Sporting Fingal sponsorship deal provokes council row [Archive]

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monkey9

27/12/2009, 5:44 PM

From today's Sunday Tribune

Mark Hilliard

Sporting Fingal players celebrate in the dressing room with the trophy after winning the Ford FAI Cup final last month
FINGAL County Council is to be asked to debate its relationship with the football club Sporting Fingal following a heated exchange over funding.

Concerns have grown over the council's role in supporting the club, of which it owns a 26% share, although council officials have strongly denied that it is funding the club.

County manager David O'Connor said he "took grave exception" to suggestions he had given misleading information in relation to questions about the council's financial involvement with Sporting Fingal.

A motion has now been tabled for January's council meeting, requesting further discussion on the subject.

The majority stakeholder in Sporting Fingal is Gerry Gannon, whose Gannon Homes and K Club companies have not escaped the financial impact of the recession.

It is also sponsored by Anglo Irish Bank which, although nationalised, refused to comment on what financial relationship it has with the club when contacted by the Sunday Tribune.

During a meeting of Fingal County Council this month, councillors heard of a public perception that the local authority played a role in funding the football team's operations.

Despite efforts to contact the club, no one was available for comment.

Sporting Fingal has enjoyed considerable success since its foundation two years ago – in particular by capturing the Ford FAI Cup this season.

Fingal County Council, which helped establish the club with the assistance of private backing, said it had put no money into running it and never would, and said it was simply involved for the benefit of the community.

However, Cllr Clare Daly, who said there were many other sporting organisations in Fingal who believed they had not received the same level of attention, asked a number of questions relating to finances.

"I think people have some very genuine questions. If the council isn't giving the money and if the council has not given any staff resources, well what are we giving for our 26% of the shareholding?" she said at the last council meeting.

"Clearly when [a soccer club is] starting off and experimenting and developing a base, [it cannot be] funded by its fan base or by ticket receipts.

"When names like Gerry Gannon and Anglo Irish Bank [invest in the club] a lot of other sports organisations are being asked what's being invested in them.

"I have to say I don't really accept the answers to the questions, that we don't put in any money and we don't put in any staff. That is not what I have seen. I think we have put huge resources into this, and we should say that because we have."

The county manager replied that no money was put into the club except for €7,000 to fund transport for local clubs and poster printing. He said that any staff working at the club did so as volunteers.

A debate on theissue has been tabled for January's meeting.

December 27, 2009

SligoBrewer

27/12/2009, 6:31 PM

Non story in effect.

total hoofball

27/12/2009, 7:26 PM

Non story in effect.

How on earth is it a non-story that the only club in the LOI increasing their spending in 2010 is by-proxy funded by the taxpayer?

The Lep

27/12/2009, 10:29 PM

They are on the same budget as last year and its not from council funds.
Clare daly hasnt a clue and should be more concerned about more pressing issues in her constituancy.

Old news which has been posted over and over again and will get the same old response from the same old posters.

Mr_Parker

27/12/2009, 10:31 PM

Council minutes make interesting reading.

http://search.fingalcoco.ie/search?q=%22sporting+fingal%22&btnG=Search&entqr=0&sort=date%3AD%3AL%3Ad1&output=xml_no_dtd&client=default_frontend&ud=1&oe=UTF-8&ie=UTF-8&proxystylesheet=default_frontend&site=default_collection

Mr A

27/12/2009, 10:37 PM

So what happens after the five years worth of agreed funding are up I wonder?

The Lep

27/12/2009, 10:39 PM

As i said, same old posts. Thats already been posted on the boards.

The Lep

27/12/2009, 10:40 PM

So what happens after the five years worth of agreed funding are up I wonder?

We will work off the prize money for winning the europa cup :D

de bowez

27/12/2009, 11:12 PM

Clare daly hasnt a clue and should be more concerned about more pressing issues in her constituancy.

I think thats her point. If the council werent spending all their time on the club and finding volunteers etc they could do that.

blackholesun

28/12/2009, 11:17 AM

>Anglo Irish Bank which, although nationalised, refused to comment on what financial relationship it has with the club when contacted by the Sunday Tribune.

