TRIVELA GROUP, the American sports investment group that owns League of Ireland side Drogheda United, has instructed co-chair Joanna Byrne to resign.
The development comes a month after Ms Byrne, a Sinn Féin TD for Louth, claimed she was urged to step down after criticising the FAI’s decision to fulfil its Nations League fixtures with Israel.
However, Trivela — which also has a majority stake in Walsall and Danish club Silkebord — says the reason Ms Byrne has now been asked to resign is not linked to her political views but for commenting on private discussions with the club’s hierarchy.
“We thank Ms Byrne for her service to Drogheda United and for the time and effort she devoted to the Club during her tenure as a director and co-chair,” read a statement.
“For the avoidance of doubt, this decision was not taken in any way on the basis of Ms Byrne’s political views or beliefs, which she has expressed freely and in a public manner for the duration of her directorship.
“Rather, this decision followed a statement made regarding private discussions with Club ownership.
“This not only caused a breakdown in the trust and confidence necessary for her to continue in the role as a director of the Club, but also sharpened the governance concerns that had been the topic of those original discussions.”
The statement added that the issue had triggered an internal review regarding the practicality of having a serving politician as a director of one of the group’s clubs.
“That review concluded that this is not a workable arrangement and should have been addressed previously,” it added.
Background
Last month, Ms Byrne voiced her opposition over the FAI confirming it would go ahead with its Nations League fixtures with Israel later this year.
Speaking in her capacity as Sinn Féin’s spokesperson on sport, she said Israel should not be in the competition and UEFA ‘should have expelled them as soon as Israel went into Gaza on a genocidal, ethnic cleansing mission’.
A week later, she claimed she was told by the Drogs’ Board of Directors that her voluntary role as chairperson ‘was no longer tenable with an expectation that I would resign’.
“This unwarranted action was taken after my public statement last week that Ireland should not play Israel in the Nations League while a genocide against the Palestinian people continues,” she said.
“It is profoundly hurtful that expressing a moral view — one shared by the majority of Irish football fans — has led to this approach despite me never referencing the club at any stage whilst doing so.”
At the time, Drogheda United responded by claiming the concerns of Ms Byrne’s fellow board members were ‘unrelated to anyone’s specific political or moral views… [but] over the open criticism of UEFA and the FAI, regulatory bodies to whom the club is subject’.
Ms Byrne, who was born and raised in Drogheda, became the first female chair of a League of Ireland club when she was appointed in 2022.
Trivela Group acquired the club in late 2023.
Everything from irishpost.com and the print edition is available on the Irish Post App — plus more! Download it for Android or Apple IOS devices today.