Drogs chairman says owners will stump up cash to cover Conference League exit
Drogheda United co-chairman Ben Boycott has confirmed that the club's owners Trivela will stump up €525,000 to offset the financial loss of being kicked out of the UEFA Conference League.
In an open letter to fans of the Louth club, Boycott also accused UEFA of lacking "consistency, clarity, and fairness" in their treatment of the club.
Drogheda earned a place in the Conference League by winning last season's FAI Cup. But Kevin Doherty's side was disqualified from the competition after Danish club Silkeborg, who came under Trivela ownership shortly after Drogheda's cup triumph, also qualified for the Conference League through their league finish two weeks ago.
Now, after the Drogs had an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected on Monday, their chairman has hit out at UEFA.
Boycott wrote: "Let me say first: I absolutely respect UEFA's aim to uphold sporting integrity in European competitions.
"But I believe - strongly- that the way this year's rule changes around multi-club ownership (MCO) were introduced and enforced has unintended negative consequences to that goal. I believe that the process has lacked consistency, clarity, and fairness. And Drogheda United is paying the price."
Boycott says Trivela have agreed to pump €520,000 into the club, the minimum prize money Kevin Doherty's side would have received for competing in the Conference League.
He said: "Trivela will cover the shortfall in revenue from missing Europe, and we are fully committed to seeing this project through.
'Day-to-day operations are unaffected. I will be meeting personally with our players and staff in the coming days, and I hope that we as a group can remain focused on the task at hand.'
But Boycott believes that UEFA did not treat Drogheda with the same level of attention or respect as other clubs in similar situations.
He said: 'It seems that some of those that were contacted and began taking steps before this deadline were then given time to implement structures after the deadline.
'We were not ever contacted directly, and Drogheda was not afforded that same flexibility.
'Worse still, historical precedent gave us every reason to believe that we would have a path to resolve any concerns post-assessment date.
'In recent years, multiple clubs have enacted share transfers, blind trust structures, and other remedies after the assessment date.
'Those precedents shaped our expectations—and we acted accordingly.
'I personally believe this decision makes an example of Drogheda so that UEFA can signal a change of approach to its regulation of MCOs (multi-club ownerships)
'It punishes a club that, just a year ago, was still part-time and operating without a CEO.
'It punishes a community-focused organization run with integrity, ambition, and limited resources—while major clubs with compliance departments and vast legal teams were granted direct communication and additional time to comply.
'That said, accountability ultimately falls on us at DUFC and at Trivela Group.
'The responsibility to navigate regulations—however murky or fast-changing—belongs to our leadership.
'And for that, I offer a personal, sincere apology to our players, staff, and supporters. This will never happen again.'
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Drogheda United co-chairman Ben Boycott has confirmed that the club's owners Trivela will stump up €525,000 to offset the financial loss of being kicked out of the UEFA Conference League. In an open letter to fans of the Louth club, Boycott also accused UEFA of lacking "consistency, clarity, and fairness" in their treatment of the club. Drogheda earned a place in the Conference League by winning last season's FAI Cup. But Kevin Doherty's side was disqualified from the competition after Danish club Silkeborg, who came under Trivela ownership shortly after Drogheda's cup triumph, also qualified for the Conference League through their league finish two weeks ago. Now, after the Drogs had an appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport rejected on Monday, their chairman has hit out at UEFA. Boycott wrote: "Let me say first: I absolutely respect UEFA's aim to uphold sporting integrity in European competitions. "But I believe - strongly- that the way this year's rule changes around multi-club ownership (MCO) were introduced and enforced has unintended negative consequences to that goal. I believe that the process has lacked consistency, clarity, and fairness. And Drogheda United is paying the price." Boycott says Trivela have agreed to pump €520,000 into the club, the minimum prize money Kevin Doherty's side would have received for competing in the Conference League. He said: "Trivela will cover the shortfall in revenue from missing Europe, and we are fully committed to seeing this project through. 