Where have all the football supporters gone?

Töpher

The Muppet wrote:

I don't agree, The National team is exactly that, my countrys national team, it is not the FAI's team.

I do have major gripes with the FAI but I would hardly be unique in that.

Shels/Bohs/Derry/Cork/etc are the FAI's team?

Villain

No but the EL is their league! now, no?

John_C

Einst&#252 wrote: »

Originally Posted by The Muppet
I don't agree, The National team is exactly that, my countrys national team, it is not the FAI's team.

I do have major gripes with the FAI but I would hardly be unique in that.Shels/Bohs/Derry/Cork/etc are the FAI's team?

Shels are.

I think the point Muppet is that you say you won't go to a league game because the FAI is a joke but you see no contradiction in going to an international game. That particular argument is weak.

Töpher

WhiteWashMan wrote:

read:dont waste your time trying to defend a position that is indefensible.

really, comparing a relationship to a season of football is idiocy. nor does it add anything to a debate on being a supporter of football.

A season? Not really, I was attempting to compare the relationship aspect. You know, the connection. The feelings, the love. As pointed out before, it was meant to highlight the stupidity of both extreme sides of the argument, and point out that there is a happy medium, which far surpasses either extreme.

You didn't like it or agree with it, fair enough.

Töpher

irish1 wrote:

No but the EL is their league! now, no?

The FAI are taking over at the end of this current season, yes. They haven't been in control for a good while now... so what aspect of the FAI not being in control did/do you have a problem with? They are in control of everything to do with Team Ireland, no?

The Muppet

Einst&#252 wrote: »

Shels/Bohs/Derry/Cork/etc are the FAI's team?

Are they my national teams, Should I identify with them somehow?

As i said earlier I don't have a problem with anyone supporting the EL but it's not for me at the moment. I would have an issue with EL fans looking down their nose at fans who have made the choice to support Pl team as is evident earlier in this thread. I owned shares in the english team I support when that was possible. How many EL fans actually own part of their team?

Villain

I have a major problem with the FAI in relation to their invesment in the development of the game here, I also have a huge issue with their inability to appoint a top class experienced manager to our national side.

I never said I had a problem their handling of the league as I knew they weren't in control of it for the past few years.

The Muppet

John_C wrote:

Shels are.

I think the point Muppet is that you say you won't go to a league game because the FAI is a joke but you see no contradiction in going to an international game. That particular argument is weak.

I did not say I attended International games, I said I supported my national team there is a difference. There is no contadiction as I was not making the argument you suggest .

Töpher

irish1 wrote:

I have a major problem with the FAI in relation to their invesment in the development of the game here, I also have a huge issue with their inability to appoint a top class experienced manager to our national side.

I never said I had a problem their handling of the league as I knew they weren't in control of it for the past few years.

So, because the FAI fail to invest in domestic football and instead focus on Team Ireland and trips to Old Trafford, you turn your nose up at domestic football and send your investment along with theirs? Did I read that right?

Töpher

The Muppet wrote:

Are they my national teams, Should I identify with them somehow?

As i said earlier I don't have a problem with anyone supporting the EL but it's not for me at the moment. I would have an issue with EL fans looking down their nose at fans who have made the choice to support Pl team as is evident earlier in this thread. I owned shares in the english team I support when that was possible. How many EL fans actually own part of their team?

Are Man Utd (or whoever) a team from your nation? Should you identify with them somehow?

I've no problem with people supporting EPL teams, as I said above its those that soil the name of Irish football without basis I have no time for.
Many Irish fans own part of their team. As far as I'm aware (tbh, I'm not that up on the inner workings of other teams) Rovers fans own the whole team. Bohs are a members club. Pats are too, if I'm thinking correctly (although possibly not). Shels fans may soon be acquiring a sizeable stake in the club in return for investment (investment that has to be raised for the club to survive).

Villain

Einst&#252 wrote: »

So, because the FAI fail to invest in domestic football and instead focus on Team Ireland and trips to Old Trafford, you turn your nose up at domestic football and send your investment along with theirs? Did I read that right?

