Statement from the Football Association of Ireland
The Football Association of Ireland is deeply disappointed that members of the Republic of Ireland Women’s National Team have threatened to withdraw from playing for their country in the upcoming match versus Slovakia on April 10, 2017.
The NHL helped end a stalemate between the U.S. women's national hockey team and USA Hockey last year by bridging a "sizable" financial gap, NHL deputy commissioner Bill Daly told ESPN.
In an agreement that was kept under wraps until this week, the NHL agreed to pay USA Hockey $25,000 per player to help fund their four-year agreement with the women's national team.
In March 2017, the U.S. women's team was in a bitter showdown with its own organization over what the players felt was complete inequity with the men's program, given their accomplishments, which at that point included three straight titles at the IIHF Women's World Championship.
But on March 28, an agreement was finalized that ended that contentious negotiation, which had included the threat of an international tournament boycott and USA Hockey seeking to use younger replacements on the national team.
What wasn't known at the time: How much that cease fire could be credited to a curious third party -- the National Hockey League. The NHL's role was first reported by the Associated Press.
