Category: News

Sweet Beat Cafe Partner with Ladies Under 19’s

Sligo Rovers are delighted to announce a new partner for our Ladies Under 19 team.

Sweet Beat Cafe will become official partners and appear on the back of the girl’s playing shirts for the season ahead.

Sweet Beat Cafe is an award winning family run planet-first café and shop featuring inventive and creative plant-based dishes and offering 3FE coffee. Sweet Beat also offers and eco retail collection at their base overlooking The Garavogue River on Wine Street in Sligo Town.

Company founder and Creative Director Carolanne Rushe expressed her delight today:

“We are thrilled to be able to sponsor the girls this coming season. For us, it’s important to help out locally and being local business, it feels like the right choice to support the team in their first season in the league. Ladies football and sport in general is vitally important and there is a clear plan in place at The Showgrounds which is one of the reasons we wanted to get involved.

Sligo Rovers Ladies Committee expressed their thanks to Sweet Beat:

‘We are really grateful to Sweet Beat for their support. Their logo looks great on our shirts and we hope they will be able to come up and watch the girls play in the coming months. Sweet Beat were very supportive to the Sligo Community during the COVID lockdowns by providing food deliveries to those in need and this shows their support to the community again’’.

You can visit the Sweet Beat on Wine Street in Sligo Town. They open 7 days a week. Check out their website at sweetbeat.ie or find them on social media @sweetbeatsligo

Sign up for new streaming service

LOITV passes are now available to purchase ahead of the season restart.

The Premier Division will join the SSE Airtricity First Division and the SSE Airtricity Women’s National League on LOITV.ie, with all three divisions on one streaming platform.

Match pack season ticket holders should click here to learn how to redeem their streaming pass.

Supporters who didn’t buy a match pack season ticket can now purchase their Premier Division Pass which covers all matches from now until the end of the season, for just €79. With 110 matches left in the 2021 season, that works out at just €0.79 per match.

The platform will aid Rovers financially with Season Pass sales set to go to the subscribers’ selected team whilst pay-per-view revenue will go to the home side of the individual fixture, a valuable revenue stream for the League of Ireland.

The Premier Division matches will be broadcast via the clubs’ own production solutions including replays and multiple camera set-ups. Rovers have hired Studio Rove, a local company, and will provide these features along with a commentary team. More features will be added over time.

Head over to LOITV.ie now and get your season pass or learn more below

Moving from WATCHLOI to LOITV

  • Rovers supporters who have match pack s can use five tickets to redeem a passClick here for more info
  • Former WATCHLOI customers are encouraged to subscribe to loitv.ie to get access to all the remaining Premier Division fixtures this season for just €79

Europa Conference League draw explainer

Sligo Rovers will enter the first round draw for the UEFA Europa Conference League next Tuesday.

With the Bit O’ Red set to make a first appearance in Europe since 2014, we look at the details ahead of the draw.

When is the draw?

The draw is scheduled for Tuesday 15 June at 12pm on UEFA.com. You will be able to stream it live.

When are the games?

The first round is two legs. The games are scheduled for 8 and 15 July. The home fixture will likely be early evening. The draw will determine whether the home game is on 8 or 15 July.

Can I stream the games?

Yes. We will stream the home game which will be outside of the LOI TV platform. We will announce this in detail shortly. For the away game, we will update fans closer to the date as the opposition will determine such a facility.

Can I attend the home game?

We are still awaiting news on the UEFA policy for this season.  If possible we will allow a small number of fans to attend under current guidelines in Ireland. They must purchase in advance.

Who can we face?

UEFA will shortly confirm the seedings.

The Bit O’ Red will be unseeded, meaning our possible opposition can come from these countries based on current standings.

Andorra: FC Santa Coloma

Albania (2): Partizani, Laci

Bosnia and Herezgovina (2): Sarejevo, Siroki Brijeg

Estonia: FCI Levadia

Faroe Islands (2): KI, NSI Runavik

Finland: KuPS

Gibraltar: Europa

Hungary (2): Fehervar, Puskas Akademia

Iceland (2): FH, Starnan

Kosovo: Drita

Latvia: Liepaja

Lithuania: Suduva

Malta (2): Hibernians, Gzira

Moldova: Petrocub Hincesti

Montenegro: Sutjeska

Northern Ireland: Coleraine

North Macedonia: Shkupi

Poland: Slask Wroclaw

San Marino (2): La Fiorita, Tre Penne

Slovakia: Spartak Trnava, Zilina

Slovenia (2): Maribor, Domzale

Wales (2): The New Saints, Bala Town

When will it be narrowed down?

