The FAI have postponed aligning all competitions under its auspices to a ‘summer’ schedule until after 2029.
Noting an “updated approach to competition calendars” the switch to a January to December fixture list from underage up to the League of Ireland has been “reprioritised and will not be considered deliverable” within the current 2026–2029 strategic plan.
Between 2022 and 2024, Marc Canham, the FAI’s former chief football officer, spent “11,000 hours of consultation” travelling around the country selling the merits of an aligned calendar at all levels of the game.
Canham’s predecessor, Ruud Dokter, also attempted to introduce summer football in 2015, but resistance from the Dublin & District Schoolboys/Girls’ League (DDSL), which caters for around 50,000 players, ensured that the plan did not succeed.
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The FAI added: “The association remains committed to improving football pathways and the long-term development of the game, and the consultation on aligned football calendar may be revisited as part of the next strategic planning process.”
