FAI appoints former Hoop Martin as director of football

The Football Association of Ireland has confirmed the appointment of John Martin as director of football.

A former League of Ireland player with UCD, Longford Town and Shamrock Rovers, Martin worked in financial services and was an assistant manager with both Shelbourne and Longford Town before taking over as chief executive officer with the Hoops in 2023.

The FAI said that in the role of director of football, Martin "will work directly with the Ireland men’s and women’s head coaches and the leads for women & girls’ football, competitions, coach education, refereeing and football strategic projects".

"He will be part of the FAI's senior leadership team and will oversee the football leadership team as part of his core responsibilities, which will also include bringing alignment to women & girls’ football, working with key stakeholders and delivering on strategic projects."

Martin gave Shamrock Rovers his notice in April, 11 days before the FAI's former chief football officer Marc Canham announced he would leave his role in the summer.

He joins an embattled organisation which, in the last month alone, has announced plans for redundancies (for an estimated 20-30% of its workforce) as it seeks to continue to reduce debt that has been brought down from €70m in 2020 to €40m today; had to respond to the news that its former women's head coach and current head of football strategic insights and planning, Eileen Gleeson, is suing the association for alleged discrimination; and facing calls to remove Heimir Hallgrimsson as men's head coach, just 14 months after his surprise, long-delayed appointment, in the week of a shock World Cup qualifying loss in Armenia.

Martin said: "I’m excited to take up the role and responsibilities of director of football with the Football Association of Ireland in what is a really important period for the development and future of Irish football.

"There is fantastic work being done all around the country, but there is a lot more that we can do to facilitate players, coaches, match officials, clubs, leagues, administrators and volunteers to be even better and continue to raise standards. I’m looking forward to working with people from all levels of the game to help make Irish football stronger and ensure that we are catering for everyone involved in our game."

The FAI also announced that Shane Robinson will report to Martin as technical director following a period in an interim role.

It said that Robinson will "continue to work with all youth international teams and lead on player development, talent identification, and performance support, helping to shape the next generation of Irish players and prepare them for senior international football".

FAI CEO David Courell said: "John was the stand-out candidate and offers a great blend of skills and experience that will be key to aligning the football community and driving our long-term vision in the football pathways plan going forward.

"I am confident that with John and Shane, we have the right people in place to help us fulfil the full potential of Irish football."

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