>Despite efforts to contact the club, no one was available for comment.

All very murky if you ask me.

Following the recent PrimeTime revelations, any councillor in the country will surely be nervous about there council being linked to Anglo in any way!

bhs

Hairy Bowsie

28/12/2009, 11:36 AM

So nationalisied Anglo Irish Bank which is being propped up by the tax payer is propping up Franchise, thats a serious story, how it can be deemed a "non story" is ridiculous.

Question for fans of other clubs, how many of you would like some government funding for your club?

paudie

28/12/2009, 5:43 PM

seemed a bit of a non story to me. No actual figures of money "pumped" into SF if any.

total hoofball

28/12/2009, 6:27 PM

Lots of semi states / public bodies sponsor things - ESB and the basketball, Bord Gais used to sponsor the LoI etc. This is not news, and Anglo have been involved in SF since day one. There is a legitimate question over whether its a luxury FCC can afford at the moment, but there is nothing wrong in theory with this.

We all do in terms of Capital Grants and the players tax breaks. Rovers, Waterford, Fingal, Shels and Derry all play in stadia in partnership with local authorites.

It really is a non-story.

If only it was that innocent...

Anglo Irish Banks 'involvement' with Sporting Fingal was never a conventional sponsorship from day one. Sporting Fingal's backer Gerry Gannon has been one of Anglo's high profile partners during the property bubble insanity (see Meet the Bankers last week on RTE) and Gannon has had lets say an 'interesting' relationship with Fingal County Council over a number of years with has resulted in many questionable developments granted planning by the council. The perception by many people living here in Fingal is that Gannon and Anglo's involvement with Sporting Fingal was a soft way to help Gannon get re-zoning for land and development from the Council. Gannon pulled off a similar, albeit a smaller scale 'investment' with Malahide United and made a killing out of the resulting development. Regarding direct funding from Fingal County Council, the council should show Sporting Fingal's figures at the forthcoming meeting in January if they have nothing to hide but what worries me more is if Gannon cannot fund Sporting Fingal anymore the Council as significant stakeholders in the club will be on the hook for paying players wages.

On the grand scale of things the initial premise and motivations behind Gannon and Anglo's involvement with Sporting Fingal in 2008 is relatively minor at this particular moment in time. Anglo Irish Bank is now nationalised and Gannon is strongly rumoured to be broke. The major question is, are Anglo Irish Bank (i.e. the taxpayer, you and I) funding or loaning Gerry Gannon the money to run Sporting Fingal? This is being speculated and this is the question that Fingal County Council must answer and they must show where Gannon is getting the money from because there is no way the taxpayer should be on the hook for anything going tits up with any LOI club.

CSFShels

28/12/2009, 7:04 PM

and should be more concerned about more pressing issues in her constituancy.
Oh yeah, because Clare Daly is a real head in the sand type politician. If taxpayers money is being invested in Sporting Fingal then this is a pressing issue, I don't want my tax going towards your club. And don't act all wise, you've no more idea of whats gone on behind the scenes than I do.

pineapple stu

28/12/2009, 7:21 PM

If taxpayers money is being invested in Sporting Fingal then this is a pressing issue, I don't want my tax going towards your club.
Aren't councils funded by rates, not taxes?

Also, whatever the ins and outs of the story, it's just impractical to say what you do and don't want your tax (or rate) money spent on. I don't want it spend on pointless tribunals, but I've no real choice. Even as BYCTWD pointed out, all clubs benefit from government grants, even though I mightn't want a rival club to get a new stand, for example. That's just life.

Edit - or are you taking the Anglo sponsorship as tax-payers' money?

SligoBrewer

28/12/2009, 7:49 PM

Aren't councils funded by rates, not taxes?

Edit - or are you taking the Anglo sponsorship as tax-payers' money?

Well bin tax...

