David Sneyd

ST PATRICK’S ATHLETIC and Shamrock Rovers could make this one of the most memorable periods in League of Ireland history.

So, it’s a shame that so much of the build up to two European play-offs has been overshadowed by debates and controversy regarding the absence of TV coverage and the scheduling of domestic fixtures.

Never before have two clubs been on the cusp of group stage action in the same season.

Rovers are away to PAOK this Thursday in the first leg of their Europa League play-off.

The nature of the qualification process means that, at a minimum, they are guaranteed to parachute into the Uefa Conference League should the Greek club triumph.

That is where St Pat’s are aiming for when they host Istanbul Basaksehir at Rovers’ Tallaght Stadium on the same night.

The Saints progressed through the last two qualifying rounds in stirring fashion, beating Vaduz and Sabah, while the Hoops pulled off a stunning comeback win against Celje last week to make this a thrilling part of the season.

The two Dublin clubs have flown the flag in Europe after Derry City fell at the first hurdle in Conference League qualifying to opposition from Gibraltar. Shelbourne made it to round two where FC Zurich proved too much.

There have been 16 games involving Irish clubs in Europe this summer and none have been shown on domestic television.

RTÉ, Virgin Media, TG4 and Premier Sports have all been approached at different stages.

Rovers expressed their frustration at the situation on Monday and suggested they would not grant permission for RTÉ cameras to show games at Tallaght for the rest of this season.

RTÉ responded to a request for comment from The 42 on the back of this and said that they informed the FAI in November that “for financial and editorial reasons”, the national broadcaster would not be broadcasting League of Ireland clubs in Europe.

RTÉ said this was “communicated to the clubs by the FAI”, although there is confusion regarding that fact as at least one did not receive such information in writing.

It was pointed out that Rovers would be in breach of the Participation Agreement with the FAI as section 23.5 states that “A Broadcast Match shall take place on a day and time as determined by the League Department and be notified as such to the Participant Clubs with at least seven (7) days’ notice.”

Basically, RTÉ and Virgin, the two broadcasters that show domestic games, meet with the FAI to let them know the games they want, and then the FAI informs clubs.

As The 42 has reported previously, there is no standardised TV deal or guaranteed number of times each club will be shown.

It is all done on and ad hoc basis with clubs expected to adhere to the demands without any confirmed income that can be planned for ahead of each season.

It is why Rovers chief executive John Martin expressed the club’s utter frustration on Off The Ball yesterday.

“We just want to provoke a conversation. It’s something League of Ireland clubs have given out about for many years. We just find it incredibly frustrating because we have no clarity and understanding if, and when, games will be on [TV]. The European games have really just brought it home to us in the last couple of months,” he said.

“You think of the teams we have played. We have sold rights packages to Slovenia, Greece and the Czech Republic. The only national broadcaster who has not taken a game has been Ireland. That’s before we even get into getting a rights fee from the broadcaster. That would be standard. For any of the clubs we come across they get a fee, we have not even requested a fee from RTÉ.”

Even these exceptional circumstances – and the exceptional achievement of two clubs – have not been enough to make any broadcaster deem it worthy to push the boat out.

Premier Sports are contractually obliged to show the group stages, but the play-offs were fair game.

No one was interested.

Even worse, you can be sure the detractors will be ready and willing to pounce should Rovers lose to a club with a squad estimated to be worth in the region of €100 million, with sneers about why they should bother being on TV.

The same goes for St Pat’s, who are up against a club with Champions League experience and have been in European group stage action in three of the last five years – a famous win over Manchester United in the top tier competition a standout from 2021.

Stephen Kenny said it was “insane” and “hard to fathom” that the FAI would not accept their request to reschedule Sunday’s league game away to Dundalk.

It’s sandwiched between the two legs and the Participation Agreement states the following: “The League Director shall have the power to postpone any fixture(s) on giving a minimum of twenty-four (24) hours’ notice to the relevant Participant Clubs should it be deemed to be in the best interests of the League / FAI.”

Again, The 42 has been told that in 2021 the FAI agreed with clubs taking part in Europe that they needed to prevent random domestic fixtures as a result of postponements.

It’s understood that the view in Abbotstown is that it is unsustainable going forward to keep putting in random fixture updates.

The FAI did ask Dundalk to postpone the fixture but, given their relegation worries, they declined.

The decision could have been taken out of Dundalk’s hands if the FAI’s League Director, Mark Scanlon, deemed Pat’s European play-off “in the best interests of the League/FAI.”

So there you have it. No Irish broadcaster is willing to show these European games and even the FAI doesn’t deem them in their own best interest.

An historic week for Irish football yet clubs are fighting a losing battle for respect with institutions that should be championing their cause.