Sport

Budget leaves sporting bodies running to stand still

A 5 per cent increase in funding leaves little room for new measures, with inflation biting hard

Ireland’s Rhasidat Adeleke celebrates breaking the national record in the Women’s 400m Final in the European Championships in Munich, Germany last year. Picture: Inpho/Morgan Treacy

Government funding for sports and recreation for 2024 has been set at €183.3 million, a top-line increase of 5 per cent.

While Thomas Byrne, the Minister for Sport, heralded that increase as “significant” given that inflation has been running at a similar level, the truth is that this is a status-quo budget for sports as there was little room for new measures.

Among the measures highlighted by Byrne were a doubling of funding for women ...