A bid for Ireland to host the 2028 Uefa European Football Championship is a "distraction" from the investment and reorganisation that Irish football needs, the Labour Party has said.
Labour TD Aodhán Ó Ríordáin stopped short of saying the Government should not back the joint Britain and Ireland bid to host Euro 2028.
Mr Ó Ríordáin said, “I remain to be convinced as to what bang by the State is going to get for its buck.”
He said if he or the Labour Party was to choose where funding should go, he would prefer “funding much-needed infrastructure around the country”.
On Tuesday night, a Government spokesman said offering support for the FAI’s expression of interest in jointly hosting the championship does not commit the Government to supporting a final bid.
At the weekly Cabinet briefing, the spokesman confirmed that the Government had decided to offer the FAI support for its expression of interest, at the request of Minister for Arts Catherine Martin and the junior minister for sport Jack Chambers.
However, officials said that this did not amount to a Government promise to support any bid, and a further process of evaluating the costs and benefits would now take place.
A final bid will not be submitted until the spring of next year, it is understood. Officials said the Government had not committed to underwriting any bid to hold the tournament.
It is likely the joint bid by the FAI, the English, Welsh, Scottish FAs and the Irish Football Association will be successful as rivals have faded away. Italy has indicated it would seek only to host the 2032 tournament, while Uefa has ended the Russian bid and Turkey has dropped out.
Structural issues
Mr Ó Ríordáin questioned the FAI’s participation in the bid, saying: “We’re unconvinced as to whether this is the right move for Irish football at this point.”
He added: “There is any amount of structural issues within Irish football and we feel that this type of venture from the FAI will act as a distraction from the type of investment, the type of funding, the type of reorganisation of the Irish game that is very, very much needed.”
He said football is a very important game that “reaches into every disadvantaged area in the country”.
“We’re not sure if the funding or the distraction of hosting Euro 2028 is really going to benefit grassroots football, the type of infrastructure deficits that exist in Irish football and the type of hard discussions that need to take place,” the Dublin Bay North TD said.
Asked if Labour was saying that the Government should not support the bid, Mr Ó Ríordáin said: “I think we need to talk more about it.”
