It is fair to say that when John Delaney speaks, there is a tendency for the vast majority of people to switch off somewhat. That's a bit unfair because every now and again he does have some quite important things to say about the health of Irish football.
Speaking on RTÉ 2FM's Game On with Hugh Cahill on Tuesday evening, Delaney gave a wide ranging interview in which he defended his salary, defended the price of tickets to Irish internationals and defended the FAI's financial strategy.
However, perhaps the most interesting section of the interview was when the topic of the League of Ireland was brought up. Describing the League as the FAI's 'problem child' Delaney went on to claim that, although the organisation is trying to promote the League, it is effectively working against a tide of indifference from it's target audience.
Perhaps most tellingly of all, Delaney claimed that RTÉ have previously attempted to pay the FAI a significant sum not to cover the League.
I remember them (RTÉ) offering €4 million in negotiations not to cover the League of Ireland at a meeting and I said no, we want a highlights show every Monday night and we want live football.
Cover image credit: David Maher / SPORTSFILE