I tell you what if the FAI did as much as an organisation for the development of the game here as I do for the juveniles who play soccer in my local town we'd be much better off. Just because I surscribe to Aston Villa and buy their merchandise doesn't mean I don't do anything for the game here.

The FAI could appoint a top class manager and still develop the game here, it just means doing more than one thing at a time which I suppose is a bit to ask of the FAI.

Ronan|Raven

Sligo have a supporters "Trust" to my knowledge, Longford are getting something similar running soon from what im reading.

John_C

The Muppet wrote:

Originally Posted by John_C


I think the point Muppet is that you say you won't go to a league game because the FAI is a joke but you see no contradiction in going to an international game. That particular argument is weak.

I did not say I attended International games, I said I supported my national team there is a difference. There is no contadiction as I was not making the argument you suggest .

Sorry, I misunderstood what you meant by 'support'. No bad feelings, I hope.

Is is because of the FAI that you don't attend internationals either?

The Muppet

John_C wrote:

Sorry, I misunderstood what you meant by 'support'. No bad feelings, I hope.

Is is because of the FAI that you don't attend internationals either?

NP John C no bad feelings . I have been totally disillusioned with the FAI for a number of years now. I have stated some of the reasons here but there are others, I used to attend our National Games but do not any more and doubt i ever will again.

The Muppet

Einst&#252 wrote: »

Are Man Utd (or whoever) a team from your nation? Should you identify with them somehow?

).

You are totally missing the point. I didn't have a choice in the National team I support, I am Irish by nationality. I did have a choice in which league and team I support when I started supporting a team in the late sixties.

John_C

The Muppet wrote:

NP John C no bad feelings . I have been totally disillusioned with the FAI for a number of years now. I have stated some of the reasons here but there are others, I used to attend our National Games but do not any more and doubt i ever will again.

I can empathise with you there. Last year I had decided to give up my international ticket but before I did the FAI cut it. It took a good row with them to get it back so I'm keeping it now as a matter of principle.

It's painful to watch how football in this country is being run into the ground and how powerless the good people involved seem to be to stop it.

Töpher

Fair enough. I may have misread yoru post, but I thought it was to do with the nationality of a team.

WhiteWashMan

Einst&#252 wrote: »

A season? Not really, I was attempting to compare the relationship aspect. You know, the connection. The feelings, the love. As pointed out before, it was meant to highlight the stupidity of both extreme sides of the argument, and point out that there is a happy medium, which far surpasses either extreme.

You didn't like it or agree with it, fair enough.

its not that i dont like it, its that i completely disagree with your analogy.

i dont see anything similar between a relationship with another person and being a supporter of a football team.

and i also dont see the extremes of any side highlighted. sorry, you may have to run them by me again. i feel i may be being a little stupid today.

and a happy medium? of what. of supporting a team, but yet still being able to be in a loving relationship?

at what point does your anology end and your morality lesson start?

however, to get back to some of the points that you have been making, so what if people decide to invest their time and money into a foreign team?

regardless of what the reason is for following a team, and there are many reasons, some of them not logical, there is no rule to state that you need to be 'patriotic' in your choice of team.

in fact, those people here who look down on the EPL, seem to have no problem in supporting say, italian football?

strange eh?

MrJoeSoap

WhiteWashMan wrote:

in fact, those people here who look down on the EPL, seem to have no problem in supporting say, italian football?

Which people are they?

redspider

Yet another thread on one of the recurring topics here on soccer and the problems of the LOI.

I didnt get a chance to read the article so could someone post it here and just include a copyright statement to the Sunday Tribune.

From what people are saying here, the article isn't saying anything new or pointing out a solution to the problem that everyone has been missing.

As discussed here before and at length, the problems of the LOI are many. We could have at least two clubs that are at the same level (support wise) as Hearts. We cant compete with the English league, and neither can the Danes, the Belgians, etc. Nor can they compete with Spain, Italy or the German leagues, that is economics 101 (as yanks put it).

johnos wrote:

But one of its principal points is that Irish football fans used to support teams on both sides of the pond. It wasn't either/or then, and it needn't be now.