'Day-to-day operations are unaffected. I will be meeting personally with our players and staff in the coming days, and I hope that we as a group can remain focused on the task at hand.' But Boycott believes that UEFA did not treat Drogheda with the same level of attention or respect as other clubs in similar situations. He said: 'It seems that some of those that were contacted and began taking steps before this deadline were then given time to implement structures after the deadline. 'We were not ever contacted directly, and Drogheda was not afforded that same flexibility. 'Worse still, historical precedent gave us every reason to believe that we would have a path to resolve any concerns post-assessment date. 'In recent years, multiple clubs have enacted share transfers, blind trust structures, and other remedies after the assessment date. 'Those precedents shaped our expectations—and we acted accordingly. 'I personally believe this decision makes an example of Drogheda so that UEFA can signal a change of approach to its regulation of MCOs (multi-club ownerships) 'It punishes a club that, just a year ago, was still part-time and operating without a CEO. 'It punishes a community-focused organization run with integrity, ambition, and limited resources—while major clubs with compliance departments and vast legal teams were granted direct communication and additional time to comply. 'That said, accountability ultimately falls on us at DUFC and at Trivela Group. 'The responsibility to navigate regulations—however murky or fast-changing—belongs to our leadership. 'And for that, I offer a personal, sincere apology to our players, staff, and supporters. This will never happen again.'
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Within the letter, Boycott noted that the club had been made an "example of" by UEFA, while also detailing plans to secure land for a new stadium. The club have submitted documents to Louth County Council to secure land for a potential new home. Drogheda won the FAI Cup in November, the same month Trivela acquired Danish outfit Silkeborg. Given Trivela holds the full 100% stake in Drogs and 80% shareholding in Silkeborg, Uefa decreed that the higher finisher in their league, the Danes, remained in this week's draw. The basis of the Drogs appeal against their expulsion to the last resort in Switzerland centred on alleged communication failures around changed dates in clubs restructuring to comply with multi-club regulations. The verdict of the three-person CAS panel, which went against them 2-1: 'We conclude that Drogheda knew, or ought to have known, about the change. An Operative Decision was taken by the majority of the panel to dismiss the appeal.' Up to this year, multi-club motherships had until June 1 to restructure in order to comply with regulations, allowing outfits such as Aston Villa, Manchester United and Manchester City to avoid complications for sister clubs - this deadline was then changed to March. Uefa informed all 55 member associations, including the FAI, of the new date as far back as last October. Boycott's open letter read, in full: To the Directors, Staff, Players, and Supporters of Drogheda United Football Club. There have been several drafts of this statement—with wise words and good counsel from lawyers, PR teams, and trusted advisors. But I've set them all aside. This one is just from me. Monday was one of the most frustrating days of my professional career. The split decision by the Court for Arbitration for Sport (CAS) to uphold UEFA's ban on Drogheda United's participation in the 2025–26 UEFA Conference League was a devastating blow, and one which I disagree with. It concluded a months-long, all-hands effort involving countless hours of work by people who care deeply about this club. Let me say first: I absolutely respect UEFA's aim to uphold sporting integrity in European competitions. But I believe—strongly—that the way this year's rule changes around multi-club ownership (MCO) were introduced and enforced has unintended negative consequences to that goal. I believe that the process has lacked consistency, clarity, and fairness. And Drogheda United is paying the price. What Happened There is and will be much talk about a missed deadline. I submit to you that the truth is much more nuanced and complicated than DUFC failing to file some paperwork on time. The issue at hand is that, according to UEFA, Trivela should have taken meaningful steps to fully separate from Drogheda United—through a share sale or transfer of control—in February, months before there was any certainty that Silkeborg IF would qualify for Europe, and in the midst of major off-field transitions for Drogheda. That was a busy and critical time for this club. We were transitioning to full-time football. We were securing a new long-term training ground. We were preparing for a brand new LOI season, and completing important and significant stadium upgrades, such as the 12th Man Lounge. Silkeborg were in and around the middle of the table in Denmark while we were doing all of