The FAI chief executive David Courell said it would be “fantastic” if an Irish person can succeed the outgoing chief football officer (CFO) Marc Canham. Canham (42) handed in his notice this week, following a tumultuous three years in Abbotstown. The former England Futsal international plans to return to England by July, where he has opportunities to remain in football administration.
Canham was promoted by the FAI last September with a title change from director of football to CFO and a pay rise despite widespread criticism of how he handled successive senior managerial appointments and fractious relations with League of Ireland managers Damien Duff and Stephen Bradley.
“We have huge talent and expertise within the Irish football community,” said Courell. “The CFO is an amazing opportunity, a privileged position that can shape the future of the game. We need to make sure we make the right appointment. If that person is Irish, then fantastic. But I am not going to close off [someone from outside the country], that would be irresponsible of us.”
Canham was the third successive appointment from abroad, following Dutch pair Wim Koevermans and Ruud Dokter, who both struggled in a position that ideally requires knowledge of Irish football’s complicated political landscape.
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“There is no doubt it is a difficult job,” said Courell. “I don’t believe it is an impossible job. I would not have taken on my position if I thought it was.
“This is not a slight on Marc, just a recognition that whoever takes over from the good work he has done will have to have the ability to bring our stakeholders with us.”
The association will outsource part of the recruitment process to find Canham’s replacement.
Courell also confirmed that the former Republic of Ireland head coach Eileen Gleeson remains on the payroll – in an unspecified role – while he was non-committal on the possibility of staff redundancies in 2025.
The FAI continues to service a legacy debt of €40 million.
Courell was unwavering on the mandate, provided by the FAI General Assembly last December, for a 12-year pathways plan to streamline the calendar-year schedule from grassroots to the League of Ireland despite resistance from the School Boys and Girls Football Association (SFAI) and its 32 affiliate leagues representing 100,000 children.
“We are the only federation out of 55 [Uefa members] that does not have an aligned calendar,” he said.
However, 80 per cent of Uefa member countries operate off a winter schedule that aligns with the school year from September to June. The main issue across youth leagues is the fixture clash with Gaelic games during summer months.
On the ongoing negotiations with the Minister of State for Sport Charlie McConalogue as the FAI seek €8 million annually over 11 years to fund club academies, Courell revealed that the Government has concerns around investing in privately-owned League of Ireland clubs.
“In terms of Government appetite to invest, it’s growing. I think there are so many positives about this proposal. This is not a handout, this is an opportunity to invest, to kick-start an industry that sadly we’ve been lagging behind our international counterparts for decades.
“There are still some questions Government has – their nervousness and questions primarily centre around investing into private enterprises. It’s not something governments normally do, and we want to work with them and clubs to give them the comfort and confidence.”
McConalogue, in his former role as minister for agriculture, was directly involved last year in increasing the Horse and Greyhound Fund to €99.1 million. “I don’t know if they are constituted as private enterprises because that distribution probably goes thorough Horse Racing and Greyhound Ireland,” said Courell. “They would have a different funding mechanism.”
Academy funding for clubs, if forthcoming from the Department of Sport, would be distributed to the clubs by the FAI.
Courell confirmed that Canham’s position will be filled on an interim basis, much like Courell serving as the interim CEO when Jonathan Hill departed, Gleeson as interim Ireland manager when Vera Pauw was released in 2023 and John O’Shea as the men’s interim manager because Canham needed eight months to recruit Heimir Hallgrímsson. “There will be an interim solution.”