Of course its not a case of either or. Nor is it just confined to one sport. People can follow GAA, Rugby, you name it, and also follow English and Irish club soccer.

Lots of people have written here before about potential solutions, ideas that would help. I think the summer league is not the right thing to do as it competes head to head with GAA. Dublin can fill Croker with 80,000 people.

RTE should be forced (as part iof its licence) to devote as much funds, time, promotion and prime-time slots, to Irish soccer as it does to other soccer, so thats CL, English, etc.

There are many problems, and many suggestions needed. Its not the fault of the Irish public per se, they go where they are interested and with whats on view. Its not a money issue, as that is chicken and egg. Success begats success, etc. You cant say people haven't invested enough money. People have invested and lost their shirts, Dublin City is an example. The finances of the clubs are in a mess, the main leakage of funds seems to be on over-paid players.

This is a topic that requires a lot of discussion.

redspider

PiE

I'm going to use sweeping generalisations here, as they seem to be the only thing EL fans understand:

Your attitudes to non-EL fans are the reason there are so few EL fans. Well, that and the shoddy level of football.

The Muppet

redspider wrote:

RTE should be forced (as part iof its licence) to devote as much funds, time, promotion and prime-time slots, to Irish soccer as it does to other soccer, so thats CL, English, etc.

redspider

I dont agree with that part of your post. RTE should not be "forced " to do anything of the sort. It is the responsibilty of those enthrusted with the development of the game to negoiate TV exposure. Given the history between the two parties the FAI should not expect any favours from the national broadcaster.

Broadcasting the EL to the same extent as the PL would be prohibited by cost. I can't see the Irish TV license payer being too happy seeing a large chunk of their revenue being spent on televising the EL, Can You?.

thebaz

Ronan|Raven wrote:

I have read misguided things in my time but this is the best. Shels, Derry, Drogs, Cork, Sligo, Pats, Bohs, UCD, Longford, Bray and Waterford stop competing it is all in hand! we are going to have a "Dublin" club that will play in england or scotland to challenge for the Champions League.

There is a huge fanbase for football in Dublin at the moment you only have to compare crowds for freindly Internationals around Europe, and Ireland must have the largest support , based on size. With the current wealth and population growth , why should Dublin not have a team seriously cometing in the Chapions league . With all due respest to Shels, Derry, Drogs, Cork, Sligo, Pats, Bohs, UCD, Longford, Bray and Waterford they never will be able to compete at the top level in Europe. Keep the EL , but why not have 2 super clubs in Ireland , competing in the premiership or Scotland , but mounting a serious challenge in Europe ,its happened in rugby , and will happen in soccer. And importantly the fanbase is here for this to happen , as well as the entrepreneurs , look at Sunderland , and Celtic , for that matter.

Chucky the tree

The Muppet wrote:

I dont agree with that part of your post. RTE should not be "forced " to do anything of the sort. It is the responsibilty of those enthrusted with the development of the game to negoiate TV exposure. Given the history between the two parties the FAI should not expect any favours from the national broadcaster.

Broadcasting the EL to the same extent as the PL would be prohibited by cost. I can't see the Irish TV license payer being too happy seeing a large chunk of their revenue being spent on televising the EL, Can You?.

I lost all respect for RTE when they offered peanuts for the internatiol right of the soccer team thinking that FAI would have to accept it. Personnally i was delighted when FAI told them were to go and gave it to sky.

Ronan|Raven

thebaz wrote:

There is a huge fanbase for football in Dublin at the moment you only have to compare crowds for freindly Internationals around Europe, and Ireland must have the largest support , based on size. With the current wealth and population growth , why should Dublin not have a team seriously cometing in the Chapions league . With all due respest to Shels, Derry, Drogs, Cork, Sligo, Pats, Bohs, UCD, Longford, Bray and Waterford they never will be able to compete at the top level in Europe. Keep the EL , but why not have 2 super clubs in Ireland , competing in the premiership or Scotland , but mounting a serious challenge in Europe ,its happened in rugby , and will happen in soccer. And importantly the fanbase is here for this to happen , as well as the entrepreneurs , look at Sunderland , and Celtic , for that matter.

