Athlone Town FC

Has there ever been a stranger outfit in Irish football. Athlone are the oldest Senior league club in the country.

The disconnect between the club and the community is quite stark, we are not a GAA town whatsoever, with some great "soccer people" here but they have been alienated by the club (or vice versa) for a very long time.

The current set up is tied to some Valeo Sports crowd with links in the US and Portugal, I'm from Athlone and that's pretty much the extent I know about this crowd.

Nobody seems to care enough to look into what it's all about, I've heard murmurs that the club have no ambitions or wishes to be promoted due to cost involved at Premier Division level, and given the disconnect between the local community and current management/board there's little appetite to develop this.

Last year club stalwart Micky O'Connor described Valeo Sports as the greatest thing to happen to Athlone, does anyone know who the hell they are?

Truly an enigma of a club at the moment. Their worst fears may come to pass, because of all the teams in the POs, I think Athlone can cause the 9th place PD side the most problems.

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Originally Posted by Strongbow10

I've heard murmurs that the club have no ambitions or wishes to be promoted due to cost involved at Premier Division level, and given the disconnect between the local community and current management/board there's little appetite to develop this.

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What extra costs are there at Premier level?
In a worst case scenario, can they just bobble along in the Premier on a First Division budget? Are they looking at bringing through players? If they somehow won the FAI Cup against all the odds, surely the owners would want the financial windfall?
The top clubs in Gibraltar of all places can recruit sensibly for a financial windfall. Cypriot clubs have gone reasonably well in European competitions as well.

Ongoings at the club remain an absolute mystery, even to locals. I couldn't even tell you who the coach is. You get the impression it's not a profit making venture. We don't develop our own players, we have the most beautiful kit this season, yet we are the only club in Ireland that have no interest in selling the thing to supporters, it's just not available.

It's a very strange mysterious setup. I know there was some kind of power struggle over ownership of the ground too previously and allegations of dodgy dealings (I emphasise the word allegations), the current executive have a knack of suing anyone who asks questions.

Who are Valeo? They are supposedly a non profit crowd from US, but who funds the whole enterprise? Genuinely curious.

So they don’t want promotion,not in it for profit and have no local interest or don’t want any! So of course they’re alot better than the majority of the league,real GLITW stuff!

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Originally Posted by joey B

So they don’t want promotion,not in it for profit and have no local interest or don’t want any! So of course they’re alot better than the majority of the league,real GLITW stuff!

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Its great, a new way of LoI madness - accidenatly competative, unintended promotion push, dont want to develop income streams or sign best local talent for buttons....I wish Dundalk could accidentaly get 8th place!!

Is Athlone still a member's club (in theory at least)?

Athlone have been a basket case for about a decade now hitting the ridiculousness of that infamous 2017 team with the 'dodgy' duo of Igors Labuts and Dragos Sfrijan and a collection of random Portuguese and Uruguayan players and other murmurings of skulduggery

Now in 2024 while being a better team in a bad First Division they have dumped the club's blue and black colours with a collection of a half-dozen yanks in men's and a number in their women's teams plus another couple of Europeans, do they emigrate from the US over to Athlone to play for expenses or if paid €200-€300 per week or is there some education link up?

From my research of Valeo FC they are certainly nowhere near any remote major players in US football, they are mysteriously local and are more of a private academy, strange that they would spend significant finances on effectively a transatlantic franchise in Athlone, they are not going to get US players sold by Athlone in the First Division to the European markets for 100k let alone 1m+ to make it viable

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Originally Posted by total hoofball

Athlone have been a basket case for about a decade now hitting the ridiculousness of that infamous 2017 team with the 'dodgy' duo of Igors Labuts and Dragos Sfrijan and a collection of random Portuguese and Uruguayan players and other murmurings of skulduggery

Now in 2024 while being a better team in a bad First Division they have dumped the club's blue and black colours with a collection of a half-dozen yanks in men's and a number in their women's teams plus another couple of Europeans, do they emigrate from the US over to Athlone to play for expenses or if paid €200-€300 per week or is there some education link up?

From my research of Valeo FC they are certainly nowhere near any remote major players in US football, they are mysteriously local and are more of a private academy, strange that they would spend significant finances on effectively a transatlantic franchise in Athlone, they are not going to get US players sold by Athlone in the First Division to the European markets for 100k let alone 1m+ to make it viable

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Id imagine they are studying in the college but it's a pure mystery to be honest. I know they charge underage players to train etc... In their under 14s upwards.

