LAST UPDATE | 19 Sep 2025

The 42

THE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION OF Ireland have withdrawn from a planned appearance before a Joint Oireachtas Committee next Wednesday. 

The Association were invited to attend the Committee to discuss their safeguarding procedures following revelations made in a joint investigation by RTÉ and the Sunday Independent.

The invite was initially sent in July, for which the FAI sought a deferral. 

The meeting was due to go ahead next Wednesday, with CEO David Courell, president Paul Cooke, chairman Tony Keohane, and HR director Aoife Rafferty set to attend on behalf of the FAI. 

The Oireachtas Committee subsequently requested the addition of another three representatives as part of the FAI delegation: Eileen Gleeson, former WNT head coach and current head of research and insights; Kirsten Pakes, the FAI’s head of safeguarding; and Gareth Maher, the head of media for the FAI women’s team. 

Gleeson is currently suing the FAI for alleged discrimination over her treatment as WNT head coach.

However, following an FAI board meeting today, the Association wrote to the Committee to say they would not attend on Wednesday as planned.

In a letter to the Committee today, seen by The 42, the FAI say they they are withdrawing from their appearance “with great frustration, but in line with the stated Garda position.”

The FAI are concerned questioning from the Committee may prejudice the ongoing Garda investigation arising from the RTÉ/Sunday Independent investigation, saying these concerns “ have been amplified” by recent correspondence with the Committee. 

“Despite our repeated clarification of the limits of what can appropriately be provided or discussed, there has been conflicting messaging from the Committee which has created significant uncertainty and doubt around the scope of the hearing”, say the FAI in their letter. 

The FAI cite four points which raised their concern about the scope of the Committee appearance. These include the Committee’s requesting of 10 documents related to specific cases, which the FAI say “fell well beyond the Committee’s remit.”

The FAI also say the Committee’s decision this week to invite another three FAI employees as part of the delegation was issued with “five working days notice” and includes “ individuals that have no direct role in safeguarding.” This, the FAI say, “gives us further reason to doubt the Committees intentions.” 

The FAI letter continues, “The above aspects give rise to a very real and legitimate concern that any hearing will stray into areas outside of the Committee’s stated remit of safeguarding policies and procedures, and risk prejudicing ongoing Garda investigations and the rights of third parties.

“The FAI therefore, in line with the stated Garda position, respectfully defer the invitation to attend on 24th September until such time as the ongoing Garda investigation has concluded.” 

In a statement issued to The 42, Committee chair Alan Kelly TD says the FAI’s withdrawal is “deeply worrying”, adding that the FAI appear to be questioning the Committee’s intentions which, he says, is “is unacceptable and indeed unprecedented.” 

Kelly further states that the Garda position stated by the FAI “is not a matter for the Committee. 

“No Oireachtas Committee would ever operate if a precedent was set by the manner in which the FAI have used such Garda correspondence in its refusal to attend the Oireachtas Committee”, states Kelly, adding the Committee will now discuss the situation with the Minister for Sport.

“The FAI are funded by the taxpayer and were requested to come before the Committee next week to discuss safeguarding concerns among other matters. It is deeply worrying that the FAI have this afternoon withdrawn from this scheduled appearance at our Committee”, reads Kelly’s statement. 

“The letter the committee received from the FAI does not in any way explain why they have chosen to take this course. It seems to question the intentions of the committee which is unacceptable and indeed unprecedented.

“The scope of the meeting hasn’t changed in any way. It is deeply concerning that the only thing that has changed is a request from committee members for three additional witnesses. It seems that as a result of this the FAI have made this decision. That is the only conclusion that can be drawn.

“In the FAI correspondence, there is a constant reference to the ‘stated position’ of An Garda Siochana in relation to some FAI related issues being investigated. These are not a matter for the Committee. The operation of an Oireachtas Committee isn’t a matter for An Garda Siochana either. No Oireachtas Committee would ever operate if a precedent was set by the manner in which the FAI have used such Garda correspondence in its refusal to attend the Oireachtas Committee. The committee will have to consider this in further, greater detail.

“Finally, we will also have to correspond with the Minister for Sport in relation to all these matters given that the taxpayer, through the Government, ultimately funds the FAI.”

The Committee invitation initially followed a claim made under Dáil privilege by Pádraig O’Sullivan TD in June that the FAI were aware of the allegations nine months before the joint investigation by RTÉ and the Sunday Independent was published in July 2024.

Minister of State at the Department of Sport Charlie McConalogue told the Dáil that the FAI did not respond inappropriately to the allegations, saying they acted in accordance with mandatory reporting requirements by contacting An Garda Síochána and Tusla once the Association received a formal complaint in January 2024.

The FAI declined to comment when contacted by The 42. 

Updated at 19.20 with statement by Alan Kelly TD

Written by Gavin Cooney and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.