The fanbase for what? To jump on another bandwagon, what the irish do best.

Why not use some our amazing wealth as you say and instead of creating two new artifical clubs develop what we already have?

DerekD Goldfish

but why not have 2 super clubs in Ireland , competing in the premiership or Scotland

Quite possibly the most stupid Idea of all time
A) A signifigant EL problem is that a large number of people arnt located near a club and feel no affinity to join one a bit further away from then how will having only 2 clubs help?
with 4 million people and only 2 clubs how are players suposed to move up the ranks get experence and progress.
C) I would point out far more problems with this sujection but to be honest it doesnt deserve it.

thebaz

Ronan|Raven wrote:

The fanbase for what? To jump on another bandwagon, what the irish do best.

Why not use some our amazing wealth as you say and instead of creating two new artifical clubs develop what we already have?

if we develop what we have we will still never be able to compete with the larger teams in Englan, Spain , Italy . The gap grows wider each year , why is having 2 or 3 super clubs in Ireland , Dublin, Cork and Belfast , such a bad idea -- the public wants to see quality CL matches , competitive matcehs against Barcelona , Man Utd , Inter ... as Ireland grows , is it impossible to imagine Irish teams competing to win the Champions league ... i believe it will happen in the not too distat future ... nothing against EL , it has its purpose and place , but as regards competing and challenging to win in Europe , i think not.

The Muppet

Chucky the tree wrote:

I lost all respect for RTE when they offered peanuts for the internatiol right of the soccer team thinking that FAI would have to accept it. Personnally i was delighted when FAI told them were to go and gave it to sky.

You are entitled to that opinion , mine is that The FAI should not own the National Team and so not have the right to sell it, I beleve that was the basis for the action that saw Live games back On RTE. . Either way it was extreamly shorth sighted of the FAI to do what they did regaring RTE. As this thread higlights we are now seeing the fruits of that and other decisions they have made. They did a lot more damage to the game that they got from the contract.

How can the FAI legitimately complain about Irish people not supporting the league when they sold exclusive live rights to the national team home game to a foreign broadcaster. That was an amazing decision for a body who are supposed to be promoting the game here in Ireland. It was driven by money with no consideration for the good of Irish soccer. Unfortunately that has become the norm for the FAI.

Töpher

thebaz wrote:

if we develop what we have we will still never be able to compete with the larger teams in Englan, Spain , Italy . The gap grows wider each year , why is having 2 or 3 super clubs in Ireland , Dublin, Cork and Belfast , such a bad idea -- the public wants to see quality CL matches , competitive matcehs against Barcelona , Man Utd , Inter ... as Ireland grows , is it impossible to imagine Irish teams competing to win the Champions league ... i believe it will happen in the not too distat future ... nothing against EL , it has its purpose and place , but as regards competing and challenging to win in Europe , i think not.

So let me get this straight...:

Putting money into what is existing is pointless. Heaven's forbid someone invest in existing Irish setups that will benefit the whole league?
What you need to do is setup something new and put even more money into that, because Irish people will only watch English or Scottish teams play?

Is that what you're saying in your few posts on the subject?

John_C

The Muppet wrote:

It was driven by money with no consideration for the good of Irish soccer.

The good of Irish soccer requires money to be developed, sport facilities don't pay for themselves. While out supporters give money to the english game and the governmend does little the FAI has a responsability to raise money where it can.

Töpher

The Muppet wrote:

Broadcasting the EL to the same extent as the PL would be prohibited by cost. I can't see the Irish TV license payer being too happy seeing a large chunk of their revenue being spent on televising the EL, Can You?.

They don't mind it being spent on Fair City, or repeating the same episodes of the Simpsons as Sky One and Channel 4, or the same episodes of Friends as E4 and Channel 4. They don't complain about €1,000,000 being spent on rights to English games, despite BBC and Sky already having the market saturated. They don't complain about Fair City paying actors.