It’s expected that in the 24 hours before the draw the teams will be grouped into five teams. There will be seven groups of five teams, seeded and unseeded

Numbers are allocated to each team and the draw itself will be see one number chosen from seeded and one unseeded.

One pairing creates seven ties at once from the seven groups.

Will the draw be regionalised?

The groups of five often consist of some sort of regionalisation but due to the complex make-up of clubs in each draw, no such thing is guaranteed.

Does the second round draw take place the same day?

No, it is done 24 hours later. The first-round pairing involving Rovers will be in the draw and again it will be streamed on UEFA.com.

Oh Hello Clothing parter up with Ladies Under 19’s

We are delighted to announce a new partner for our Ladies Under 19 team.

Oh Hello Clothing will become official partners and appear on the back of the girl’s playing shirts and front of shorts this season.

Established in 2015, Oh Hello Clothing is a Sligo based, family run Irish business dedicated to bringing their customers unique, girly, gorgeous pieces and providing them with the best possible customer experience.

Based in Collooney, Oh Hello Clothing proudly ship globally from Sligo through dedicated shipping partners.

With over 15 years experience in fashion and retail, you can trust that Oh Hello Clothing will look after you with their speedy shipping times and friendly customer service.

Founders and owners Kimberley & Graham Lee are lifelong Rovers fans and are absolutely delighted to be part of the sponsorship team for the Under 19 Ladies squad in their inaugural season in the Women’s National Under 19 League.

“We are delighted to be in a position to sponsor the Bit O’ Red Ladies. Being a local business, life long supporters of the club and looking after all things ladies – it feels like a natural choice. We wish the girls the very best of luck for the coming season”

Sligo Rovers Ladies Committee:

‘’We really appreciated the Lee’s in their support of the girls for this coming season. It’s really great to see a local, family run business achieve so much in a relatively short few years. They have a massive following online and we hope that we can help them here with this partnership throughout the season. It’s a big help to the girls and we are really grateful’’.

You can visit the company’s website at ohhelloclothing.com or find them on social media @ohhelloclothing

Academy staff confirmed

Our 2021 Academy coaching staff have been confirmed as all our academy teams return to pre season action this week.

Our Under 19 men’s team will be managed by Declan Boyle who has taken over the reigns from Brian Dorrian. Garry Buckley will be part of the sides coaching staff. We’d also like to welcome two new members to our coaching staff. Mick Duffy and Barry Mullen join the club for the first time.

Ryan Casey continues to manage our Under 17 boy’s side. Casey will be assisted by Packie Lynch for their third season in a row. Lewis Banks and Ultan McKenna will make up the coaching team at that age level.

Our Under 15 side will be managed by Paul Masterson and Marcel Gordon. The pair have been working together alongside Conor O’ Grady for the last number of seasons and now continue to manage the team alongside the influential Greg Bolger.

Alan Farry manages the Under 14 side (previously Under 13) for his third season alongside Kieran Brick. Youngsters Niall Morahan and Mark Byrne are also part of the backroom team for 2021.

Our Ladies’ teams have also had some changes this season.

Darragh Healy takes charge of the new Under 19 team alongside Scott Lynch. Darragh previously managed the club’s Under 17 Ladies team in 2019.

Aaron O’ Connor from Boyle comes into the club as manager of our Under 17 Ladies team, taking over from Danny O’ Leary. O’ Connor has a wealth of experience in the game. Irish international Emma Hansberry joins the club in a coaching role alongside Stacey Muldowney. Both girls have plenty of experience in Ladies football.

The club have also appointed a Head of Goalkeeping for the 2021 season. Brian Morahan will oversee the goalkeepers of all academy teams. Brian has been working in the Under 19 backroom team for a number of years and this new role will be a vital one for our club net minders.

Head of Strength & Conditioning for the 2021 season is Ross Chrystal. Ross is overseeing the players’ training programmes and is an important member of the club’s staff.

Chris Jenkins will become the Academy’s video analyst and work alongside the club’s coaching staff in tracking team performance on the pitch.

