Premier League Burnley establish strategic partnership with Cobh

Premier League side Burnley have established a strategic partnership with First Division side Cobh Ramblers.

The Premier League club unveiled plans for the partnership in a move that will support the development of young players and coaches – while also expanding their network for talent identification.

Cobh linked up with the Turf Moor side who concurrently announced plans to also link up with Scottish side Ayr United, Welsh outfit Llandudno and Northern Ireland’s Portadown.  

As part of the agreement, Cobh’s young players will travel over to Burnley regularly for training evaluations – and Burnley will consider sending players on loan to the selected clubs.

All clubs’ academies and women’s teams will compete in summer pre-season games and tournaments.  

“We like the way Burnley interact with other clubs and how they act as a network with other clubs in this relationship,” Cobh chairman Bill O’Leary said on the partnership at a press conference.

“It’s not just a bilateral agreement, it’s including other clubs as well – we love that. But the main thing is how Burnley have negotiated and interacted with us, they have treated us with great respect.

“We feel they are the right size club for us and have performed way above where they might have been for the region they have in population terms.

“They have done fantastically well and are now a well-established Premier League club. They are a club we can learn a lot from.”

Burnley chairman Alan Pace added: “This is an exciting opportunity for us to grow Burnley’s footprint and profile in every corner of the British Isles and benefit from working with some fantastic clubs on our doorstep.



“We look forward to developing a strong working relationship with Ayr United, Cobh Ramblers, Portadown and Llandudno which will no doubt benefit the clubs, the coaches and their players for many years to come.

“This is very much the first step in our plans to expand the football network of Burnley, build the relevance of our club beyond the North West of England and ensure that Burnley’s academy continues to be a high-performance hotbed for future first team players and international footballers.”