Should the NFL get out of Ireland? On Sunday, September 28th, Ireland hosted an American football game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings at Croke Park. In the weeks leading up to and in the wake of the event, there has been a significant amount of backlash from people who believe that the NFL has no place in Ireland, and certainly no place being welcomed by the state with a €10,000,000 incentive.
In the Dáil, People Before Profit-Solidarity TD, Ruth Coppinger, decrying the ten million euro allocation toward the game, called the NFL “the most jingoistic league in America”, referencing the league’s promotion of the U.S. military, and claimed that “it prays for the Israeli army and it sends players over to the IDF while a genocide is taking place.” Several pro-Palestinian groups have also spoken out. Former Gaelic Footballer David Hickey, head of Irish Sport for Palestine, criticised the Gaelic Athletic Association’s (GAA) acceptance of the game and use of Croke Park, and went as far as to say “the GAA, in co-operating with an enemy, is committing treason”. Broadly, there has been criticism of the importation and celebration of a game so associated with a specific strand of Americanism, one that many Irish people feel is contrary to their values, backed by the Irish government and the GAA. For many, it feels like a decision that prioritises tourists over locals to satisfy economic interests, one that further dilutes Irish culture. Last year, state funding for Irish sport was just under 30 million euros.
Despite these charges, Ireland’s decision to host the game does not represent a change in course for the government. It affirms the strategy which has helped to roughly quadruple Irish per capita GDP in the last quarter century, welcoming American corporations and business partnerships. In the 1999 Finance Act, Ireland lowered its corporate tax rate from 32% to just 12.5%, currently the lowest in the EU after Hungary and Bulgaria. This choice, along with a highly skilled English-speaking workforce, made Ireland very attractive for multinationals looking to do business in the EU. According to the Central Statistics Office, 71% of Gross Value Added, the main component of GDP, was generated by foreign-owned multinationals in 2022, more than 300 billion euros. They also represented 27% of employment. Of the GVA produced by foreign multinationals, 78% was from those that are American-owned. In 2024, Corporate taxes contributed 36% of total tax receipts (€39b), 88% of which came from foreign-owned multinationals. By some estimates, 90% of the taxable profits of multinationals come from American firms.
These companies are a key reason why Ireland is among the richest countries in the EU and why Irish median income has persistently grown at a high rate since the financial crisis. Some argue that this has accelerated the cost-of-living crisis and exacerbated inequality. This could well be true, though I will point out that the issues are now virtually ubiquitous across Western countries. However, none of the major political parties in Ireland advocate for increasing the corporate tax rate. To their credit, People Before Profit stands out in this regard, though even their proposal keeps the rate lower than that of the United States. Contextualised in this way, it seems perfectly in character to allocate 10 million euros for the NFL game to facilitate an estimated 64 million euros in economic activity and 20 million euros in additional tax returns.
It is not just about the 10 million, of course. Much of the discourse has been about the values the NFL represents and brings to Ireland: zionism, nationalism, and militarism, chief among them. Though not necessarily inaccurate, the NFL is not exceptional in these regards. The militarism and nationalism represented in the NFL are more or less par for the course in the U.S., where the military enjoys broad popular approval and patriotism is expected of basically any major organisation. More contentious is the point about the league’s support for Israel. The NFL is not particularly vocal about Israel, but let’s consider Coppinger’s claims. I am unsure what she was referencing when she said it sends players to the IDF, and the prayers for Israel were on October 12, 2023, just 5 days after the October 7th attack. Make of this what you will. However, I do not think it stands out among American corporations. Most of the largest American multinationals with a presence in Ireland do business in Israel, and a number of them, including Microsoft, Red Hat (a subsidiary of IBM), and Intel, have contracts with the Israeli government.
I am not here to praise the morals of the NFL or imply that Ireland has some debt of gratitude for American conglomerates. All I am asking for is some recognition of the issue’s nuance. If you think the NFL has no place in Ireland, you should think the same of the other American multinationals (and raise the corporate tax rate!). If you do support such an exodus, understand the implications that will have for the Irish economy and tax revenues. Sunday’s game, with all its promotion, fanfare, and loud American advocates, presents an easy target for people to channel their resentment towards, but the phenomenon it represents is far broader and has massive implications for the future of Ireland. Alternatively, you can look on the bright side and accept the inspiring words of Finance Minister, Paschal Donohoe: “With all the causes we have at the moment that are pulling us apart and all the tensions there at the moment, sport and art offer the ability to bring people together.”