SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh income likely to go towards day-to-day running of Cork GAA

THE sale of Páirc Uí Chaoimh’s naming rights is more likely to help the running of Cork GAA rather than eating into the debt of the stadium itself, according to John O’Flynn.

The Freemount delegate to Cork County Board is a former tax partner with accounting firm Deloitte and previously served on the county board’s financial planning and advisory sub-committee.

The ten-year deal with SuperValu is worth in the region of €3m to Cork but, rather than simply being put against the €30m owing on the facility, O’Flynn expects the income to provide more breathing space in terms of day-to-day business.

“There was a lot of commentary about it going towards the debt,” he said, “but I don’t see it going towards the debt.
“The day-to-day cashflow is what it’s vital for. There is an annual problem on an ongoing basis at the moment and this will certainly be a welcome addition to the coffers.

“It may not make a direct impact on the debt, but it’ll help Cork manage its finances, day-to-day.”

The move to rename the stadium as SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh will go before delegates on Thursday night. While there had been widespread opposition to the rumours of it being dubbed SuperValu Park, O’Flynn expects the compromise to be met with approval.

“I don’t think many people ever had a problem with SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh,” he said.

“The meeting on Thursday night comes very fast but I suppose they wanted to rubber-stamp it before the activity on Saturday with the rugby match [Munster v Crusaders].

“It was probably the intention to confirm it at the last board meeting but that didn’t happen.”

That the partnership is now proceeding is something that should have positive side-effects for Cork.

“We’ve been expecting something to happen with the naming rights since the stadium was opened,” O’Flynn said.

“The right deal has taken time to find and they’ve obviously shopped around. To be fair, there has been a lot of work done in the commercial area and a lot of new income generated.

Over the last year or so, there has been a big improvement in the area. You would hope that, the more partners we have, the more it’ll encourage others to get involved.”

That view is something that Cork’s Munster Council delegate Joseph Blake agrees with, especially in light of the leaps that the county board have made on the commercial front in the recent past.

“The fact that it’s a 10-year agreement means that Musgraves/SuperValu are in this for the long term,” he said, “they’re not just testing the waters.

“At the last county board meeting, there was a discussion around all of the commercial ventures by the county board and I think also that great credit must go to Sinéad O’Keeffe, the commercial manager.

APPEALING

“They listed out something like 24 commercial partners that Cork GAA have and, hopefully, the fact that Musgraves have come on board for 10 years will entice other companies to come on board, be it with Páirc Uí Chaoimh or with Cork GAA.

“The more revenue that is generated, the more can be used within Cork GAA.”

Blake similarly expects the renaming to pass without issue and he is full of praise for those who have managed to get it over the line. That Cork are dealing with a locally-based company is also a positive.

“I’d like to pay tribute to the county chairperson Pat Horgan, the CEO Kevin O’Donovan, all the officers and of course Ian Allen and all the team in Musgraves for getting this done.

“It was spoken about over the last number of weeks and I think that people across Cork will welcome this decision.

“Having SuperValu on board is a great fit. 

They’re based in Cork for close on 150 years, they’re embedded in the community and are great supporters of the GAA, locally and nationally.

“Unfortunately, I won’t be at the meeting on Thursday night – I’ve a Munster Council meeting in Limerick – but I think that there will be widespread support for the move.”