No new Uefa cash injection for FAI

It has emerged that there is no new cash windfall for Irish football in Uefa funding announced today, because a tranche of future payments from European football’s governing body had been drawn down in advance by the FAI in 2018.

Uefa has released €236.5m to help its 55 member associations meet the challenges of Covid-19 and “rebuild football” in their countries. That works out at €4.3m for each association but the FAI does not stand to benefit because the previous regime in Abbotstown drew down advance payments from the funding programme which Uefa is now redeploying in response to the huge financial problems the game is experiencing as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.