And another online petition, also at petitiononline.com, has been started by soccer fans angry at Irish sports big John Magnier, who with business partner J.P. McManus, owns more than 25 percent of top English Premier League soccer club Manchester United.
But by far the most popular, with 75,986 signatories, is a petition started at the same website calling for Irish to be made an official European Union language.
Magnier and McManus are in a legal row with Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who beloved by fans.
Magnier, one of Ireland’s richest and most influential businessmen, is said to be close to forcing a takeover of the soccer team in order to force Ferguson to accept a new, more constrained contract — or to quit, some fans say.
The fight is complicated because it involves one of Magnier’s racehorses — Rock of Gibraltar.
Ferguson claims that, in August 2001, representatives of Magnier offered him a half-share in the horse. Magnier maintains that Ferguson was merely offered 5 percent of any race prize money the horse won.
Rock of Gibraltar won seven successive Group One races, and is now expected to make around