I haven't changed my opinion. I disagree vehemently with the diversion of huge sums of money (is it €3 million annually - that's what was proposed anyway?) from the proper activities of the association to the benefit of an elite group of players, who are already (and rightly) the most privileged group in the association.
I think it's a farce that the group that represents a tiny minority of the players in the association and specifically excludes the rest of players from membership is constituted as the official representative body for ALL players, including those it discriminates against.
And I don't accept the arguments either that professionalism is not on their long term agenda or that professionalism is impossible. On the contrary, professionalism is inevitable unless the membership actively prevents it. We know that from the experience of virtually every other sport that has had professionalism thrust upon it against its wishes.
Of course it is not possible to professionalise the current structures but that's never how professionalism gets into a sport. The GAA could easily support a professional league of up to ten fully sponsored teams. This league would then cannibalise the rest of the game of all resources.
Anyone who doubts the GAA "market" could support a small professional league only has to look at the existence of professional leagues around Europe in small countries/regions in sports like olympic handball, water polo and even Valencian pilota. (No, me either).
The one thing that has remained consistent in the GAA over the years is the geographically structure. This hasn't changed and its always been county v county. For porfessionalism to even have a chance of taking root, this will have to change and I can't see it doing so.
The reason why Rugby and these other sports you have mentioned have gone pro (to a very limited extent) is that they have an international factor and demand. The GAA doesn't have that international market and will be a very long time before it does.
Talk of a ten team sponsored league is nonsense, county teams can barely get sponsorship at a basic level. Firstly this would totally break the very meaning of the GAA and you lose majority of your support base, you have basically a LOI structure for GAA. The money wouldn't be there - say panel of 25 at average of €30,000 per year = 750,000 before the existing running cost. No team could generate a turnover of say €2m to support itself in a season.
Shredding away any estimates or assumptions, it boils down to one basic factor - we are too small a country to support any professional sport on its own.