €30.2 million specifically to support football development and promote participation in football by young people, with the balance in funding comprising Covid-specific and energy supports. Furthermore, significant capital funding has been granted to football projects around the country in recent years, including €48.9 million to FAI-endorsed football stadium projects at Finn Harps, Dalymount Park, Sligo Rovers and Wexford FC under the 2024 round of the large-scale sports infrastructure fund, LSSIF, and €76 million to support the development of grassroots football club facilities nationwide under the 2020 and 2023 rounds of the community sports facilities fund.

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I accept that we are not going to get an outline of what will be in the budget but I seek reassurance that there is still a commitment there. In fairness, the Department played a major role in the Global Findings Report being conducted. That report found there is an absolute necessity to provide significant funding for academies. We know the scenario in relation to professional football, the possibilities that exist and the need to make sure we have the necessary throughput of players. It is all about contact and professionalism but that can only happen if we have the funding.

I ask the Minister to outline as much as he can in relation to that commitment. I am not taking away from the financial commitment that has already been given in relation to the FAI. Deputy Joanna Byrne has spoken about the fact that we would all like to see the Irish team doing much better. At this moment in time, the League of Ireland is flying but also has some issues in relation to funding.

Has the Minister had contact with LMETB or the FAI in relation to the fact that the youth training programme which is run out of Oriel Park is to cease at the end of the month? There is obviously a lot of worry in relation to that. Indeed, SIPTU and many others have commented on it.

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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As I said to Deputy Byrne a while ago, and as Deputy Ó Murchú has acknowledged, the Government has played a role in terms of the supports it has provided to the FAI. We are operating on the basis of a memorandum of understanding, MOU. A significant amount of reform has happened already. Of the 163 recommendations or conditions, 159, or 98%, are either completed or phase 1 of them is completed. The financial situation in the FAI is still challenging. Since the new MOU was signed on 17 December 2024, State funding has been increased to €6 million for the period from 2024 to 2027. The bulk of this will go towards youth field development and grants which are aimed at the grassroots of the game. The MOU also contains 16 recommendations for the FAI, including completion of outstanding recommendations and conditions from the previous MOU, the maintenance of governance reforms introduced under the previous MOU, the provision of information and reports to Sport Ireland to facilitate oversight and a cascading governance reform to affiliates and grassroots. The last recommendation is really important and was also raised by members of the Oireachtas committee last week. We have to have a cascading effect of reform. While there has been quite a considerable amount of reform with regard to numbers at the FAI itself and so on, we now need to see the cascading effect down to into the grassroots, which I know the Deputy will support.

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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I am in complete agreement with the Minister. I do not think there is anyone out there who would not say that there is a need for a huge level of reform and that there is more to do in relation to the FAI, particularly in regard to governance. That goes without saying. In terms of the League of Ireland and grassroots football, we need to ensure the necessary supports are there. I ask the Minister to confirm that the commitment is still there in relation to the academies and the need for significant funding. We also need to see more funding for the LSSIF. Deputy Byrne spoke yesterday about the success of Drogheda United, Louth GAA and many others. The fund needs to be open to the likes of Oriel Park for the changes that are absolutely needed there. I ask the Minister to tell us whether he has had contact with LMETB and the FAI in relation to the absolutely frightening story that the youth training programme in Oriel Park is to cease at the end of the month. I do not think it is the first one.

A significant amount of the funding is meant to come from the ETB. It is just a matter of finding this information out. One SIPTU official said that he saw this as pulling up the supports for grassroots football. Will the Minister ensure that engagement happens in order to find out exactly what the story is in this regard and whether it can be rectified in any way?

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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I have not had any engagement with LMETB. The Department or the Minister of State, Deputy McConalogue, who unfortunately cannot be here today, may well have had some engagement with it. I am not sure about that but I can check afterwards. I do not disagree with what the Deputy said with regard to investment. Every single person who comes in for these questions on sport has a catalogue of things he or she wants implemented. It is not a couple of hundred million euro I would need, but rather a couple of hundred billion euro, which is not practical.

Acknowledgement should be given – at least the Deputy did so – that the report which highlighted the League of Ireland’s potential with regard to academies was funded by the State. At the moment, most of the operating costs are being funded by the State. The State entered into an MOU with the FAI in good faith in order to keep the organisation operable because we need an association that can govern football in Ireland and ensure we have teams that can represent the country at home and abroad with distinction. In recent years, that can has been carried by the State and it will be carried for another while. We cannot just glaze over that and say there is no investment; there is substantial investment in this area.

Ruairí Ó Murchú (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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Will the Minister ensure there is engagement with the FAI and the ETB on this matter? I would appreciate it if he could come back to me on that.