FAI are good for Aviva Stadium money, IRFU delegates told
That the well-attended affair was an upbeat one was no surprise given Ireland’s Grand Slam victory, Leinster’s Heineken Cup heroics, Munster’s success in the Magners League and a first win for Ireland A in the Churchill Cup.
The announcement of a €1.93million profit in the height of the nation’s economic meltdown and just 12 months after reporting a loss of €98,083 only served to increase the giddiness.
This was particularly the case as the Union had budgeted for a deficit for the 2008/2009 season.
The question in relation to the FAI was the one faintly discordant note of the meeting but honorary treasurer Tom Grace moved to quell any fears in that regard.
A joint venture – Lansdowne Road Stadium Development Company – was established at the outset of negotiations to redevelop the old stadium, with members from both organisations represented.
According to Grace, the constant feedback is that there is no issue with regard to payments being made. Most importantly, there are no outstanding payments.
“We have three directors on the stadium committee and we have received consistent assurances that the stadium committee is solvent” the treasurer explained.
“The FAI and the IRFU have to make their payments at the same time. All payments due by the IRFU have been paid and all payments due to the FAI have been paid.”
To date the redevelopment has cost €27m and with a further €78m to be contributed by the IRFU and €38m in the bank, the Union will go into debt for the first time in many years.
It had been projected that this situation would only persist for four years Grace informed delegates. The treasurer added that estimates for the future depended on sensible management and specifically on the stadium being completed on time and on budget.
Chief executive Philip Browne predicted that the Aviva Stadium would be “the financial engine for Irish rugby for the foreseeable future and has been designed to maximise commercial activity both during event days and non-event days”.
The IRFU is tied into a series of revenue-generating deals which mean that any return to Croke Park is out of the question due to in-built financial consequences in those deals.
“The nature of the various commercial and legal agreements underpinning this development require that once the stadium is operational all our international fixtures will be played at the venue” said Browne in his report.
“Otherwise the IRFU will be the subject of significant financial penalties.
“This rules out the use of Croke Park for occasional fixture. There will be an inevitable drop in capacity from 82,000 at Croke Park to 50,000 when we return to Aviva Stadium.
“The Union will be reviewing how to deal with this drop in capacity in terms of future ticket allocations in the Aviva Stadium.”
The status of the club game came up for brief discussion, with a question coming from the floor asking if the AIB League was now a fourth tier following the development of an the ‘A’ tier at provincial level. Director of rugby Eddie Wigglesworth vehemently rejected the notion.
“There is no fourth tier. The AIB League is the premier competition of the domestic game and it doesn’t do it any good to be referring to it as a third tier or a fourth tier. It’s at the top end of the domestic game, not a layer in the system.”
Figures revealed an increased participation at all levels from 128,281 to 159,263 but the Union must continue to work hard at a time when rugby’s stock in Ireland has never been healthier.
“The success of our national and provincial teams has been felt by our clubs who have witnessed a surge in the number of mini (and) youth players.
“The challenge for the Union is not in recruiting players but ensuring that there is an appropriate number of club volunteers and appropriate facilities that allow a quality game environment to exist for these new participants.”
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