FAI chief apologises ‘unreservedly’ over additional payments issue

The head of the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) has apologised “unreservedly” for an issue that saw him receive payments above limits set in agreement with the Government in order to secure funding.

Politicians characterised the controversy as a “throwback to the John Delaney era”.

FAI chief executive Jonathan Hill received payments for expenses, and in lieu of holidays not taken, which brought his pay above limits set with the Government as part of the organisation’s 2020 bailout.

A recommendation set out in term 35 of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) agreement with the Irish Government sets out that the FAI chief executive’s remuneration should be “in line” with Government pay guidelines for a secretary-general.

The revelation resulted in funding to the FAI temporarily being suspended.

Appearing before the Oireachtas sport committee, Mr Hill said the FAI took “full, immediate corrective action, and the monies in question were returned by myself in full”.

“While we have made strong progress on governance reform, we recognise that those events have placed the spotlight on Irish football for all the wrong reasons and have evoked memories of the recent past which we know Irish football needs to move on from.”

He said the Department of Tourism and Sport is “now fully satisfied that MOU 35 is embedded, and we welcome the decision of the Department and Sport Ireland to resume funding to the association”.

The committee heard it was usual practice for unused holiday days to be carried over into the next year but a discussion about paying a junior member of staff for their annual leave days not taken due to “extraordinary circumstances” occurred in December 2022.

A subsequent conversation about applying the same practice to Mr Hill also followed.

The topic was queried with the chair of the FAI’s renumeration committee who said she would not recommend it as it was “not good practice”.

However, former independent chairman Roy Barrett later made the decision to pay Mr Hill for his unused leave and did not inform board members.

Committee members criticised the incident by comparing it with the management of the organisation under the controversy-ridden stewardship of former chief executive John Delaney.

Fianna Fail TD Christopher O’Sullivan told the current board members the pay issue was a “hammer blow” that “harks back to the old days that we tried to get away from”.

Sinn Fein TD Imelda Munster said it was “extremely disappointing to hear the latest fiasco” with chief executive pay and said the FAI was “letting down the grassroots”.

Her party colleague Chris Andrews said the controversy showed arrogance and was a “throwback to the John Delaney era”.

Mr O’Sullivan said it was “laudable” that Mr Hill had returned the money but raised concern over governance issues within the FAI as he asked when the chief executive first became aware of the payments.

Mr Hill said he first found out the payments would be made to him in March but added that he was aware of the earlier conversation about the junior member of staff in December.

He said he had “never contemplated the possibility” of seeking cash for his holiday days.

Asked if he had asked to be paid for the unused days off, Mr Hill said: “I didn’t push it, I wasn’t asking for it.”

He told the committee that the FAI was not “aware of the implications” of coming out of compliance with the MOU at the time the decision was made.

Asked why he had decided to proceed with the payments and not inform the board, Mr Barrett told Ms Munster that he had “assumed” the executives involved would have informed the relevant board committees.

He said he was not attempting to hide or conceal anything by not informing board members of the decision.

Fine Gael TD Alan Dillon asked if Mr Hill still believed it was credible for him to defend the FAI on governance issues.

The chief executive replied: “Absolutely because, first of all, I think we have genuinely made real progress as an organisation in relation to 2020.

“In terms of my part, I have played in relation to the creation of a very clear strategic plan and the delivery of that strategic plan and the creation of a new senior leadership team.”

He told Mr Andrews he took full responsibility and would not make the same choice again, but added: “I made the decision in good faith for the right reasons.”

Mr Griffin asked the former independent chair if he accepted confidence in the organisation had been rocked.

He replied: “I don’t know if it’s been rocked, it certainly may be dented.

“However, I would point to, again, whatever about this issue and we’ve apologised for it and I’ve apologise for my role in it, but the facts remain over the last four years since we signed the MOU, there has been substantial improvements in every aspect of the organisation.”

Sport Ireland’s chief executive, Dr Una May, said it was “disappointed at the findings of the audit and the payments made to the FAI CEO”, and that the issue had “cast a shadow on the good work done over recent years”.

She said that since the audit, Sport Ireland has engaged with the FAI on the “corrective actions” taken by the organisation in response to the audit findings.

“This entire process gave rise to a delay in the release of funding to the FAI in 2023. However, funding to the FAI was resumed on the December 1 2023 following agreement from the ministers to do so, on the basis that the corrective actions have been satisfactorily addressed by the FAI.”