SPAR and the Football Association of Ireland have extended the reach of their partnership with the launch yesterday of the second year of the SPAR FAI Primary School 5s Programme.
The brand became the official Convenience Retail partner of the FAI in 2015 in a four year deal which included the rebranding of this schools tournament. You can read about that deal here on Sport for Business.
The five-a-side schools competition is open to boys and girls from 4th, 5th and 6th class. County blitzes will begin at the end of this month and the winners will then progress to regional, provincial and the prestigious national finals which will be held in the Aviva Stadium on May 11th.
Former Republic of Ireland International Jason McAteer and current Republic of Ireland Women’s star Aine O’Gorman were on hand to help launch the programme at the stadium yesterday.
Last year’s tournament attracted 1,000 schools and 20,000 players from across the country and with excitement mounting about Ireland’s participation in Euro 2016 those numbers look sure to rise again this year.
“The competition is a wonderful opportunity for both boys and girls of all sporting ability to participate in a fun filled initiative with an emphasis on enjoyment and well-being,” said FAI Schools Chairman Sean Carr.
“It gives a wonderful opportunity to young boys and girls to showcase their talents in the Aviva Stadium at the National Finals.”
“We are very proud to be involved with this programme which sees nearly 20,000 boys and girls get the chance to represent their schools on regional, provincial and even national levels,” added Colin Donnelly, Spar Sales Director.
“We have 420 high quality, conveniently located outlets spread across the country and this programme allows us to give back to our loyal customers and help support schools and communities across the country.”
Spar is also involved with athletics through a number of popular mass participation events. It’s a competitive market with Lidl announcing a €5 million campaign around Ladies Gaelic Football to take place through this year, and Musgraves through Supervalu and Centra holding rights over the All Ireland Football and Hurling Championships.
Image credit: Sportsfile
