Kingdom
08/01/2020, 3:28 PM
If you can watch the world’s best (Premier League) on the TV, why would you go down the road to watch what are essentially semi pros duke it out?
**Cough, splutter, MLS, Toronto, Vancouver, cough, splutter, Austrian Bundesliga, Salzburg, cough, splutter** it's a lazy example.
It will no doubt be dismissed as something like a “terrible yank idea,” but if I won the lotto I’d attempt to have a Dublin-based team compete in the Scottish league or preferably start at the bottom of the English system and work its way up.
The top Welsh teams play in England, and I appreciate Ireland is not part of Britain, but there are precedents for leagues involving multiple countries.
What UEFA examples do you have in Men's football?
We have three Canadian teams in MLS for example. Having a Dublin-based team playing against higher level opposition on a regular basis, would provide a place for a core of our national team players to compete regularly at a high level, while offering supporters a chance to attend elite matches live without leaving the country.
And as soon as a more attractive franchise opens up, the MLS will tell your lads to "do one" too. A Dublin-based team will have to earn it's place through the English system, just like every other club that wishes to play in the PL. I also think that you're being very naive to suggest that Dynamo Dublin vs Burnley could be considered any more elite, than Dundalk vs Bohs. After all, we've seen Jeff and Robbie play **** in Dublin plenty of times in a green shirt, without watching them do it in a blue jersey or a claret one.
The League of Ireland will never convince “barstoolers” to reject Man Utd, Liverpool, etc. Wrong.
It's funny that you mention united, because I know 3 die-hard United fans who no longer support united, but attend Bohs, Rovers and Shels in the past 18 months.
It can happen, has happened, and will continue to happen. Irish people eventually understand that these clubs do not care about their own local supporters, nevermind the Irish 'fans' who travel for hours for a ****up. people are commodities to be used in English football at the "elite" level. Folks who would have constantly travelled realise that the LoI is an affordable alternative to the ****up events that going abroad to watch united, liverpool etc are.
Examples are there for all to see. I'm a late convert to following (consistently) a LoI club. I've always liked Bohs, going back to when I started secondary school, when a mate of mine, his brother played against Bohs in the cup, and we went to Dalyer. Then another mate, his brother started to play for Bohs. I'd always try to go to a couple of games but Friday nights never suited me. I've been a consistent Ireland attendee from 14 - by myself - but I go to more LoI games than I do Ireland matches now, because it is more enjoyable.
Anyone who tries to convince me that the football played this decade at Ireland games by Irish players is of significant higher standard than the best LoI players in the same period is on a no-sell.
A Kilnamanagh based Pats supporters group grew out of nowhere when we were in 2nd year in secondary school. LoI clubs are more relevant in terms of schoolboy clubs than ever before, and not just because of the Nat underage leagues, but because of the work done by community officers in clubs.
The real problem is finance and facilities. It's not quite a build it and they will come, but facilities do mean a lot. I'm a Terrace man. I love the terraces and always have. But I'm also disabled now, and I simply can't stand long enough at football games on a regular basis. Standing in the ****ing rain isn't quite a death sentence for me, but it is a problem. But this is referencing facilities, when clubs in the main can't give players a full year contract, nevermind multiple year contracts. Bums on seats, in the short-term means more money to offer proper contracts, which means transfer fees when the bigger clubs come knocking - as it should - and then hopefully this country can have a mindset change and start going down the municipal stadium/facility route like all normal countries in EUrope.
There is a horrid vicious circle in Irish football. We need the clubs getting into the local schools to compete with and offer an alternative to the GAA. But most club officials are either volunteers or have jobs, and same for the players and coaches.
To rectify that we either need investment privately into clubs, or funding from govt. It will take a generation to fully break the trend of people travelling from Ireland to watch games in another country, but it can happen. The more relevant our clubs become to kids, and Bohs are doing a great job with this, then the better chance of holding onto them later on in life. Friday night I think is a killer - particularly for that bracket of age where people are either going straight from work out on the lash, or going home from college. Sat evening for me feels a no-brainer, but I understand this hasn't worked in the past.
Under this model, there would still be a place for the League of Ireland, more in terms of a development league to feed that Dublin team.
That's what every league in Europe is, to the big 4 of Spain, Eng, Ger and Ita.
