Fears for Irish football as club row kicks off

EUROPE’S richest soccer clubs want to put the boot into national football bodies.

Eighteen of the wealthiest clubs, including Manchester United, Liverpool, AC Milan and Real Madrid, are supporting a test case demanding that national associations pay players’ wages while they are on international duty.

World Cup mania could become a thing of the past for small countries like Ireland if a Belgian court rules in favour of the clubs.

However, the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) have taken the battle to the EU, enlisting the help of Ireland’s 13 MEPs and Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy.

FAI chief executive John Delaney warned the sport’s future was being jeopardised by the top clubs.

Along with contributing to the wages bill, the clubs want payment to continue for whatever time a player remains sidelined as a result of injuries sustained during an international.

“We could not survive such an earthquake,” said Mr Delaney, who wants the European Commission to take up their case.

The €24 million the FAI was putting into soccer this year at local level would be put at risk, he claimed.

Soccer has the highest adult participation rate (17%) of any team sport in Ireland, outstripping Gaelic games (13%).

Irish soccer has 450,000 people working on a voluntary basis and just 200 who are paid.

“If this goes through, it will be a case of the rich getting richer and the conveyer belt of players trained by us will not be coming because the ground work will dry up,” Mr Delaney said.

He revealed that if the FAI had to pay clubs for players on loan, and provide illness cover, it would cost €750,000 for each game the Irish team plays.

At present, they pay insurance to cover injuries.

Fianna Fáil MEP Eoin Ryan said soccer would not survive the bills that could result if the court rules in favour of the big clubs.

“Imagine the wage bill the FAI would have to honour if Ireland qualified for the European Championship or the World Cup? Basically, the FAI would have to pay club wages of international players for up to four weeks.”

Mr McCreevy, who met with the FAI in Brussels, said he was following the case with interest.

But it most likely would not be a matter for him but for Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes.

The G14 clubs, that represent 18 of Europe’s biggest sides, are supporting two cases where a Belgian and a French club are claiming compensation for players injured playing internationals.

The Belgian case involves Charleroi suing FIFA, the world governing body.

They told the court one of their star players, Abdelmajid Oulmers, was out for eight months after being injured playing for African national side Burkina Faso in November 2004.

They say this destroyed their chances of winning their domestic league.

A ruling is not expected before the World Cup this summer and the Belgian court is expected to refer the matter to the European Court of Justice.

The FAI wants the commission to make a submission on behalf of the smaller countries, arguing this is a matter of the common good, not just about money.