Declan Brennan and Ciara Mulrooney will oversee the men’s and ladies’ physiotherapy from their base at The Showgrounds.

Overstock become Ladies Under 19 Main Sponsor

Sligo Rovers are delighted to announce a new front of shirt sponsor for our Ladies Under 19 team in our first season competing in the Women’s National League.

Overstock Ireland is based in Sligo and is the European Technology Headquarters for Overstock.com, a technology driven online retailer. The company is based in a state of the art campus at Finisklin Business Park, where they recently invested €1 million in a move there.

‘’At Overstock Ireland we are always looking for ways to advocate for our local community of Sligo, and get ahead of the ball to support efforts promoting women in underrepresented sectors. We are delighted to announce our sponsorship of the Sligo Rovers Ladies Under 19 team.

As part of Sligo Rovers’ long term plan for the women’s game they have expanded their academy for The 2021 season by adding an Under 19 team alongside their Under 17 team which will enter their fourth season in the Women’s National League. The team is made up of players from all over the North West region and we are patiently waiting as restrictions ease to get out and support the ladies on their campaign this year, and really look forward to seeing our logo on the Bit O’ Red shirt’’.

Sligo Rovers Ladies Under 19 manager Darragh Healy expressed his thanks to Overstock.

‘Overstock have been great supporters of the club in recent years with various sponsorships including match sponsorships and a pitch-side sign. They create jobs for the North West region and with our academy providing a pathway for boys and girls from The North West Region, it’s a nice match. We are very grateful to Overstock and look forward to working with them in the coming months’’.  

The Under 19 ladies team are currently preparing for our inaugural season in the Women’s National League alongside our Under 17’s under the guidance of Darragh Healy and Aaron O’ Connor.

Irish International player Emma Hansberry has been added to the coaching staff for the season ahead, who’s experience at the top level of the women’s game will no doubt help guide the players through their time at the club.

Pre-Season friendlies can begin in June with the season expected to begin a few weeks later.

You can visit the Overstock’s website at www.overstock.com.

Update on attending games

Sligo Rovers wish to confirm that 100 supporters will be permitted to attend our SSE Airtricity Premier Division match with Drogheda United next weekend. 

The match takes place on Saturday 12th June at 7.45pm.

The Showgrounds can host 100 fans for games in June under the new Covid-19 guidelines. As the stadum has a capacity of less than 5,000, no more than 100 can attend. 

Match Pack holders will be included in an open draw. Match packs are on sale ahead of the return of supporters to The Showgrounds. Click here to buy.

All match pack holders will be automatically entered into the draw per game. Those 100 will then drop out of the ballot for our next game until all ticket holders attend a match. 

Supporters will be contacted by this weekend if they have been successful and will be asked to confirm their attendance and fill in a Covid-19 declaration form before attending.

Should the planned Covid-19 re-opening continue, 200 fans can attend games later in the summer and up to 1,000 from August. 

As such, only match pack holders will be considered for European fixtures and all games in the summer period. 

We encourage supporters to buy match packs in order to be eligible to attend games. 

Meanwhile, local company Studio Rove have been hired for our match night production on the LOITV streaming service. 

Professional commentators will be hired by the club also. Supporters can purchase a streaming pass for €79 or by using five passes in their match packs. 

To redeem please follow the instructions below:

  • Take five tickets from your match pack book.
  • Post them to: Secretary, Sligo Rovers FC, The Showgrounds, Sligo. (before Wednesday June 9th – streaming passes will only be redeemed once tickets have been received)
  • Include a note with the tickets with your name and e-mail address (e-mail address is important as your streaming code will be emailed to you)
  • We advise you to please send these in without delay as the season restarts on Friday June 11th and Rovers’ first game is due to be Saturday June 12th.
  • Once we receive the five tickets, we will send an email with instructions on how to access the streaming service.
  • For any enquiries, please email colinfeehily@sligorovers.com or call071-9171212

Non match pack holders can purchase a pass on the new platform directly.

New streaming service available now

LOITV passes are now available to purchase ahead of the season restart.

The Premier Division will join the SSE Airtricity First Division and the SSE Airtricity Women’s National League on LOITV.ie, with all three divisions on one streaming platform.

Match pack season ticket holders should click here to learn how to redeem their streaming pass.

