Amid calls for an increase in budget for League of Ireland academies, the government is later today set to announce €3 million worth of investments into the future of Irish football, per RTE Sport.
This, however, still falls significantly short of what was requested (€4.45 million). Under the proposed plan, each LOI club would have appointed three full-time coaches.
A recent independent audit carried out by the government showed that Ireland lags significantly behind other nations in the 51-100 range of the FIFA world rankings when it comes to youth facilities.
Only 4% of clubs in Ireland have a full-time head of coaching, as opposed to the 46% average for other nations in Ireland’s rank bracket.
“The game badly needs investment,” said Football Association of Ireland technical director Shane Robinson before today’s announcement.
Elsewhere in the budget, there will also be significant funding made available to the GAA, IRFU, and the GPA.
Limerick Voice will continue its coverage of the budget throughout the day.