Sky Ireland is the new shirt sponsor of the Republic of Ireland’s men’s football team and has extended its backing of the women’s national side. Details of the four-year contract were not disclosed by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) or Sky but the deal is said to be worth around €8 million. The men’s team, under interim head coach, John O’Shea, take on Belgium at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday followed by Switzerland, again at home, next Tuesday.
The women’s team start their Euro qualifiers away to France on April 5.
The new deals will see Sky supporting both squads through four major tournament campaigns – next year’s Uefa women’s Euro, the 2026 Fifa World Cup, the 2027 Fifa women’s World Cup and Uefa Euro in 2028. FAI CEO Jonathan Hill said: “Sky is a great brand and business in its own right, and the team at Sky are committed to working with us to proactively promote both of our senior teams over the coming years – a perfect partner.”
Ambition
Sky Ireland CEO JD Buckley said: “From day-one of our women’s partnership, our ambition has been to give them a platform to inspire younger generations to play the game, stay in the game and support the game. As primary partner across both teams for the next four years, we now have the opportunity to build on what we have achieved, support our national teams and work with the FAI to ensure future opportunities for young players.”
Three was the last shirt sponsor of the men’s team, investing €30m over ten years up to 2020.
Caroline Donnellan, Sky Ireland’s director of brand and marketing, was voted Marketer of the Year last year for her achievements in spearheading a new strategy in transforming the Comcast subsidiary from a UK operation with a global reach to a brand that won over the hearts and minds through locals connections. The judges believed that Sky’s support for the Ireland women’s team played a pivotal role in the brand’s revised strategy.