Fair enough English football fans in Ireland mightn't be happy (don't understand that, its a few hours more football on the box a week - the English teams wouldn't lose a penny of Irish money or a second of air time in Ireland - the games are, afterall, played on different days), but for the average consumer it won't make a bit of difference.

Besides, it wouldn't cost half as much as the English rights. In reality, it'd be unlikely to make much of a dent in their budget, and would provide a few more hours of football a week for football fans to watch. Where-in lies the problem? Or is it just that you don't like the thought of Irish football being shown by the Irish national broadcaster.

Seriously, I'm somewhat baffled here.

RTE show a what, hour and a half long highlights programme? And sometimes a live game, yet its costs €1,000,000 for a 36ish week set of footage? That's the best part of €30,000 (€50,000ish if its only money for the live games, and highlights are done seperately) a week on English football (without paying their allstar panel), versus a regular amount of €0 for Irish. I think the amount given to an Irish team when a live game is shown is €5,000 to the home team. That's it. I'm assuming a live game every second week, and a decent length highlights show would cost, oh, about €7,500 a week on average - and for the most part run when the English leagues aren't in season. You saying you think most of the country would throw a hissy fit when you compare that?

thebaz

Einst&#252 wrote: »

So let me get this straight...:

Putting money into what is existing is pointless. Heaven's forbid someone invest in existing Irish setups that will benefit the whole league?
What you need to do is setup something new and put even more money into that, because Irish people will only watch English or Scottish teams play?

Is that what you're saying in your few posts on the subject?

OK so are you saying Ireland should never get top quality Champions league football ??
We will not get it from EL , and I don't sugest its demise , possibly could be used to groom players for the CL -- is this not better than followers and players moving to the UK to support team -- the reality is kids like superstars , thats what turned many of us onto the game , so if nothing changes the Man Utd, Pool, Celtic and Chelsea fanbase will continue to grow in our school yards.
And I have played both rugby and football in Ireland, and admit by comparison the facilities for soccer are dire in comparison, and need serious investment at the grassroots.

Töpher

If the money was put into it, why not. That is aafterall what you're saying, put alot of money into something. Creating Team Super-Dublin and making them play abroad every second week won't do anything. Why not put it into whats there, it could easily be good enough with the right funding - use it for facilities etc, and players. Why does a new entity need to be created for that?

MrJoeSoap

PiE wrote:

I'm going to use sweeping generalisations here, as they seem to be the only thing EL fans understand:

Your attitudes to non-EL fans are the reason there are so few EL fans. Well, that and the shoddy level of football.

Or maybe its desperation on EL fans behalf, as they can envisage the league falling apart in the not-too-distant future without some serious upturns in interest from the general public.

And we all know what happens when a country has no national league...

John_C

thebaz wrote:

OK so are you saying Ireland should never get top quality Champions league football ??

Ireland should get top quality champions' league football when (like the Scottish and plenty of other small countries) we invest our time, money and effort into developing the game here.

We can't expect to have the highest level of football handed to us on a plate if we neglect every level below it.

Töpher

MrJoeSoap wrote:

And we all know what happens when a country has no national league...

/me grabs Clinton and throws him back on the boat...

The Muppet

Einst&#252 wrote: »

They don't mind it being spent on Fair City, or repeating the same episodes of the Simpsons as Sky One and Channel 4, or the same episodes of Friends as E4 and Channel 4. They don't complain about €1,000,000 being spent on rights to English games, despite BBC and Sky already having the market saturated. They don't complain about Fair City paying actors.

Fair enough English football fans in Ireland mightn't be happy (don't understand that, its a few hours more football on the box a week - the English teams wouldn't lose a penny of Irish money or a second of air time in Ireland - the games are, afterall, played on different days), but for the average consumer it won't make a bit of difference. [/quote]

Not eveyone is interested in watching football. I would imagine the audience for thsoe shows would have something to say if teh were dropped in favour of EL Football .

