Press Release
September 27, 2021 • 2 min read
Celebrating a shared passion for Irish sport, today humanitarian agency GOAL is delighted to announce its new partnership with Shamrock Rovers Football Club. The partnership will see Rovers getting behind GOAL’s Jersey Day this October as well as a number of promotional and fundraising initiatives throughout the season.
Founded by sports journalist John O’Shea, GOAL has a long history of collaborating with the best of sporting stars and organisations. This proud tradition lives on today as GOAL teams up with Ireland’s most successful football club. As well as donning their hoops for Jersey Day, Rovers look forward to joining their friends and neighbours at the long-established, much loved Tallaght GOAL Mile this December.
Club Captain Ronan Finn kicked off the partnership in Tallaght saying: “As club captain and someone who believes in the power of leadership, It’s absolutely inspiring to see the courageous work GOALies are doing in places like Haiti and Syria, and it’s an honour for all of us at Rovers to be able to play a small part to help. Many Rovers members and fans have been supporting GOAL’s incredible work for years with the GOAL Mile, and today is a great next step for us all”.
Finn continued: “I’m also proud to call myself a real GOALie today by becoming an official ambassador for GOAL. I look forward to joining the team and doing all I can to raise awareness about the critical need for humanitarian aid across the world.”
GOAL’s Director of Fundraising, Eamon Sharkey, is particularly thrilled about the partnership saying: “I’ve been a Rovers fan for decades and know just how much heart and determination this club has. They understand the importance of courage and community, which are deeply rooted in everything GOAL does. This partnership will bring together two long-established, much-loved and truly passionate organisations to help vulnerable communities devastated by poverty, hunger and conflict across the world”.
On behalf of Shamrock Rovers F.C., Club Director Mark Lynch said: “Upon meeting Eamon and talking about how Shamrock Rovers could help GOAL, we knew that this partnership would be an excellent opportunity for Rovers to broaden our community programme through the various support events that we and GOAL could deliver together. Community is at the heart of Shamrock Rovers and the club is continuously engaged in supporting and building relationships with our local community. We are also mindful of the need to support vulnerable communities on a more global level and this partnership is the ideal way to achieve this.
What’s more, club partner Umbro have generously committed to donate €5 to GOAL for every Shamrock Rovers jersey sold between the 1st – 8th of October, which Shamrock Rovers will match. We look forward to doing our bit for those in need by working in partnership with GOAL.”
The club has also provided complimentary pitchside signage to GOAL at the South Stand end of Tallaght Stadium.