The Lep

28/12/2009, 8:19 PM

Oh yeah, because Clare Daly is a real head in the sand type politician. If taxpayers money is being invested in Sporting Fingal then this is a pressing issue, I don't want my tax going towards your club. And don't act all wise, you've no more idea of whats gone on behind the scenes than I do.

You dont pay tax :D
"you've no more idea of whats gone on behind the scenes than I do"

You dont know me or my involvent enough to make that comment :rolleyes:.

I wouldnt be too concerned about what clare daly brings up at a council meetings.

The Lep

28/12/2009, 8:22 PM

I think thats her point. If the council werent spending all their time on the club and finding volunteers etc they could do that.

They are not though.

dcfcsteve

28/12/2009, 9:22 PM

We all do in terms of Capital Grants and the players tax breaks. Rovers, Waterford, Fingal, Shels and Derry all play in stadia in partnership with local authorites.

I wouldn't describe being tenants, as is the case with City, as having a "partnership".

It really is a non-story.

Time will tell. But I suspect there's more to come out on all of this.

LeixlipRed

28/12/2009, 9:41 PM

Nothing to see here, move along.

CSFShels

29/12/2009, 1:22 AM

You dont pay tax :D
"you've no more idea of whats gone on behind the scenes than I do"

You dont know me or my involvent enough to make that comment :rolleyes:.

I wouldnt be too concerned about what clare daly brings up at a council meetings.
So basically you've just followed up your lack of knowledge on the topic.

Buile Shuibhne

29/12/2009, 10:14 AM

Rovers, Waterford, Fingal, Shels and Derry all play in stadia in partnership with local authorites. [QUOTE]

[QUOTE=BYCTWD;1298011]I live in the Corpo area and I don't particularly like the fact that they are giving you a stadium rent free. But thats life. We should be encouraging clubs to build alliances with their respective councils, like Shels did.

Shels have no partnership or alliance with Dublin City Council in relation to Tolka Park.

weecountyman

29/12/2009, 11:06 AM

It might be a way forward for clubs if they go into a tenancy arrangement with local councils (ie get bought out or subsidised), then again it'd mean another round of overpaying players and bankruptcies before long.

The continental model, however, can work in Ireland, but it would mean all sports coming under each local council's protection. Can't see the GAA and Rugby boys getting pulled into that!

CSFShels

29/12/2009, 11:14 AM

They own it, so I'm assuming there has to be some form of relationship....
Ossie Kilkenny owns it.

The Lep

29/12/2009, 11:15 AM

So basically you've just followed up your lack of knowledge on the topic.

What in santa's name are you on about?

CSFShels

29/12/2009, 11:17 AM

What in santa's name are you on about?
The fact that you backed up absolutely nothing in relation to having a clue on this matter.

The Lep

29/12/2009, 11:53 AM

Does everything need to be broken down and explained to you bit by bit?

CSFShels

29/12/2009, 2:26 PM

Does everything need to be broken down and explained to you bit by bit?
No, just if you make a point, back it up. Don't just state something to be untrue, and provide no evidence of why that is so. I'm pretty sure you've no extra info than I do, I'm just going on that newspaper article, which may or may not be true, what are you going on?

RoversInn

29/12/2009, 4:00 PM

We will work off the prize money for winning the europa cup :D

You'll break another record then.

The Lowest ever attendence at a Europa League game will go nicely with your lowest FAI Cup semi final attendence. :D

CSFShels

29/12/2009, 4:16 PM

On the basis you clearly don't even know who owns your teams stadium, you have kind of trampled all over your own point there.... :rolleyes:
Not really, DCC own it, yet Ossie Kilkenny is able to rezone it? Think theres alot more to that situation then you're letting on. Also if you read what I said, I was actually doing the opposite to claiming to be massively educated on the business dealings on the non-football side of the club, I'm not of the same breed of these Rovers fans who reckon they're oracle of football now that they're doing things right for a change.

Lamper.sffc

29/12/2009, 6:47 PM

Not really, DCC own it, yet Ossie Kilkenny is able to rezone it? Think theres alot more to that situation then you're letting on. Also if you read what I said, I was actually doing the opposite to claiming to be massively educated on the business dealings on the non-football side of the club, I'm not of the same breed of these Rovers fans who reckon they're oracle of football now that they're doing things right for a change.

