FAI and IRFU chiefs quizzed on Aviva deal in Leinster House

THE FAI and IRFU were yesterday forced to defend their agreement with Aviva that ties them to an exclusive playing deal at the redeveloped Lansdowne Road for 10 years and rules out the prospect of any games at Croke Park.

The Ballsbridge venue will be open for business in the middle of next year and, though it’s unveiling is eagerly awaited, the Aviva Stadium will cater for approximately 30,000 spectators less than the GAA’s headquarters.

Philip Browne, chief executive of the IRFU, and his FAI counterpart, John Delaney, were pressed on that issue by a cross-party selection of politicians at an Oireachtas Joint Committee on Arts, Sport, Tourism, Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs yesterday.