This Valeo crowd are very local in the US, it's an odd set up to be honest. Again, want to be very careful what's said.

I would gladly exchange wot Athlone have going on this season for our woes this season! Both clubs have a huge disconnect with the local community going back years now!

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Originally Posted by Martinho II

I would gladly exchange wot Athlone have going on this season for our woes this season! Both clubs have a huge disconnect with the local community going back years now!

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Athlone Town have been a nothing club for the best part of 20 years bad one good season under Roddy in 2013.

They've been involved in numerous scandals on and off the pitch and now nobody has a clue who or how they are run.

Longford Town have built a modern stadium that they own and owe nothing on, have won 3 national cups, played in Europe and have enjoyed numerous spells in the top flight out of a town with a far smaller population than Athlone. If you'd seriously swap all of that for one bad season I'd be absolutely amazed.

Well with the way things are going on and off the pitch I would be confident that this blip would be for more than one season imo.

I would imagine an extra 500k on top of first div costs. And likely relegation as your've still the smallest budget in the premier.

Income does go up, but not nearly enough. Would need about 300k of additional match day income and a further 200k of additional sponsorship.

At the other end of the scale, a very large investment over a longer period of time could pay for itself, with UEFA prizemoney and player sales.

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Originally Posted by LTFC

I would imagine an extra 500k on top of first div costs. And likely relegation as your've still the smallest budget in the premier.

Income does go up, but not nearly enough. Would need about 300k of additional match day income and a further 200k of additional sponsorship.

At the other end of the scale, a very large investment over a longer period of time could pay for itself, with UEFA prizemoney and player sales.

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I think this is a huge problem now for clubs like Longford and Athlone, if they go up they are on a hiding to nothing. Things were further exacerbated for Longford given they went up during Covid so they didn't get the financial boost of big away gates. Longford were sensible and didn't spend beyond their means so were ok when they came down and able to complete again (things gone a bit haywire since) but if a club go up and try to spend like mad to compete they could end up in serious bother

Interesting comments from Dan McDonnell on last night's LOI Central pod, alluding to Athlone Town and the ongoings there at the moment. Players on full time contracts in the PD last year signing on amateur terms with Athlone for this season apparently.

He didn't name the club or any names and sounded like he was at pains to say too much in case of getting himself into a spot of bother but the house of cards there will surely fall at some stage.

The likes of Dean Williams, Declan McDaid, JR Wilson, Kailin Barlow were all at FT clubs last year but now signed up at Athlone. Would love to know more about what's going on, but we may never find out.

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Originally Posted by De Town

Interesting comments from Dan McDonnell on last night's LOI Central pod, alluding to Athlone Town and the ongoings there at the moment. Players on full time contracts in the PD last year signing on amateur terms with Athlone for this season apparently.

He didn't name the club or any names and sounded like he was at pains to say too much in case of getting himself into a spot of bother but the house of cards there will surely fall at some stage.

The likes of Dean Williams, Declan McDaid, JR Wilson, Kailin Barlow were all at FT clubs last year but now signed up at Athlone. Would love to know more about what's going on, but we may never find out.

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'Amateur' terms like Darren Quigley back in the day with Bray Wanderers?

It's not the first time he's hinted at strange goings on there but if they have a fondness for suing people he's probably not got strong enough evidence to be more specific in public.

What's the benefit if they are paying out to players on amateur forms. Players have less security if money stops too. There is an onus on players not to break rules too. I think it was after Dundalk signed Jeff McNamara that the 'amateur player' loophole was closed and with transfer windows. That served a short term issue for DFC within the then rules but it's messy on all sorts of levels these days. They'd be better off trying the double contract method and spoof it.

They've been at it for a few years now.

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Originally Posted by Nesta99

What's the benefit if they are paying out to players on amateur forms. Players have less security if money stops too. There is an onus on players not to break rules too. I think it was after Dundalk signed Jeff McNamara that the 'amateur player' loophole was closed and with transfer windows. That served a short term issue for DFC within the then rules but it's messy on all sorts of levels these days. They'd be better off trying the double contract method and spoof it.

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Agreed the double contract way would surely be the less obvious of illegalities than the full time professional to ametuer gimmick.


A real shame that in one of the club's several break ins in recent years that the club computer was apparently stolen. Hmmm :D

https://www.westmeathindependent.ie/...dium-break-in/