Minister for Sport Jack Chambers has said there is a plan to capitalize on the achievements of Ireland’s women sporting heroes to encourage girls to participate in sport.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said: “We’ve seen massive growth in the last 20 years in participation, or grassroots for girls, and really strengthening those pathways right through to the high performance system is something we’re anxious to build on .
“We have a ring fenced fund for women in sport. One thing I was anxious to do as Minister for Sport was to ensure that female participation was at the core of how we invested in capital infrastructure,” he said.
Mr Chambers said there has been “phenomenal levels of interest” following England’s win at the recent UEFA Women’s Euro 2022.
He said that the Women in Sport fund is €4m, which represents an increase of €3m.
He also said that the equalization of funding for female and male Gaelic players and the trebling of funding for female Gaelic players was an important signal to girls.
The minister said that the GAA, LGFA and Camogie Association need to “work closely together to see what type of structure could evolve across the three associations”.
Minister Chambers also warned that sporting organizations may face financial consequences if there is not at least 40% female participation on their boards by the end of 2023.
“If sporting organizations don’t meet the 40% [female participation] requirement by the end of 2023 there will have to be an action plan and a financial plan, so if they don’t hit the 2023 target by the end of that year, then there will be financial consequences for sporting organisations,” he said.
Mr Chambers said a €25m fund is being announced today for governing bodies.
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