this work at DUFC – over three months before SIF would ultimately become the final team to qualify for Europe. The core regulatory issue hinges on the 'Assessment Date' used by UEFA and the Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) to evaluate the eligibility of clubs in MCOs. In all previous seasons, this date fell in early June—after domestic seasons had concluded. That timing gave clubs and groups the opportunity to react to final standings and take necessary steps. This year, for the first time ever, that date was moved up to March 1st. Notification of the coming change was shared in one piece of communication – a circular letter which UEFA sent to national associations in October 2024. After that, the full rules for the 2025-26 season, including the new assessment date, were not fully adopted until February 26th, 2025—just two days before the new assessment date took effect, and it appears were not made publicly available until March 1st. I believe that this very limited communication around a significant rule change created a meaningful blind spot. It appears that other MCO groups were proactively contacted by UEFA in December and January regarding these rule changes. Further, it seems that some of those that were contacted and began taking steps before this deadline were then given time to implement structures after the deadline. We were not ever contacted directly, and Drogheda was not afforded that same flexibility. Regardless of how it happened – the reality is that larger and more resourced clubs had much more information and opportunity than DUFC did. That's a system that puts clubs and groups like ours at a disadvantage. Worse still, historical precedent gave us every reason to believe that we would have a path to resolve any concerns post-assessment date. In recent years, multiple clubs have enacted share transfers, blind trust structures, and other remedies after the assessment date. Those precedents shaped our expectations—and we acted accordingly. The moment it became clear to us that this cycle would be different – months ago, at this point – we engaged directly with UEFA. Over those months, we offered multiple remedies: a share transfer back to the Drogheda United Members Club, placement of shares into an Irish trust, and participation in a UK-based UEFA-approved templatized blind trust structure. We were turned away at every step. The end result is that CAS has now ruled, on a 2–1 split decision, that UEFA was within its rights to enforce the rule this way. Perhaps this is the case – but it remains the fact that DUFC faced a severe disadvantage relative to other clubs. Moving Forward I personally believe this decision makes an example of Drogheda so that UEFA can signal a change of approach to its regulation of MCOs. It punishes a club that, just a year ago, was still part-time and operating without a CEO. It punishes a community-focused organization run with integrity, ambition, and limited resources—while major clubs with compliance departments and vast legal teams were granted direct communication and additional time to comply. That disparity, however inadvertent, should not exist in European football. But it does. That said, accountability ultimately falls on us at DUFC and at Trivela Group. The responsibility to navigate regulations—however murky or fast-changing—belongs to our leadership. There was no malice and no bad faith. We have always endeavored to work in the best interests of the club and the community. But we now know that wasn't enough. And ultimate responsibility for our various teams and staff working on these issues rolls up to me. And for that, I offer a personal, sincere apology to our players, staff, and supporters. This will never happen again. But let me be equally clear: this setback will not define Drogheda United's future. We care deeply about this club and this town, and we are committed to its long-term success. The club remains on sound footing. Trivela will cover the shortfall in revenue from missing Europe, and we are fully committed to seeing this project through. Day-to-day operations are unaffected. I will be meeting personally with our players and staff in the coming days, and I hope that we as a group can remain focused on the task at hand. Our FAI Cup title defense begins in July. And we have great potential to qualify for Europe again via the League of Ireland campaign. The future remains bright. We've now submitted documents to Louth County Council to pursue securing the land for our new stadium—one of the most significant steps in this club's history. That work continues, uninterrupted. Drogheda United is no stranger to adversity. We've been written off, knocked down, and counted out before. We've come back every time. This time will be no different. We are hurt, but we are not done. The path ahead remains the same. This club is still going somewhere special. And nothing—not even this—will stop us. With grief and resolve, – BB
