GAA doing a deal with SkySports

[Zulu]

I think people are ignoring the realities of demographics, lt'll be filler in Sky's schedules, between Ireland & GB I'd say there'll be as many, if not more, who'll be tuning in for Tightlines, Cycling or Speedway.

I'm not sure about that. Those sports are minority sports in every country they are in, I'm not even sure what tight lines is, fishing? GAA is a huge sport in Ireland and has the potential to be big elsewhere. The games are good viewing, they're European (which is important I think) and there is a significant Irish population in every developed country in the world. I would suggest that bar soccer, rugby, cricket and American football the GAA could eventually beat the regular viewing figures for most other sports.

[bennydorano]

Well 'potential' is a huge word in this context. The (random) sports that i mentioned are International sports that cross cultures, Gaa is regional/provincial sport with limited scope for development outside it's cultural boundaries, it could be argued any sport given the Sky treatment could become anything (Darts being a superb example) but i think Gaa & the others mentioned would in theory struggle to get out of the confines that restrict them.

[Zulu]

I disagree benny, the sports you mention have no chance of widespread TV support just as weightlifting, judo, hockey, swimming or a hundred other sports have no chance. Football and hurling could get support beyond their traditional bases. There are challenges and they'll never compare to the major world sports but good team sports have away better chance of getting a foothold than individual sports.

[BennyHarp]

I'm not all that bothered about GAA becoming popular in every English home but there is enough people in Britain who want to watch the games and deserve a better service than the hit and miss that Premier Sports have served up over the past few years. (Though they do seem to have improved a bit this year and have regularly been showing 2 or 3 league games a weekend).

The development of the game overseas won't hinge on exposure from Sky, but it won't do any harm. Syferus, no club is asking for huge investment that would rob from the poor Irish clubs but I'd be just be happy if we had a pitch with some sort of changing facilities in our county and if the council didn't remove the posts the day before the county final.

[orangeman]

Will they have to change the rules to allow more advert breaks when it's shown in USA where advertising revenues are huge and Cookstown sizzle and Galtee bacon get a wee plug ?

[Shamrock Shore]

They'll struggled to get a few GAA babes for presenting.

[trileacman]

This is a positive development. 

Sky will bring an upbeat presentation of the game and they won't hire pundits who bad mouth the game as if it's their job to turn off as many repeat viewers as possible.  They'll do a proper job of marketing the game and they'll be a lot more professional about it than RTE.

The game will be exposed to new audiences in the UK which is what we've needed for years.  I could write a whole book about that.

The money will be put to good use. I have to laugh at the "sure we've got plenty of money, we don't need any more" crowd.  Clubs in Britain and around the world are screaming out for extra resources, and it has to come from somewhere. As the games grow worldwide, it's entirely appropriate that a bigger audience outside of Ireland brings in more revenue to be reinvested in these new clubs.

We're a long way off professionalism.

You're a long way off if you think "clubs in Britain and around the world" will reap this worldwind. If the GAA won't fund them now and they're not exactly stuck for the cash, why the f**k would they do it in future?? Expect a few more white elephants like the Gaelic grounds in Limerick, Connacht centre of excellence and plush tours to Aussie to play a series that died 4 long years ago.

As for pushing the boundaries of "broadcasting excellence", where the f**k has your heads been? This is the channel that gave us Andy Gray, Richard Keyes and Chris Kamara. They're headed up by Fox and the Murdochs and contain the same character of person as was involved in the phone-hacking scandal.

The far flung idea that they'll be beaming GAA into the homes of every English Tom, Dick and Harry I'd say you're being optimistic at best. The suggestion that we'll easily outclass cricket, an established international sport with a huge following in Britain and a wealth of tradition is laughable.

Wouldn't just lose the run of yourselves just yet lads. There's as many pitfalls in this deal as there are advantages, combined with the fact that those involved with making the deal have the sole intention of making money and not serving the best interests of the volunteer at the base of the organisation. For the laugh 3.48 in this video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5otHw6Jkns

Who said anything about outclassing cricket? If you're referring to my post above, what I meant was there is very little on TV in the way of top class sport during the summer OTHER than cricket. In other words, there's probably a slot there that GAA on Sky could fit nicely on a Saturday evening/Sunday afternoon. They have 4 sports channels after all.

I just don't see us edging into the English/ European market as easily as you suggest. A lot of smaller sports are broadcast on SKY/ Eurosport/BT Sport and I'd say a fair few of them couldn't say that the exposure has hugely boosted their following (with the exception of MMA). I mean I see ski-ing on the Eurosport channel all the time but does that mean international ski-ing/handball/badminton saw a resurgence the day they signed up for the tv deal? I wouldn't think so.