Now thats hilarious.:D

CSFShels

29/12/2009, 8:25 PM

Now thats hilarious.:D
Not really, I don't think Shels are a model club to follow or anything like that. Glad to have humoured you though.

Macy

29/12/2009, 10:10 PM

Aren't councils funded by rates, not taxes?

I think it was over 40% exchequer funding back when they were creaming development levies, so I'd guess it's probably getting towards 50-50 these days.

A story involving county council officials, property developers and banks deserves full investigation imo. Or have people missed who fooked up the country?

thischarmingman

30/12/2009, 3:33 PM

What in santa's name are you on about?

"Great Odin's raven!"

http://s.bebo.com/app-image/7935753447/5411656627/PROFILE/i.quizzaz.com/img/q/u/08/04/02/Anchorman2.jpg

gufct

30/12/2009, 4:04 PM

Anglos Sponsorship was a six figure sum per season for the sleeves of the Jerseys and Gerry Gannon told them how much they were going to pay. I cant believe that this sponsorship was renewed this season if it was some embarrasing questions for the government run board of Anglo.

Longfordian

30/12/2009, 4:13 PM

gufct

30/12/2009, 4:19 PM

Their sponsorship deals did seem abnormally high when announced initially. What was Keelings? Something like 200K per season?. Gerry Gannon guaranteeing up to 500k a year I think. It's all a bit strange, they'd never shown any great love of the domestic game before as far as I'm aware.

Must have been a huge development that was being applied for at the time. Did keelings sell any land to Gannon wondering out loud surely no collusion between Developers,Bankers,Local Council Officals and Politicians.:eek:

total hoofball

30/12/2009, 5:34 PM

I can't agree with that. FCC don't have to 'prove' anything about the wealth of a private citizen.

There are a lot of conspiracy theories floating around with no basis in any actual reality.

If the taxpayer is a liable for paying player wages should Gannon's finances dry up then absolutely yes FFC should disclose the origin of finances to fund the club, if it was Bohs or anyone else it wouldn't be anyone's business as the taxpayer wouldn't be on the hook, FCC should have done due dilligence when setting the club up with Gannon so it shouldn't be a problem for them to reveal that everything is above board.

And I don't know where you're getting 'conspiracy theory' idea from. Gannon has signed all of his own properties into his wifes name and he has ran out of money to run the K club and has left the bills with Smurfit. If he has no money for the upkeep of the K Club (a massive personal investment of his own) where the hell is he getting the money to fund a football club that is ultimately FCC's baby? There is serious risk of this club going bang this year due to their depedency on the flow of Gannon's or whoevers money.

Smurfit silent over partner's K Club support

Tycoon now shouldering entire costs of resort

By NIAMH HORAN EXCLUSIVE

Sunday December 06 2009

Multi-MILLIONAIRE Dr Michael Smurfit has refused to comment on suggestions he made that his business partner -- leading property developer Gerry Gannon (http://www.independent.ie/topics/Gerry+Gannon) -- is not currently contributing to the upkeep of the prestigious K Club in Co Kildare (http://www.independent.ie/topics/County+Kildare).

continued - http://www.independent.ie/national-news/smurfit-silent-over-partners--k-club-support-1965698.html

SligoBrewer

30/12/2009, 5:39 PM

I can't edit my previous post.

So there is something in this.. Hmmm.

The Lep

31/12/2009, 1:43 AM

Buile Shuibhne

31/12/2009, 8:05 AM

And I don't know where you're getting 'conspiracy theory' idea from. Gannon has signed all of his own properties into his wifes name and he has ran out of money to run the K club and has left the bills with Smurfit. If he has no money for the upkeep of the K Club (a massive personal investment of his own) where the hell is he getting the money to fund a football club that is ultimately FCC's baby? There is serious risk of this club going bang this year due to their depedency on the flow of Gannon's or whoevers money.

