Endemol Sport Pacts with Football Association of Ireland

LONDON: A ten-year partnership has been firmed up between Endemol Sport and the Football Association of Ireland (FAI) that will see the launch of a major new tournament in Ireland, with Inter Milan taking part in the inaugural event next year.

Endemol Sport will work closely with the sports agency Iconic to manage, operate and produce the pre-season tournament, which will take place at the recently opened Aviva Stadium in Dublin. The inaugural event will take place July 30 and 31, 2011, with Inter Milan announced as the first club to take part. More top European clubs will be unveiled in the coming weeks.

Endemol Sport will manage all commercial rights, including media, across all platforms internationally.

Also as part of the deal, Endemol will sponsor and promote the FAI emerging talent program, which operates at 12 centers across Ireland.

John Delaney, the chief executive of the FAI, said, “Our long-term agreement with Endemol Sport gives us an excellent platform to showcase the Airtricity League which will participate with a representative team in this new club tournament. European Champions, Inter Milan start the exciting lineup of participating clubs and we look forward to unveiling more top sides in the coming weeks. As part of the agreement, Endemol will also sponsor and promote the FAI’s emerging talent program, which provides a pathway for elite players all over Ireland to progress to the professional game. We look forward to working closely with Endemol through this agreement which provide a seven figure sum annually for the benefit of Irish football at all levels.”

Gregg Oldfield, the managing director of Endemol Sport, added, “We are delighted to be working with the Football Association of Ireland in creating a new tournament, which will bring world class football teams to play in front of the Irish football public. We are extremely pleased to have Inter Milan as our first team and look forward to announcing more leading international clubs in the coming weeks.”

Ernesto Paolillo, the CEO of Inter Milan, commented, “Inter Milan are both delighted and honored to be taking part in the inaugural tournament at the magnificent Aviva Stadium in Dublin. We are looking forward to our first visit to Ireland, and to open what is certain to become the world’s premier pre season Football Tournament.”

Damien O’Brien, the managing director of Iconic, remarked, “We look forward to working together on this new tournament and I am personally delighted to be a part of developing future generations of Irish players through the Emerging Talent Programme.”