League of Ireland football coming to Meath?

SOCCEr Navan to be the home of Meath's League of Ireland club

Moves to create a new League of Ireland club in Meath are continuing with a "full launch" expected to be announced in the coming weeks.

The main driving force behind the project is former FAI Chief Executive Bernard O'Byrne who is determined to pushed ahead with ambitious, daring plans to set up a League of Ireland club in the Royal County.

Byrne first indicated in 2022 that he felt the formation of a League of Ireland club in the Royal County was a realistic prospect with Athboy originally planned as the home base.

"Athboy would therefore be a realistic location for this project," Byrne told the Meath Chronicle. "Ideally, we would like to site it in or near the present Cowpark facility in Athboy, home of Athboy Celtic. Conversely it has a growing population and a falling average age population." The early blueprint for the project also included the construction of "a modern, progressive, multi-functional sports and cultural venue."

However, there are indications the new home of the proposed Meath FC will instead be Navan, something that would indicate how Meath FC - if indeed that ends up as the official name - will be a true representative of the the Royal County.

"In terms of where the club will be based, we have several options. Most likely it will be a site adjacent to the good road infrastructure around Navan," O'Byrne said in recent interview with extratime.com.

Byrne, who has served in recent years as chairman of Athboy Celtic, also spoke about his latest hopes and ambitions for the project.

"Since my interview in July 2022, I have engaged with various people in Meath football and our ambition has changed to establishing a League of Ireland presence for Meath rather than just Athboy," he said.

"We have been working hard in the intervening period and are planning for a full launch in early 2024, hopefully in January when we will outline our five to 10-year plan."

The formation of a Meath FC would be similar to how Kerry FC got up and running with various soccer interests in the Kingdom joining forces to become a presence in the League of Ireland - with some success. While Kerry FC have struggled to pick up victories in Div 1 they have at least a foothold in the senior ranks. The story of Kerry FC is, in many ways, a blueprint for the project in Meath. As a former prominent FAI official O'Byrne is well connected in the game and knows the standards that have yet to be reached.

"The FAI have a comprehensive list of requirements around facilities, coaching and financial sustainability," O'Byrne told extratime.com. "We will fulfil those requirements and indeed exceed them."