Supporters who didn’t buy a match pack season ticket can now purchase their Premier Division Pass which covers all matches from now until the end of the season, for just €79. With 110 matches left in the 2021 season, that works out at just €0.79 per match.

The platform will aid Rovers financially with Season Pass sales set to go to the subscribers’ selected team whilst pay-per-view revenue will go to the home side of the individual fixture, a valuable revenue stream for the League of Ireland.

The Premier Division matches will be broadcast via the clubs’ own production solutions including replays and multiple camera set-ups. Rovers have hired Studio Rove, a local company, and will provide these features along with a commentary team. More features will be added over time.

Head over to LOITV.ie now and get your season pass or learn more below

Moving from WATCHLOI to LOITV

  • Rovers supporters who have match pack s can use five tickets to redeem a pass. Click here for more info
  • Former WATCHLOI customers are encouraged to subscribe to loitv.ie to get access to all the remaining Premier Division fixtures this season for just €79

Streaming and Match Pack information – June to End of Season

Sligo Rovers Football Club can announce the plans for streaming our SSE Airtricity Premier Division games between June 11th and the end of the 2021 season. 2021 Match Packs also remain on sale for a limited time, as restrictions on outdoor events begin to ease in the coming months.

Streaming passes will go on sale shortly on a new platform to replace the WatchLOI platform which has been in place since last July. Prices for both season passes and one-off match passes will be announced by The FAI in the coming days. There will be 22 match days included in the package, as opposed to 14 up until the mid-season break at the end of this month.

Sligo Rovers will offer free passes for all our Adult, OAP and Concession 2021 match pack holders, in lieu of five passes from a match pack.

This offer does not apply to Super Reds.

To redeem please follow the instructions below:

  • Take five tickets from your match pack book.
  • Post them to: Secretary, Sligo Rovers FC, The Showgrounds, Sligo. (before Wednesday June 9th – streaming passes will only be redeemed once tickets have been received)
  • Include a note with the tickets with your name and e-mail address (e-mail address is important as your streaming code will be emailed to you)
  • We advise you to please send these in without delay as the season restarts on Friday June 11th and Rovers’ first game is due to be Saturday June 12th. (TBC)
  • Once we receive the five tickets, we will send an email with instructions on how to access the streaming service.
  • For any enquiries, please email colinfeehily@sligorovers.com or call 071-9171212

Non match pack holders can purchase a pass on the new platform directly.

You can still buy your 2021 match packs online or at The Showgrounds. This entitles you to 12 match tickets for Bit O’ Red home fixtures for the rest of the SSE Airtricity League season. These passes can be redeemed in 2022 should any be left over from this year. Match Pack holders will also be given priority to buy any European Match Tickets should crowds be allowed entry or to any FAI Cup matches this season.

To buy your 2021 Match Pack, which also gives you the chance of gaining access to our home games when restrictions on crowds attending are eased, visit: https://srfcdirect.com/season-ticket-2021-12-match-package-adult/

The return of crowds at outdoor events is coming closer, and we are looking forward to allowing supporters back into The Showgrounds once more to support Liam and his Rovers’ squad.

The new streaming service is the perfect way for supporters to support the club with revenue generated set to go to each club and with over 100+ matches set to be on the platform, it is also great value. Crowds may be returning soon but this service will still be a vital tool in following the league and the rest of our season.

The 2021 SSE Airtricity Premier Division season now takes a break after game week 14, where the Bit O’ Red take currently lie in top spot, after last night’s win in Ballybofey over Finn Harps.

Bit O’ Red Chairman Tommy Higgins:

“We’re delighted to be able to secure a streaming service for our supporters for the rest of the season as this has been an important tool in keeping them engaged with how the team are doing and it allows them to also check out the other teams in the league.

With over 100 matches set to be on the platform from the restart of the season to the season’s end, the pass represents excellent value for supporters to enjoy the action.

As the Covid-19 restrictions begin to ease in the coming weeks and months, the service means supporters can continue to follow the team if they are not at the game.

It also gives supporters outside Sligo the chance to follow the team more than ever. Our match packs are also an important as these give supporters priority on matches and also the chance to redeem some Match Pack tickets for a streaming pass’’.  

We advise supporters who buy a Match Pack online to state in the comments section of your order that you wish to redeem 5 tickets for a free streaming pass on the new LOI streaming service.