“Worse before it gets better”: Will Clarke on fixing Ireland’s broken football system

“Worse before it gets better”: Will Clarke on fixing Ireland’s broken football system

“Worse before it gets better”: Will Clarke on fixing Ireland’s broken football system


When Ireland lost to Armenia in a game which seemed to end their hopes of qualifying for next year’s World Cup, there were many wondering if Irish football had reached rock bottom. The bad news is that in football, as in all walks of life, things can always get worse. As an association, the FAI lurches from crisis to crisis. They too demonstrate that there may not necessarily be a rock bottom. A body which experienced the reputational scarring of the John Delaney era has been unable to do much to alter its public image in the ensuing years.  Instead,…