eL Vote for FAI merger

**Poor Student** · 03/07/2006, 7:19 PM

Originally Posted by A face

You make it sound like the emperors new clothes !!

Face, you're a genius. That's a good way of putting it.

NY Hoop, you're giving the reasons that any suit I've seen or talked to have given. "The league isn't working as it is now." So we should change for change sake? What do you see that can bring about wholesale and meaningful change? The prize money is a red herring. The "promotions officer" with the 10k grant is not enough. The formula to realign the league's clubs is nonsense.

**dcfcsteve** · 03/07/2006, 7:41 PM

Originally Posted by Student Mullet

[Off Topic]Was your first game a 2-1 win for Cork? I was at that game ten years ago and it was my first game in Belfield too.[/Off Topic]

Does that make you a Saracen then... ?

Football. The Saracen game......

**A face** · 04/07/2006, 1:44 AM

Originally Posted by Poor Student

NY Hoop, you're giving the reasons that any suit I've seen or talked to have given. "The league isn't working as it is now." So we should change for change sake? What do you see that can bring about wholesale and meaningful change? The prize money is a red herring. The "promotions officer" with the 10k grant is not enough. The formula to realign the league's clubs is nonsense.

There is one thing that has not been discussed ever ..... and probably because the powers that be never thought it important before.

Media

I am dead serious here, the FAI/eL already have a vast resource available for them to exploit. News .... Info .... data.

The league is being left at the mercy of TV3 at midnight on Monday, and we all know that alot more could be made of it. The FAI should form their own media company and make their own package and sell it to the TV stations (even for the same cost of running eL weekly now) ... tie it in with Internationals aswell. I cant see anything wrong with the FAI saying that if you want X amount of internationals a year, then you must show X amount of schoolboy, junior, intermediate, senior, disabled football a year aswell.

Argue the fact that RTE show a foreign league at the cost of our own league. Sky are allowed broadcast here aswell.

If the FAI could control how the league/Irish football is perceived then they would be doing the league a huge favour. They really need to grow a pair of balls and take this on.

The money they make from it (if any) should then be shared equally between clubs. This 10K for each club should go to invest in the media company ... €220,000 + the staff that make their quarterly newsletter, and input from clubs is more than enough to sort it out. If they were to sort out the coverage then clubs can go to sponsors and offer them something tangiable, along with everything they have already.

**mypost** · 04/07/2006, 2:56 AM

Originally Posted by CharlesThompson

Dublin City voted against it and they've been quoted as saying that they respect the decision of their fellow league clubs but will take it to court if they get relegated.

With them slipping from 6th to 9th spot recently, with Bray 2 wins from catching them, and Longford also chasing them with the aid of 3 games in hand, Seery might not have to take anything to court at all.

**Jerry The Saint** · 04/07/2006, 9:15 AM

Originally Posted by A face

There is one thing that has not been discussed ever ..... and probably because the powers that be never thought it important before.

Media

FAI should form their own media company and make their own package and sell it to the TV stations (even for the same cost of running eL weekly now) ...

They tried this with The Soccer Show but the initial product wasn't great so, like everything else they do, they gave up and replaced it with...nothing?

I totally agree with your post though. It didn't really seem clear what they wanted to do with The Soccer Show (too many 'Nationwide'-type segments

) and it came across too muddled. A proper highlights package, with commentary on one or two main games instead of TV3's tired format and, crucially, tied in with the internationals as you say. Sell it to Sky as well. The Champions League magazine programme would seem to be a good starting point. You can tell by the scheduling that TV companies don't really want to show it but they have to in order to get the live games. The FAI should use a similar tactic but ensure that it's shown at a reasonable time (not prime-time but not midnight on Monday night either!)

It's baffling (well not really considering the parties involved) that a comprehensive marketing plan is absent from all this. The 10k grant for a compulsory marketing officer is just another example of the cosmetic bullcrap that make up the rest of the proposals. I'm sure you've noticed that Sky have been running ads for their Premiership for a while now (possibly since England were knocked out or maybe earlier, I'm not sure) in the middle of the World Cup, 6 weeks before it starts. As I said before, it seems as if the FAI looked at the hugely-successful relaunch of the top English division 14 years ago and came to the conclusion that it was all down to THE NAME OF THE COMPETITION!

**Dodge** · 04/07/2006, 9:53 AM

Just on the TV bit. You may remember that TV3 got the highlights package as part of the same deal that Sky got exclusive Live rights and TV3 got "exclusive" delayed rights. When Bertie changed the rules RTE ended up with live rights and TV3 was left with delayed coverage that nobody needed. I'm fairly sure that after that they couldn't give a toss. Another thing to note is that the current TV rights are not exclusive and any team can negotiate any deal for themselves (outside of RTE/tg4/Setanta's minimum) and there is nothing stopping any of the stations (including tv3) from showing either live games or a highlights package (so in this respect at least TV3 do something, howver poor it is). The bottom line is they don't want to. The SuperPrimeraBudesligaA righta can't really be linked to the international rights as long as they are protected by legislation and TV3's budget is so much less than RTEs.

**WeAreRovers** · 04/07/2006, 9:58 AM

Originally Posted by Poor Student

NY Hoop, you're giving the reasons that any suit I've seen or talked to have given.

To be honest, you'll search long and hard to find a Rovers fan against the proposals.

KOH

**Dodge** · 04/07/2006, 10:16 AM

Originally Posted by WeAreRovers

To be honest, you'll search long and hard to find a Rovers fan against the proposals.

