Next Senior Men's Team Manager - Runners and Riders

[backstothewall]

And you made me laugh with the Stephen Kenny and the English language bit. My take on Kenny is he can speak the English language but no one has the foggiest what he is saying as he rambles up and down and all around . Comparing him with Trapatoni was pretty clever.

Perhaps a little bit tongue in cheek. I had a smile on my face typing it. But it's one of those ones that's funny because there's some truth in it. It's the same rambling style of half sentances and unfinished toughts that trail off. Trap had an excuse of course.

He means as a people, as a society, obviously.
Brexit, right leaning populist PM during it. Inward looking islanders, etc.

I do.

A couple of bad results and our supporters will start looking at someone like Dean Smith with the sort of derision usually reserved for cockney knobheads in Burberry flip flops trying to convince them to go into a bar in some resort on the Med with the offer of a free shot and the promise of there being "loads of birds in there".

[elatedscum]

2. The lack of a sponsor - What is Hill doing in England that we can't even get a sponsor for the international side? I know we are bad but fans are still showing up. If we can't get someone to pay why aren't we promoting a good cause on the jersey?
.

I will say that 95% of international sides don’t put a sponsor on the jersey because they can’t play with a sponsor. So the replica that they’re selling isn’t much of a replica

[ontheotherhand]

I will say that 95% of international sides don’t put a sponsor on the jersey because they can’t play with a sponsor. So the replica that they’re selling isn’t much of a replica

The replica we are selling certainly isn't much.

[ColourfulPeanut]

I'm not as close to things as others on here but I can't think of anything positive from their tenure so far?
2. The lack of a sponsor - What is Hill doing in England that we can't even get a sponsor for the international side? I know we are bad but fans are still showing up. If we can't get someone to pay why aren't we promoting a good cause on the jersey?

Why are people so desperate to have a tacky sponsor on the jersey again?

International jerseys don't have sponsors and aren't allowed to wear them. We were the only country to ever do it because the FAI is greedy and wanted to milk every penny out possible. Soon as they bring back sponsors on the jerseys, I'll never buy one again.

[pineapple stu]

When did we play with a sponsor on our jersey?

Only time I can think of was the odd testimonial, because they weren't full internationals

Fairly sure other countries have sold replicas with sponsors on them

[Stuttgart88]

Why are people so desperate to have a tacky sponsor on the jersey again?

We're not, but the lack of a lead sponsor says a lot about the FAI brand.

[Stuttgart88]

I'm not as close to things as others on here but I can't think of anything positive from their tenure so far?

1. The "Strategic Plan" was just a a bunch of wildly optimistic KPIs that were in large parts completely out of their control. LoI clubs coefficients in Europe improving etc....how exactly did they plan to affect that?

2. The lack of a sponsor - What is Hill doing in England that we can't even get a sponsor for the international side? I know we are bad but fans are still showing up. If we can't get someone to pay why aren't we promoting a good cause on the jersey?

3. Euro 2028 bringing the GAA development money for Casement Park but very little for the game itself. This one actually boggles the mind. What a shocking indictment of the state of the FAI that the GAA will benefit from a football tournament. Shocking.

4. We are still broke and hoping for a qualification miracle to dig us out of things.

Sadly we are now at a point where finding a Denis O'Brien type to splash the cash on a top level manager just to get us to qualify might actually be the right idea. We seem completely ****ed in the short, medium and long term but at least that might pay off the debts. Maybe Euro 2028 will clear them and the FAI will then pump money into the game here but..........I see nothing so far that gives me any hope that they know what they are doing.

The FAI appointed a new commercial director only in June

https://www.fai.ie/domestic/news/fai...-director-role

Ex-LOI player who went into brand marketing (Canterbury, Mire, Speedo...)

Interview with him in Irish Times last week. Seems like a good bloke. Plenty of discussion of the commercial side.

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/...sean-kavanagh/

I noticed there were a some other articles with FAI figures last week (canham, Andrews..). It felt to me like a bit of strategic PR on the FAI's side.

[backstothewall]

We're not, but the lack of a lead sponsor says a lot about the FAI brand.

When you see the way Guinness compliment their own rugby themed advertising by putting significant sponsorship into that game, it highlights something else.

There's a certain Irish gambling company with a heavily football focused advertising and social media output who have provided more sponsorship revenue to Huddersfield Town than their own national team.

The FAI shouldn't be above pointing out if a company is using football to promote their own product/services, but aren't making any contribution to the game in the country.

[Stuttgart88]

The Irish Times article says they have ruled out gambling companies.

I'm not sure what your Guinness comment is.

[tetsujin1979]

Wasn't there a backlash when they announced that streaming LOI games would be handled by one of the gambling companies?

