All–Ireland League (association football)

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The All–Ireland League was a name given to a proposed all-Ireland football league featuring teams from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. [1] The proposal was abandoned, due to a lack of support from the authorities and clubs within the League of Ireland and the Irish Football League. [2]

All-Ireland Term which emphasises the whole of the island of Ireland

"All-Ireland" is an attributive term which emphasises the whole of the island of Ireland. It contrasts with terms such as Republic of Ireland or Northern Ireland, which apply only to specific jurisdictions on the island. "All-Ireland" is most frequently used to refer to sporting teams or events which apply to the whole island, but also has related meanings in politics and religion.

Association football team field sport

Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played with a spherical ball between two teams of eleven players. It is played by 250 million players in over 200 countries and dependencies, making it the world's most popular sport. The game is played on a rectangular field called a pitch with a goal at each end. The object of the game is to score by moving the ball beyond the goal line into the opposing goal.

Republic of Ireland Ireland, a country in north-western Europe, occupying 5/6 of the island of Ireland; succeeded the Irish Free State (1937)

Ireland, also known as the Republic of Ireland, is a country in north-western Europe occupying 26 of 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, which is located on the eastern part of the island, and whose metropolitan area is home to around a third of the country's over 4.8 million inhabitants. The sovereign state shares its only land border with Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom. It is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, with the Celtic Sea to the south, Saint George's Channel to the south-east, and the Irish Sea to the east. It is a unitary, parliamentary republic. The legislature, the Oireachtas, consists of a lower house, Dáil Éireann, an upper house, Seanad Éireann, and an elected President who serves as the largely ceremonial head of state, but with some important powers and duties. The head of government is the Taoiseach, who is elected by the Dáil and appointed by the President; the Taoiseach in turn appoints other government ministers.

Contents

History

Proposals for the league were spearheaded by Platinum One, a private events management company who met with six League of Ireland clubs that had grievances with the FAI regarding their participation agreement and the introduction of a wage cap. [3] They also met with two Irish Football League clubs, Linfield and Glentoran. The proposal was abandoned in September 2008 with Platinum One chairman, Fintan Drury, concluding that it would "not be sensible" to take discussions on the proposed breakaway league any further. [4] The idea never received the full backing of the FAI or the Irish Football Association, [5] although FAI Chief Executive, John Delaney, clarified that FAI policy would be governed by the wishes of the clubs. [6] Other concerns over the proposal included the forfeiting of European places, [7] the jurisdiction the league would be under, the exclusion of clubs from the league and several potential problems that may have arisen with FIFA and UEFA. Three of the League of Ireland clubs originally involved in the proposal, Cork City, Drogheda United and Derry City, subsequently financially collapsed due to overspending and mismanagement, with the former pair entering examinership and the latter being evicted from the League of Ireland.

League of Ireland association football league

The League of Ireland, together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally used to refer to a single division league. However today the League of Ireland features five divisions – the Premier Division, the First Division, an U19 Division, an U17 Division, an U15 Division and starting March 2019 an U13 Division. The League of Ireland has always worked closely with the FAI and in 2006 the two bodies formally merged. All the divisions are currently sponsored by Airtricity and as a result the league is also known as the SSE Airtricity League. In 2007, it became one of the first leagues in Europe to introduce a salary cap. The league's most successful club is Shamrock Rovers who have won 17 titles. Together with Dundalk, Bohemians and Shelbourne they are one of four clubs in the league to feature a golden star above their badge in recognition of winning ten titles. Bohemians are the only club in the league to have played every season in the top division.

Linfield F.C. association football club

Linfield Football Club is a semi-professional football club based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. The club was founded in 1886 as Linfield Athletic Club and in 1905 moved into their current home of Windsor Park, which is also the home of the Northern Ireland national team. The club plays in the NIFL Premiership – the highest level of the Northern Ireland Football League. Linfield's main rival is Glentoran – the other half of Belfast's Big Two. This rivalry traditionally includes a league derby played on Boxing Day each year, which usually attracts the largest league attendance of the season. Linfield's average league home attendance is approximately 2,500, the highest in the division and more than double the league's overall average of about 1,000.

Glentoran F.C. association football club

Glentoran Football Club is a semi-professional football club that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882 and plays its home games at The Oval in East Belfast. Club colours are red, green and black. Linfield and Glentoran are nicknamed Belfast's Big Two, as they have traditionally dominated local football in Northern Ireland since the demise of Belfast Celtic. The two play a league match on Boxing Day each year, which regularly attracts the largest attendance of the Irish League season.

Clubs

No definite list of clubs to be included was ever drawn up. Limerick 37 controversially looked set to be included ahead of more established League of Ireland sides. [8]

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Cork City F.C. association football club

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References

  1. ↑ www.independent.ie
  2. ↑ www.rte.ie Archived 2008-10-30 at the Wayback Machine .
  3. ↑ www.independent.ie
  4. ↑ www.rte.ie Archived 2008-10-30 at the Wayback Machine .
  5. ↑ www.encyclopedia.com
  6. ↑ www.encyclopedia.com
  7. ↑ www.independent.ie
  8. ↑ www.independent.ie
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