I hear Kilcoyne's going to be involved...

**A face** · 04/07/2006, 11:22 AM

Originally Posted by Jerry The Saint

They tried this with The Soccer Show but the initial product wasn't great so, like everything else they do, they gave up and replaced it with...nothing?

If at first you dont succeed, jump ship as fast as you can ...

You can tell by the scheduling that TV companies don't really want to show it but they have to in order to get the live games. The FAI should use a similar tactic but ensure that it's shown at a reasonable time (not prime-time but not midnight on Monday night either!)

Exactly ... the FAI dont use ANY tactic .... i think thats where the problem is. Its amazing they cant see the value in it. It would be infinitely more valueable than that 10K to each club.

It's baffling (well not really considering the parties involved) that a comprehensive marketing plan is absent from all this. The 10k grant for a compulsory marketing officer is just another example of the cosmetic bullcrap that make up the rest of the proposals. I'm sure you've noticed that Sky have been running ads for their Premiership for a while now (possibly since England were knocked out or maybe earlier, I'm not sure) in the middle of the World Cup, 6 weeks before it starts.

Get rid of Niall Quinn and use the money for a decent campaign.

As I said before, it seems as if the FAI looked at the hugely-successful relaunch of the top English division 14 years ago and came to the conclusion that it was all down to THE NAME OF THE COMPETITION!

Originally Posted by Dodge

Just on the TV bit. You may remember that TV3 got the highlights package as part of the same deal that Sky got exclusive Live rights and TV3 got "exclusive" delayed rights. When Bertie changed the rules RTE ended up with live rights and TV3 was left with delayed coverage that nobody needed. I'm fairly sure that after that they couldn't give a toss. Another thing to note is that the current TV rights are not exclusive and any team can negotiate any deal for themselves (outside of RTE/tg4/Setanta's minimum) and there is nothing stopping any of the stations (including tv3) from showing either live games or a highlights package (so in this respect at least TV3 do something, howver poor it is). The bottom line is they don't want to. The SuperPrimeraBudesligaA righta can't really be linked to the international rights as long as they are protected by legislation and TV3's budget is so much less than RTEs.

I think they should contest it .... to be fair, the Minister for Sport at the time let in Sky Sports for floodlight, and basically condeming the domestic league to death and then they want to take away the FAI trump card .... fook that ... they cant have it every way .... if they want international rules, then give a decent package, it is the national broadcaster after all ...... they should at the very least ask for 150% of the hours they show foreign leagues .... its our NATIONAL LEAGUE.

Again ... the FAI need to grow a pair of balls and start piping up and asking the questions. Lobby the f�ckers, try to influence the decisions ffs

**WeAreRovers** · 04/07/2006, 11:25 AM

Originally Posted by Dodge

I hear Kilcoyne's going to be involved...

Yeah, as a consultant on the sale of Richmond..........

KOH

**Macy** · 04/07/2006, 11:36 AM

Originally Posted by Dodge

The SuperPrimeraBudesligaA righta can't really be linked to the international rights as long as they are protected by legislation and TV3's budget is so much less than RTEs.

Yes it can - and if it was, more than likely Sky would offer to show it. This would either force RTE to match Sky, or the Government to let it go to Sky. There's a clause in the legislation that means that RTE/TV3 must pay a reasonable amount for the coverage, and no reason why that can't include eL highlights package at whatever time the FAI state. If the FAI can show another broadcaster meeting their requirements....

Unfortunatley no appetite in the FAI for that battle.

**Dodge** · 04/07/2006, 11:41 AM

Originally Posted by Macy

Yes it can - and if it was, more than likely Sky would offer to show it.

Sorry, shouldn't have used can't. Obviously it could be linked, meant to say won't (for the reasoning in your last line)

**Poor Student** · 04/07/2006, 11:53 AM

Face, I think that Bald Student attended the promotional launch of the new league or something like that, where in his capacity as NLSA representative he raised the issue of the name of the league, and if I recall correctly he said they said they hoped to do something about the highlights package.

**Dodge** · 04/07/2006, 12:05 PM

Originally Posted by WeAreRovers

Yeah, as a consultant on the sale of Richmond..........

Our profiteers are way way above Louis's grubby little head

**WeAreRovers** · 04/07/2006, 12:11 PM

Originally Posted by Dodge

Our profiteers are way way above Louis's grubby little head

How true, if the greedy little tosspot had waited a year or two he could have retired to the Caymans. Your boys, on the other hand, didn't get to be Developer of the Year 2005 without knowing the price of property.

KOH

**Dodge** · 04/07/2006, 12:13 PM

Nah, wrong construction giants WaR. Close though...

**A face** · 04/07/2006, 12:22 PM

Originally Posted by Poor Student

Face, I think that Bald Student attended the promotional launch of the new league or something like that, where in his capacity as NLSA representative he raised the issue of the name of the league, and if I recall correctly he said they said they hoped to do something about the highlights package.

When is this going to happen ??

Are fans going to be asked about what they'd like to see feature in it ??
Or will it just go them same as the soccer show? There have been enough mistakes been made so there is a good chance they'll get it right this time yeah?

**Poor Student** · 04/07/2006, 12:25 PM

Originally Posted by A face

When is this going to happen ??

Are fans going to be asked about what they'd like to see feature in it ??
Or will it just go them same as the soccer show? There have been enough mistakes been made so there is a good chance they'll get it right this time yeah?

Not a clue, Face. I just found it the mildest bit encouraging that it suggests they at least ackowledge in some way that eL Weekly is not good enough.