Besides, it wouldn't cost half as much as the English rights. In reality, it'd be unlikely to make much of a dent in their budget, and would provide a few more hours of football a week for football fans to watch. Where-in lies the problem? Or is it just that you don't like the thought of Irish football being shown by the Irish national broadcaster.

Seriously, I'm somewhat baffled here.

Can you back that up with actual costings? I would imagine it would cost a lot more to cover the EL than to buy the rights to the PL.

RTE show a what, hour and a half long highlights programme? And sometimes a live game, yet its costs €1,000,000 for a 36ish week set of footage? That's the best part of €30,000 (€50,000ish if its only money for the live games, and highlights are done seperately) a week on English football (without paying their allstar panel), versus a regular amount of €0 for Irish. I think the amount given to an Irish team when a live game is shown is €5,000 to the home team. That's it. I'm assuming a live game every second week, and a decent length highlights show would cost, oh, about €7,500 a week on average - and for the most part run when the English leagues aren't in season. You saying you think most of the country would throw a hissy fit when you compare that?

LOL, €7.500 to cover OB costs to all EL games , thats not a very realistic figure is it? . It is up to the FAI to promote the game nobody else, they need RTE to help them which is why I said their deal with sky was very short sighted. How much coverage does Sky give the EL? It's true that the FAI need money to promote the game but they also need media coverage, IMO they cut of their nose to spite their face when they sold the rights to SKY.

redspider

The Muppet wrote:

Broadcasting the EL to the same extent as the PL would be prohibited by cost. I can't see the Irish TV license payer being too happy seeing a large chunk of their revenue being spent on televising the EL, Can You?.

RTE is not a pure commercial organisation. It receives funding from the Government to perform public broadcasting. Part of that is supporting local sports.

RTE could be directed to show as much (if not more) LOI football than English football. I also wouldn't mind seeing some Spanish, German, French, Dutch and other football, yes, Scottish as well. The current 1.5 hrs highlights programme of the English league is an over-kill, and not really necessary given that BBC show MOTD for an hour as well the same day. RTE buys Eastenders (why, is another debate) so surely BBC would sell MOTD and RTE could save money.

Why wouldnt the license payer be happy? There are many things on RTE which are not there due to popularity, they are there for the benefit of society, that is what public broadcasting is all about. GAA is supported and should be. LOI should be televised more. Its obvious to the blind man.

I agree with most of what Einstürzende said on the TV issue.

But the way to solve LOI problems is perhaps not another debate. Could boards.ie put together a 10-point plan to imrpove te LOI, get people to subscribe to it and then lobby the parties involved with the suggestions, or is everything already covered in the Genesis report? Or is a Genesis-II needed?

Redspider

thebaz

John_C wrote:

Ireland should get top quality champions' league football when (like the Scottish and plenty of other small countries) we invest our time, money and effort into developing the game here.

We can't expect to have the highest level of football handed to us on a plate if we neglect every level below it.

I think the last thing we want is a non competitive league like Scotland , with 2 super teams , and the also rans . -- Like it or not the franchise has arrived with the demise of Wimbledon , no they didn't come to Dublin but the MK Dons are surviving second in league 2 , with increasing attendences, new stadium . I myself came through and have been involved in Dublin grassroots football, and know its importance , but professional top level football, is an entertainment industry far removed from junior level football , and i think there is a demand for this product in dublin. This is hardly a golden age in football in ireland , so something radical needs changing, along with a massive increase in the investment in underage and junior football throughout Ireland. Personally the rugby model i think might be something to be copied by the FAI, but i believe the decision will come from big business. The warm showers, clubhouse and full bar , were a luxury i didn't experience much during my football days ! Just my thoughts.

johnos

redspider wrote:

RTE is not a pure commercial organisation. It receives funding from the Government to perform public broadcasting. Part of that is supporting local sports.

