SOCCER / European Championship 2008 draw: The FAI stands to make almost €30 million from the Irish team's campaign to qualify for the European Championship in 2008 after being handed the continent's most lucrative opponents, Germany, in yesterday group-stage draw in Montreux.

The association's officials made little attempt to hide their satisfaction with the outcome and it was reported last night they had already received an offer for the German television rights to the home game against Jürgen Klinsmann's side worth around €7 million.

If the association sells out its games at Croke Park then, based on the prospect of Ireland playing four of six home games at the stadium, total revenues from ticket, television and other sources would be in the region of €30 million.

More than half that figure is directly attributable to a combination of just two factors: the staging of games during 2007 at Croke Park and being paired with Germany in Group D of the next qualifying campaign.

If the draw represents a potential bonanza in financial terms, it is not such a bad outcome in the football department either, with the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Wales, Cyprus and San Marino completing a group that will produce two automatic qualifiers for the European Championship finals in Austria and Switzerland during the summer of 2008.

"It's a good, tough group," said Steve Staunton afterwards. "As you've seen from the other groups, it could have been a hell of a lot worse. There are some tricky ties in there but you have to be happy for all the right reasons. From a travel point of view, for the fans, for the players, it looks okay."

Ranked second in the world after several successful seasons under manager Karel Bruckner, the Czechs will provide formidable opponents for Staunton's men and will start as favourites to top the group.

The German team, though, is not nearly so impressive as those that have represented the country in the past and so the Irish and the Slovaks will fancy their chances of taking points off the former world champions and perhaps even stealing in to qualify ahead of a side that Klinsmann himself conceded yesterday is in transition.

"Nobody's unbeatable," said Staunton when asked about a team Ireland last faced in the group stages of the 2002 World Cup finals, when the game ended in a 1-1 draw.

"As you heard the man say in there himself, they're in transition and I'll say there'll be quite a few changes from the team we played that night to the one we end up playing next time. It'll be interesting, though, and it's an exciting looking prospect."

The dates of Ireland's various fixtures should become known on February 9th when representatives of the seven associations are due to meet in Frankfurt to agree a match schedule.

Nobody from the FAI delegation expressed a preference yesterday in the context of that schedule but it is likely they will want to get a couple of the campaign's less challenging games in early so as to get points on the board while saving the bigger home ties, particularly the ones against Germany and the Czechs, until later on so that they will take place at Croke Park and tickets can be bundled with those for less-attractive home ties.

The association's chief executive, John Delaney, insisted competitive considerations would take precedence when the Irish representatives sit down in Germany in two weeks' time, but it is unlikely they would actually contrast too starkly with what would be in the best commercial interests of the organisation.

The detail of Ireland's position at those talks will be worked out over the coming days, Staunton declaring his intention to discuss the matter with Bobby Robson later yesterday.

"We'll contact Bobby and see what's best," he said. "He'll have had a bit more peace and quiet to think about it over the last few hours."

As they set out for home last night, however, the Irish delegation were quietly jubilant. In 2004 the organisation had a turnover of €20.5 million and the television rights aspect of yesterday's draw alone will almost certainly be worth around half of that, while Germany will also dramatically boost revenues in other ways: perimeter advertising for that one game having the potential to bring in some €2 million.

"It's gone well," said Delaney afterwards. "We sold the third-party television rights (the right, say, to show the home game against Germany on Spanish television) last night and did very well out of it but decided not to sell the second-part rights (the right to show games in opposing countries), which will work out well for us because of Germany.

"I think it's safe to say that there will be record television revenues for us and hopefully a lot of other good things will follow during the campaign.

"What we have to look forward to now is the fixtures meeting, which will mark an important step on the road to the first soccer match being played at Croke Park."