One More Thing:Denis O'Brien's detractors would argue that that it would be better for Ireland if the billionaire businessman paid his taxes here rather than agreeing to give the FAI a €1 million-plus annual digout to pay for the services of Italian football coach Giovanni Trapattoni.
Nevertheless, O'Brien's generosity is to be welcomed and hopefully "Trap" can work the oracle and take us to South Africa for the 2010 World Cup.
That's when O'Brien could face a dilemma. His Digicel mobile phone operation sponsors a number of teams in the Caribbean and central America including, Jamaica, Barbados, Haiti, Guyana, the Cayman Islands and El Salvador.
Granted none of them is a world power in football, but who's to say one of them won't make it to South Africa? Jamaica's Reggae Boys qualified for France '98.
Haiti has more Digicel subscribers than any other Caribbean nation and O'Brien's loyalty might be strained were they to face the Boys in Green on the big stage.
O'Brien's largesse towards the FAI also makes us wonder if his media rival Sir Anthony O'Reilly might be tempted to give a digout to one of our many cash-strapped sports bodies.
The Irish cricket team, for example, is desperate for funding. Some backing from O'Reilly would certainly add a little spice to games against the West Indies, who enjoy the patronage of O'Brien's Digicel.
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