RTE could be directed to show as much (if not more) LOI football than English football. I also wouldn't mind seeing some Spanish, German, French, Dutch and other football, yes, Scottish as well. The current 1.5 hrs highlights programme of the English league is an over-kill, and not really necessary given that BBC show MOTD for an hour as well the same day. RTE buys Eastenders (why, is another debate) so surely BBC would sell MOTD and RTE could save money.

Why wouldnt the license payer be happy? There are many things on RTE which are not there due to popularity, they are there for the benefit of society, that is what public broadcasting is all about. GAA is supported and should be. LOI should be televised more. Its obvious to the blind man.

Agreed. RTE is not a commercial broadcaster. It receives public funding to enable it not to be a commercial broadcaster. In the case of football, on television if not on radio, it entirely ignores that remit.
Under the Broadcasting Authority Acts (1960 – 2001), RTÉ is required to provide a comprehensive range of programmes, in Irish and in English, which reflect the cultural diversity of the whole island of Ireland. RTÉ is specifically mandated to provide:
programmes that entertain, inform and educate
programmes of news and current affairs
coverage of sporting, religious and cultural activities
coverage of the Oireachtas and the European Parliament
In fulfilling this mandate RTÉ is required to cater for the expectations of the
community generally as well as the expectations of members of the community with special or minority interests and, in every case, to respect human dignity.
RTÉ is also mandated to facilitate or assist contemporary cultural expression and to encourage or promote innovation and experimentation in broadcasting.

From the Public Service Broadcasting Charter

Töpher

The Muppet wrote:

Not eveyone is interested in watching football. I would imagine the audience for thsoe shows would have something to say if teh were dropped in favour of EL Football .

These very same people would be equally irked if Wigan -v- Bolton, or any other classy game from overseas, interrupted their programmes if they don't like watching football.

If they don't like watching footall... what does it matter to them if its EL or EPL?
The very same people get pushed about at random weekends, when its decided if RTE are, or are not, showing an English game.

The Muppet

johnos wrote:

Agreed. RTE is not a commercial broadcaster. It receives public funding to enable it not to be a commercial broadcaster. In the case of football, on television if not on radio, it entirely ignores that remit.
Under the Broadcasting Authority Acts (1960 – 2001), RTÉ is required to provide a comprehensive range of programmes, in Irish and in English, which reflect the cultural diversity of the whole island of Ireland. RTÉ is specifically mandated to provide:
programmes that entertain, inform and educate
programmes of news and current affairs
coverage of sporting, religious and cultural activities
coverage of the Oireachtas and the European Parliament
In fulfilling this mandate RTÉ is required to cater for the expectations of the
community generally as well as the expectations of members of the community with special or minority interests and, in every case, to respect human dignity.
RTÉ is also mandated to facilitate or assist contemporary cultural expression and to encourage or promote innovation and experimentation in broadcasting.

From the Public Service Broadcasting Charter

They currently fulfill their mandate without showing EL.

redspider

RTÉ is required to provide ...
coverage of the Oireachtas and the European Parliament

Just to highlight a point, coverage of these is absolutely woeful. The European Parliament production is done for about 100 euro, 3 people make the programme and they use it to test new presenters. The Oireachtas report is also on the graveyard shift.

We are hitting on another cause of the problems facing LOI, and that is RTE. RTE is a body which runs itself. There is no-one policing it and the politicians fear it in case they get a bad coverage over it. And this state of affairs (a badly run state TV broadcaster) is affecting the LOI. Its obvious to the blind-man again such as the 'necessity' to pay Pat Kenny was it 800k or something is ludicrous, not to mention how much money goes to O'Herlihy, Dunphy and Giles. Toss those tossers to the kerb and use that funds and more to push the LOI 'product'.

Redspider

applehunter

After the cringefest that was "The Soccer Show" there was a period where we had no EL soccer at all on our national screens.

Then a new era arrived with Eircom League Weekly. That was 3 years ago and not much has changed in the meantime. As an EL fan I can accept the fact that it looks awful but for someone who is not familiar with the league it is probably off-putting.

We now have all these games live on TG4, RTE and Setanta, but tbh I would sacrifice half of the live games for decent highlights show on our national broadcaster.