Yes but what about all those huge landbanks in County Fingal that GG is sitting on, awaiting rezoning and planning permission? Though granted, with the recession they're not much help to him at the moment.

Mr_Parker

31/12/2009, 9:05 AM

Its still a non story. Its the same old anti-Sporting Fingal heads scrapping the barrel to have a pop and trying to make something out of nothing .
Its good to see the begrudgery still in play with some fans of the other clubs.
At this rate, it looks like Sporting Fingal will dominate the boards next season as you would rather talk about us than talk about your own little clubs. Nothing much to talk about at home so you think of something trivial or something un-original to post .
Lads/Ladies, at least wait until a proper juicey story pops up and the fai gets involved before exaggerating what was said in a council meeting .
HAPPY NEW YEAR.
:D

Is it wrong for others to want to be assured of a level playing field?

pineapple stu

31/12/2009, 10:51 AM

Its still a non story. Its the same old anti-Sporting Fingal heads scrapping the barrel to have a pop and trying to make something out of nothing .
Its good to see the begrudgery still in play with some fans of the other clubs.
At this rate, it looks like Sporting Fingal will dominate the boards next season as you would rather talk about us than talk about your own little clubs. Nothing much to talk about at home so you think of something trivial or something un-original to post .
Lads/Ladies, at least wait until a proper juicey story pops up and the fai gets involved before exaggerating what was said in a council meeting .
HAPPY NEW YEAR.
:D
Lep - we're all allowed talk about each others' clubs. You in particular have been told this a number of times. If nothing happens, nothing happens. However, it's clearly a story relating to a LoI side. If you don't want to talk about it, fine, but don't clog up the thread with crap about begrudgery and the like. Others may want to talk about the article maturely.

The Lep

31/12/2009, 11:06 AM

SligoBrewer

31/12/2009, 11:32 AM

Of course stu but its a non story that is being made into more than what it is through assumptions and accussations and petty jelousy at our sponsorship.
One post doesnt clog up a thread stu.
Mr Parker
is it wrong for others to want to be assured of a level playing field?

What do you want for all the clubs to have the same amount of sponsorship ? What Sporting gets through sponsorship has no bearing on other clubs and its up to them to get the best sponsorship possible for themselves.

You don't get it though. Why would Fingal attract such high levels of sponsorship? It's not like they have the attractiveness of Shams or Bohs as you won't be on TV that much, have no fanbase, etc. etc. Such sponsorship seems to be the equivalent of a "political donation" to Fingal Co. Co. by Gannon and his cronies.

pineapple stu

31/12/2009, 11:35 AM

One post doesnt clog up a thread stu.
Most of your posts in this thread have been on the same line. Give it a break.

tiktok

31/12/2009, 11:36 AM

At this rate, it looks like Sporting Fingal will dominate the boards next season as you would rather talk about us than talk about your own little clubs. Nothing much to talk about at home so you think of something trivial or something un-original to post

Dominate the boards? Little clubs?
Keep that up, it'll make it all the funnier when you do a Dublin City.

The story is interesting, but you clearly need to look a bit further than your own 'home' for a bit of news if you think this incident would even cause a decent sized ripple in the cesspool that is the LoI.

I'm a Cork City fan, come back and try to impress us when you have the revenue commisioners chasing you, Malta declaring war on you, a Holy Trinity to match Coughlan-Collins-Drew and the captain of your club begging for busfare on the radio.
You're in the ha'penny place at the moment, amateurs!

The Lep

31/12/2009, 11:40 AM

Most of your posts in this thread have been on the same line. Give it a break.

Give it a break?
It a discussion board and ive a right to put my point across when its my club thats been mentioned. It works both ways stu.

pineapple stu

31/12/2009, 11:55 AM

Absolutely you do. Maybe you should start doing it rather than slagging everyone who disagrees with you, calling them jealous little club fans?

Duffman

31/12/2009, 12:40 PM

Sporting Fingal will dominate the boards next season as you would rather talk about us than talk about your own little clubs

Thanks, I really needed a laugh there