The organisation said it has signed six deals worth more than €20million over the past 12 months — including new agreements with blue-chip sponsors such as Kellogg’s, Ford and National Irish Bank.
FAI chief executive John Delaney said that 2006 was a record year in terms of sponsorship agreements reflecting the strength of Irish football.
The biggest deal was with sports manufacturer Umbro. The sponsorship deal signed last month is worth at least €16.35million over the next eight years. The company will sponsor a host of FAI competitions including the Junior Cup, the Schools Cup and the Kennedy Cup.
Car giant Ford has signed up as the FAI’s official vehicle supplier and as the new sponsor of the FAI Cup.The deals are valued at more than €2.5million over four years. Beer company Carlsberg which previously sponsored the FAI Cup has become a corporate sponsor of the FAI and has agreed to pump more than €2million into Irish football over the next four years.
Last August the Association also signed a deal with Oceanico Developments — an Anglo-Irish development company. Under the deal Oceanico will provide the association with €200,000 in cash over a two-year period.
More recently it signed a €1.5million deal with NIB. The bank is now the official business bank to the FAI and will also sponsor the Schoolboy FAI National Cups and the Summer Soccer camps.