Before you lose your minds, it’s not going to happen, so relax !
Thankfully.
**Cough, splutter, MLS, Toronto, Vancouver, cough, splutter, Austrian Bundesliga, Salzburg, cough, splutter** it's a lazy example.
It will no doubt be dismissed as something like a “terrible yank idea,” but if I won the lotto I’d attempt to have a Dublin-based team compete in the Scottish league or preferably start at the bottom of the English system and work its way up.
The top Welsh teams play in England, and I appreciate Ireland is not part of Britain, but there are precedents for leagues involving multiple countries.
What UEFA examples do you have in Men's football?
We have three Canadian teams in MLS for example. Having a Dublin-based team playing against higher level opposition on a regular basis, would provide a place for a core of our national team players to compete regularly at a high level, while offering supporters a chance to attend elite matches live without leaving the country.
And as soon as a more attractive franchise opens up, the MLS will tell your lads to "do one" too. A Dublin-based team will have to earn it's place through the English system, just like every other club that wishes to play in the PL. I also think that you're being very naive to suggest that Dynamo Dublin vs Burnley could be considered any more elite, than Dundalk vs Bohs. After all, we've seen Jeff and Robbie play **** in Dublin plenty of times in a green shirt, without watching them do it in a blue jersey or a claret one.
The League of Ireland will never convince “barstoolers” to reject Man Utd, Liverpool, etc. Wrong.
It's funny that you mention united, because I know 3 die-hard United fans who no longer support united, but attend Bohs, Rovers and Shels in the past 18 months.
It can happen, has happened, and will continue to happen. Irish people eventually understand that these clubs do not care about their own local supporters, nevermind the Irish 'fans' who travel for hours for a ****up. people are commodities to be used in English football at the "elite" level. Folks who would have constantly travelled realise that the LoI is an affordable alternative to the ****up events that going abroad to watch united, liverpool etc are.
Examples are there for all to see. I'm a late convert to following (consistently) a LoI club. I've always liked Bohs, going back to when I started secondary school, when a mate of mine, his brother played against Bohs in the cup, and we went to Dalyer. Then another mate, his brother started to play for Bohs. I'd always try to go to a couple of games but Friday nights never suited me. I've been a consistent Ireland attendee from 14 - by myself - but I go to more LoI games than I do Ireland matches now, because it is more enjoyable.
Anyone who tries to convince me that the football played this decade at Ireland games by Irish players is of significant higher standard than the best LoI players in the same period is on a no-sell.
A Kilnamanagh based Pats supporters group grew out of nowhere when we were in 2nd year in secondary school. LoI clubs are more relevant in terms of schoolboy clubs than ever before, and not just because of the Nat underage leagues, but because of the work done by community officers in clubs.
The real problem is finance and facilities. It's not quite a build it and they will come, but facilities do mean a lot. I'm a Terrace man. I love the terraces and always have. But I'm also disabled now, and I simply can't stand long enough at football games on a regular basis. Standing in the ****ing rain isn't quite a death sentence for me, but it is a problem. But this is referencing facilities, when clubs in the main can't give players a full year contract, nevermind multiple year contracts. Bums on seats, in the short-term means more money to offer proper contracts, which means transfer fees when the bigger clubs come knocking - as it should - and then hopefully this country can have a mindset change and start going down the municipal stadium/facility route like all normal countries in EUrope.
There is a horrid vicious circle in Irish football. We need the clubs getting into the local schools to compete with and offer an alternative to the GAA. But most club officials are either volunteers or have jobs, and same for the players and coaches.
To rectify that we either need investment privately into clubs, or funding from govt. It will take a generation to fully break the trend of people travelling from Ireland to watch games in another country, but it can happen. The more relevant our clubs become to kids, and Bohs are doing a great job with this, then the better chance of holding onto them later on in life. Friday night I think is a killer - particularly for that bracket of age where people are either going straight from work out on the lash, or going home from college. Sat evening for me feels a no-brainer, but I understand this hasn't worked in the past.
Under this model, there would still be a place for the League of Ireland, more in terms of a development league to feed that Dublin team.
That's what every league in Europe is, to the big 4 of Spain, Eng, Ger and Ita.
Before you lose your minds, it’s not going to happen, so relax !
Thankfully.