{"product_id":"9780241990063-champagne-football","title":"Champagne Football","description":"\u003cmeta content=\"text\/html; charset=utf-8\" http-equiv=\"Content-Type\"\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eJohn Delaney and the Betrayal of Irish Football: The Inside Story\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eTHE NO.1 BESTSELLER!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'I read it in one sitting, it's a superb book' Eamon Dunphy,\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Stand \u003c\/i\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'An astonishing exposé' Martin Ziegler,\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eThe Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOver the course of fifteen years, John Delaney ran the Football Association of Ireland as his own personal fiefdom. He had his critics, but his power was never seriously challenged until last year, when Mark Tighe and Paul Rowan published a sequence of stories in the \u003ci\u003eSunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e containing damaging revelations about his personal compensation and the parlous financial situation of the FAI. Delaney's reputation as a great financial manager was left in tatters. He resigned under pressure, and the FAI was left hoping for a massive bail-out from the Irish taxpayer.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \u003ci\u003eChampagne Football\u003c\/i\u003e, Tighe and Rowan dig deep into the story of Delaney's career and of the FAI's slide into ruin. They show how he surrounded himself with people whose personal loyalty he could count on, and a board that failed to notice that the association's finances were shot. They detail Delaney's skilful cultivation of opinion-formers outside the FAI. And they document the culture of excess that Delaney presided over and benefited from, to the detriment of the organization he led.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eChampagne Football\u003c\/i\u003e is a gripping, sometimes darkly hilarious and often enraging piece of reporting by the award-winning journalists who finally pulled back the curtain on the FAI's mismanagement.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e____________\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Excellent' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eIrish Sun\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A jaw-dropping story . brilliant' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eIrish Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Essential reading' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eIrish Daily Star\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Astonishing . Side-splittingly hilarious'\u003c\/b\u003e \u003ci\u003eGuardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A damning account' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eSunday Independent\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'An instant classic, one of the all-time great Irish sports books'\u003c\/b\u003e Alan English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Excellent . includes staggering detail' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eDaily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'A cracking read . [An] incredible amount of jaw-dropping detail' \u003c\/b\u003eMatt Cooper  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'One of the most hotly-anticipated sport books of the year' \u003c\/b\u003eBrendan O'Connor  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'A masterpiece' \u003c\/b\u003eTommy Martin\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'At last, the truth of his ruinous reign has been rigorously and painstakingly exposed' \u003c\/b\u003e\u003ci\u003eIrish Daily Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e'\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn absolutely extraordinary book'\u003c\/b\u003e Eoin McDevitt, \u003ci\u003eSecond Captains\u003c\/i\u003e  \u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003cbr\u003e'Remarkable. The desperate story of Irish football but also a book about how Ireland works. Outstanding' \u003c\/b\u003eDion Fanning\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rarewaves","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":39575843143777,"sku":"9780241990063","price":9.26,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0092\/7504\/8033\/files\/stand_32270906.jpg?v=1737106354","url":"https:\/\/www.rarewaves.com\/products\/9780241990063-champagne-football","provider":"Rarewaves.com","version":"1.0","type":"link"}