Keeping to the cultural theme, I wish the House a happy Bloomsday, particularly Senator David Norris.

Like every football fan on the island, I am delighted to see both Irish teams competing in the European Championships this year. To qualify in the first place was a massive achievement and although both teams are playing well, we are still awaiting a first win. I hope it will come tonight when Northern Ireland play Ukraine. That said, I cannot help but think how much stronger an all-Ireland soccer team and an all-Ireland football association would be with the likes of Kyle Lafferty and Shane Long playing alongside each other and, more importantly, the pooling of grassroots resources in a united effort to get more boys and girls off the couch and on to the sports field. With a lifetime involvement in many sports, I have seen at first hand the benefits of cross-Border co-operation in sport, whether in playing schoolboy rugby matches in Belfast or a more recent visit to Craigavon to play American football of all things. Sport is always the winner and one of the best tools to break down many barriers. The exemplary behaviour of both sets of Irish fans, including Senator Aodhán Ó Ríordáin, has been heartening against the background of hooliganism over the weekend in Marseilles and, unfortunately, again last night in Lille. The tribute paid by fans at the game against Sweden on Monday following the tragic death of Ballymena man Darren Rodgers was not just fitting but also very moving. It shows how far both sets of fans have come since the dark days of the Troubles, when my late father and his friends were afraid in a Dublin pub to cheer Gerry Armstrong's goal against Spain in 1982 for fear of abuse and when Republic of Ireland fans dreaded the sectarian atmosphere in Windsor Park. Thankfully, those days are passing, if they have not completely passed. The issue was raised in the previous Seanad by Senator Catherine Noone and former Senator Paul Bradford. With a new Government in place, I ask the Leader to invite the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport who is a keen football fan to engage with us in the Seanad and talk to his Northern counterpart, as well the CEOs of the two football associations, to build on the progress made through the Setanta Cup and follow the example of the GAA's international rules team, the Irish rugby team which had a great win at the weekend, the Irish hockey team which will be travelling to Rio de Janeiro to compete in the Olympic Games for the first time and the Irish cricket team which is battling the showers in their match against Sri Lanka in Malahide. Let us merge the two soccer teams and every sports team on the island to put Ireland on the strongest possible footing in every sports contest.