[trileacman]

I think people are ignoring the realities of demographics, lt'll be filler in Sky's schedules, between Ireland & GB I'd say there'll be as many, if not more, who'll be tuning in for Tightlines, Cycling or Speedway. It'll not be a seismic development & will have as much impact on their schedules as the already mentioned sports. On a side note I'm delighted to see it as I can't get TV3 at all but I have Sky Sports.  I also have Sky Broadband that unfortunately blocks all those sports internet links.

Agree whole-heartedly with your post. Nail on the head.

Didn't realise they block internet links, f**king hoors.

[Syferus]

I'm not all that bothered about GAA becoming popular in every English home but there is enough people in Britain who want to watch the games and deserve a better service than the hit and miss that Premier Sports have served up over the past few years. (Though they do seem to have improved a bit this year and have regularly been showing 2 or 3 league games a weekend).

The development of the game overseas won't hinge on exposure from Sky, but it won't do any harm. Syferus, no club is asking for huge investment that would rob from the poor Irish clubs but I'd be just be happy if we had a pitch with some sort of changing facilities in our county and if the council didn't remove the posts the day before the county final.

And I fully agree with that, clubs outside Ireland deserve a cut too. Funding is so uneven that using what is there already more intelligently would mean more for everyone that does need it.

It will be interesting to see if playing numbers pick up somewhat at UK clubs with the Sky Sports exposure, every single body counts at club level.

[RealSpiritof98]

I think people are ignoring the realities of demographics, lt'll be filler in Sky's schedules, between Ireland & GB I'd say there'll be as many, if not more, who'll be tuning in for Tightlines, Cycling or Speedway. It'll not be a seismic development & will have as much impact on their schedules as the already mentioned sports. On a side note I'm delighted to see it as I can't get TV3 at all but I have Sky Sports. I also have Sky Broadband that unfortunately blocks all those sports internet links.

So do I Benny, you can get past that pretty easy, firstrow was banned in britain, they set up firstrow.eu and works perfectly. People be wary of the streams because they believe the false pop ups.

~on the murdoch issue, i would be as anti murdoch as they come. However Sky do sport top class, like a spoiled bitch they ignore what they dont have (prem rugby union/ FA Cup etc) but when your on board with them they create a phenomenal buzz/hype about a game. I have to admit I have booked many a box office boxing match when previously I had no intention of doing and i for one do get sucked in. My wee man loves the WWE and I end up watching it as I did when I was younger. 

[laoislad]

They'll struggled to get a few GAA babes for presenting.

[RealSpiritof98]

like button, wheres the fecking like button?

[trileacman]

I disagree benny, the sports you mention have no chance of widespread TV support just as weightlifting, judo, hockey, swimming or a hundred other sports have no chance. Football and hurling could get support beyond their traditional bases. There are challenges and they'll never compare to the major world sports but good team sports have away better chance of getting a foothold than individual sports.

But what evidence do you have though that we are sport just waiting to expand beyond our traditional bases? What potential do we have that Baseball, Aussie rules, American football, European handball, Rugby league or any other of the world's deeply parochial sports don't have. They have all huge revenues, professional games and SKY shitting coverage down your throat but still haven't cracked the international market.

SKY coverage might just let a greater percentage of people know that the GAA exists but in terms of people playing or paying to watch the game it'll make very, very little difference. Right now on the sports channel I can watch, rugby league, figure-skating, American horse racing, cycling and Tennis. Still doesn't mean I've any interest in them at all and it's very, very unlikely that any person tonight will begin a huge interest in these sports just because there on Sky at the minute.

[orangeman]

Former Kerry forward and current Sydney Swans star Tommy Walsh has reacted angrily to reports that Sky are in talks with the GAA to broadcast our national games.


Walsh took to twitter and wrote: "So our "amateur" game is now being sold to Sky? There is no other sport in the world where players & supporters are taken advantage of more!"

GAA fans could be hit with TV subscription charges to watch some of this year's All-Ireland championship games.

Sky Sports are believed to be at an advanced state of negotiations with Croke Park to enter the GAA market as part of an overall deal featuring a range of broadcasters.

RTE will continue as the main rights holder, but several other stations, including Sky, are also interested in getting a slice of the market.

It's understood that negotiations have taken place under which the Sky package would feature up to 10 games, including two All-Ireland quarter-finals. It's unclear whether Sky's bid is in conjunction with an other broadcaster.

Awarding Sky exclusive rights to a particular package would spark anger among the GAA public as it would leave them facing subscription charges.

[trileacman]

Can someone also explain how all this increased worldwide coverage is beneficial when you factor in the reduced coverage at home for people because they haven't the money for a subscription to SKY? Does the money that the GAA gained from the SKY deal have to be spent enticing back the punters they lost because the matches weren't free to air?