The FAI National League will avail of a gambling awareness programme through a partnership between Flutter and EPIC.

The FAI and Flutter UK & Ireland confirmed the programme will be extended to incorporate the 15 founding National League clubs by the end of this year. 

The initial three-year programme, funded by Flutter and developed in partnership with the League of Ireland, has seen over 70 workshops delivered by award-winning education specialists EPIC Global Solutions which has reached over 2,000 League of Ireland players and FAI staff since January.

Interim FAI National Competitions Lead, Garret Higgins said: “The impact of this programme across League of Ireland has been a huge success story. So naturally, we’re incredibly grateful to see this extended to our new FAI National League teams."

Paul Buck, CEO of EPIC, commented: “We have delivered similar programmes across a wide range of sports globally, but our partnership with the League of Ireland has proven to be one of our most effective yet.

“The number of players who are now confident in their knowledge around gambling awareness has reached 89%. That validates everything we've built this programme around. When education comes from former players who've lived these experiences, it resonates. The expansion to FAI National League teams will amplify this impact across the entire pathway."

The first phase of the programme with League of Ireland players showed 89% of male and female participants are now confident they can recognise signs of harmful gambling behaviour and know how to approach these conversations.

Separately, 94% of players across reported excellent awareness of FAI and UEFA integrity regulations post-session – a significant jump from 71% (men) and 53% (women) before attending.

Almost all – 98.5% – of participants rated the overall quality of EPIC's sessions 8-10 out of 10.

League of Ireland officials believe the data will provide clear, insights to inform targeted support messaging and harm prevention strategies.

The inclusion of LOI Academy and development pathways is particularly significant, with early awareness programmes recognised as crucial in establishing healthy attitudes towards gambling amongst the next generation of Irish footballers.