Sport lines traders' pockets

It was very encouraging to learn that the Dublin Chamber of Commerce was pleased and upbeat about the amount of money which the Tall Ships generated for Dublin business over the weekend. Something in the region of £30 million was generated for the traders of Dublin.

Fair play to the business community of Dublin for acknowledging the importance of the event for the city in contrast to the dog-in-the-manger attitude of the Dublin City Centre Business Association (DCCBA) to the Tour de France.

Readers of this column may recall that the DCCBA bemoaned the fact that they stood to lose customers because of the traffic regulations in Dublin which were imposed to cater for the tour.

They even went so far as to suggest that the Government should compensate them for loss of income and even pleaded that the Dublin Corporation should give them relief on rates. The Chamber of Commerce statement that the Tall Ships brought in some extra money to Dublin traders illustrates very clearly to anyone with their tills open that sport in general generates enormous revenue.

The announcement that the GAA had refixed the controversial Clare-Offaly hurling semi-final for Thurles was greeted with great delight by all concerned and the vendors of drinks, food, hamburgers, chips and flags and colourful hats were sent into transports of delight (Iarnrod Eireann included) when they learned of the decision. Now, the point at issue here is the relationship which exists between sport and commerce. It is fair to say that in recent years the introduction of sponsorship has recognised and supported sport in many ways and that both have benefited.

This refers not only to the nationwide support for the GAA by organisations such as Carrolls, Bank of Ireland and Guinness but also for many other sports by large and small commercial concerns. These sponsors have benefited enormously by having their logos emblazoned on jerseys and other playing gear with a consequent spin-off on television and photographs in newspapers and magazines. Despite that it would seem that many businesses adopt a hands-off attitude to big sporting events and are willing to rake off what they can from the supporters and then wash their hands of some of the problems which large crowds inevitably generate.

In this respect it is appropriate to pay tribute to the people and traders of Thurles in regard to litter. Readers of the letters page in this newspaper will be aware that the problem of litter has become acute. However, I have been in Thurles for big matches on a number of occasions recently and I have found that official attitudes are exemplary.

Walking in The Square in Thurles later one evening or night after a big match, the litter scattered around by the supporters and left by on-street vendors was simply disgraceful. Yet, when I went to catch an early train the following morning, it was clear to me that a lot of work had been done from daybreak onwards because The Square and the surrounding streets were clear of rubbish.

Sport of all kinds contributes enormously to the commercial life of this country but it seems that this contribution is not always appreciated, as evidenced by the criticism of the Tour de France by the Dublin City Centre Business Association.

The huge turn-outs in Dublin in recent years for Barry McGuigan, Stephen Roche, the Irish soccer team and others illustrates this fact. In addition the racing and golfing fraternities contribute hugely to the commercial life of the country. Neither should the contribution to the social life of our country be underestimated. In spite of many events which have cast negative shadows over us all, our sporting men and women and the bodies which organise events, have given signal service to all of us.

Apart from relieving us of gloom and doom and giving our hearts a lift from time to time the sporting bodies have, in many cases, taken on responsibilities which might otherwise have become a drain on the resources provided by the taxpayer. That is why it rankles when criticism of the distribution of monies from the National Lottery continues to surface. These critics seem to have forgotten that one of the original and main purposes of the National Lottery was to support sport and the arts. The critics should not forget that money from the National Lottery is contributed on a voluntary basis and is not taken from the taxpayer.

Now that the Dublin Chamber of Commerce has acknowledged the commercial spin-off from the Tall Ships spectacular, perhaps they might make a similar statement about the great contribution to Dublin's commercial life by the GAA, the FAI, the IRFU, BLE, the racing and golfing fraternities and so on. A little note of thanks would not be out of place.