[Stuttgart88]

Can't remember

[EalingGreen]

A couple of things. The English are unsophisticated? Maybe 15 or 20 years ago, but not now. England are in the argument for the top 2 or 3 teams in world football.

Indeed.

And you made me laugh with the Stephen Kenny and the English language bit. My take on Kenny is he can speak the English language but no one has the foggiest what he is saying as he rambles up and down and all around . Comparing him with Trapatoni was pretty clever.

I was once in the company of SK around the time he was appointed. He was asked to get up and say a few words, unprepared, and it was awful - "Who is this guy?", I thought to myself.

But listening to him later at the bar, he was very impressive - thoughtful, articulate, relaxed and with a very clear vision of what he wanted to do.

It seems to me that he's just one of those people who freezes when you put a microphone in front of him.

[EalingGreen]

When did we play with a sponsor on our jersey?

Only time I can think of was the odd testimonial, because they weren't full internationals

Fairly sure other countries have sold replicas with sponsors on them

I always assumed FIFA don't permit it for official matches. For if you think about it, it could lead to all sorts of problems, including sponsors on shirts clashing with FIFA's own sponsors.

Fairly sure other countries have sold replicas with sponsors on them

Don't ever recall having seen it myself, including eg on away fans when their team plays NI.

[tetsujin1979]

Wasn't there a backlash when they announced that streaming LOI games would be handled by one of the gambling companies?

It was trackchamp, owned by bwin. IIRC people weren't happy that you needed to open an account with bwin to use the service

Thread about it here: https://foot.ie/threads/207144-FAI-signs-up-TRACKCHAMP-as-official-video-and-data-partner

Hill ruled out a gambling company as main sponsor two years ago: https://www.independent.ie/sport/soc.../40135138.html

[backstothewall]

The Irish Times article says they have ruled out gambling companies.

I'm not sure what your Guinness comment is.

Just that they don't just run all the rugby based adverts in isolation. They are listed on the websites of the IRFU, Leinster & Munster as official sponsors. If you are going to use a sport to flog your wares the decent and honourable thing to do is to provide some sponsorship for the people who organise it in your area. Walkers Crisps do something similar across the water with the Gary Lineker adverts and their sponsorship of Leicester City.

As a bookmaker who plays up their Irishness and pumps out football related content on a daily basis, I'd say it's poor form from them that they've provided sponsorship to teams in the English league, but not the FAI.

That applies at a more local area as much as it does at a national level as well. For example McDaid's have made a fortune flogging bottles of Football Special and make a lot of being a Donegal company. It feels to me like they should have been the shirt sponsors of Finn Harps for as long as they've had one.

[Stuttgart88]

Do Guinness really spend extra money at grass roots?

They do seem to "activate" their sponsorship well, which in fairness is much easier for a uniquitous drink company! Opel did the same back in the glory days. All their ads came with "official sponsor to Irish football team" or something like that. Arnold O'Byrne was a key part of Jack's Army at one stage.

[OwlsFan]

Chris Wilder: made a silk purse out of a pig's (literally) ear at Sheffield United and currently out of a job.

[Eminence Grise]

Just that they don't just run all the rugby based adverts in isolation. They are listed on the websites of the IRFU, Leinster & Munster as official sponsors. If you are going to use a sport to flog your wares the decent and honourable thing to do is to provide some sponsorship for the people who organise it in your area. Walkers Crisps do something similar across the water with the Gary Lineker adverts and their sponsorship of Leicester City.

As a bookmaker who plays up their Irishness and pumps out football related content on a daily basis, I'd say it's poor form from them that they've provided sponsorship to teams in the English league, but not the FAI.

That applies at a more local area as much as it does at a national level as well. For example McDaid's have made a fortune flogging bottles of Football Special and make a lot of being a Donegal company. It feels to me like they should have been the shirt sponsors of Finn Harps for as long as they've had one.

The rule of thumb is that a company needs to spend €3 for every €1 of a sponsorship to promote the fact it's a sponsor - that's a lot of bottles of Football Special to justify even a modest logo on a sleeve. Large organisations (like a bank) might have some discretionary spend for regional offices to spend on local activities. Might the likes of a Guinness rep cough up kegs or merchandise for a local event?

It'd be poor form if the bookie just couldn't be bothered to engage with the FAI, but it could also be that there's no return on the spend for them (fair enough - sponsorship isn't altruism) or that the FAI wouldn't take their money in any event.

[Stuttgart88]

Isn't Paddy Power more of an ambush marketer? They associate themselves with events for free through a slightly irreverend social media strategy.

[sbgawa]

Can you imagine the tumbleweeds that'll be in stadium for the NZ friendly

My local club Cabo were given 100+ tickets for some game where demand was low....i cant remember what game it was but i suspect thast how they will get rid of them.
Get the kids to go