THE GAA HAS confirmed the details of its new broadcasting arrangements following the conclusion of its agreement with Sky Sports on Monday.
From the 2023 season until 2027, RTÉ will continue to show 31 championship games and the BBC will retain its rights to the Ulster Senior Football Championship. The GAAGO streaming service, meanwhile, will exclusively broadcast an undetermined number of championship games both in Ireland and overseas, seemingly ostensibly picking up where Sky Sports left off with live matches.
A statement released by the GAA on Tuesday confirmed that RTÉ will introduce a second highlights programme on top of Sunday night’s Sunday Game offering, the details of which are yet to be confirmed. As per previous years, TG4 will carry Monday-night highlights and other GAA programming.
The BBC will also simulcast with RTÉ the All-Ireland semi-finals and finals — in both hurling and football — and will broadcast at least one of the All-Ireland finals on its wider TV network annually.
Meanwhile, a new sharing arrangement between RTÉ and TG4 will see an increase in the number of free-to-air Allianz League games broadcast on Saturday nights. TG4 will continue to broadcast Sunday-afternoon and Allianz League knockout/play-off games. The BBC will also stream 10 league games involving Ulster teams every season.
The Joe McDonagh cup final as well as both Tailteann cup semi-finals and the final will be shown on RTÉ for the next five years. Additional streaming details regarding these competitions will follow in due course.
RTÉ will broadcast at least nine live camogie matches annually, while TG4 and RTÉ will continue to provide coverage of the GAA club championships.
TG4 will also retain its rights to underage inter-county, collegiate, and post-primary competitions, as well as the winter provincial pre-season action.
The GAA says that its media parters have also been granted “enhanced digital in-game and post-match digital highlight clip rights complementing the outputs of GAANOW’s online offering since 2018.” GAANOW will continue to provide historical GAA content online while, on television, Premier Sports have acquired whistle-to-whistle full archive match rights.
Radio rights remain unchanged: RTÉ and Raidió na Gaeltachta retain exclusive national live rights while TodayFM and Newstalk will continue to provide score-flash updates. BBC Radio Ulster and 24 local IBI radio stations nationwide have also retained their rights.
GAA President Larry McCarthy said: “I would like to acknowledge the successful media partnerships we have had and continue to have as we strive to give our games the profile they deserve.
“Maximising exposure of our games and seeking a fair commercial value for them for the betterment of the association as a whole lay at the heart of our approach to a five-year arrangement that provides certainty and security for all parties involved.
“Maintaining our strong commitment to the Irish language was another cornerstone of negotiations.
“I am pleased that even more of our games will be accessible to members and supporters around the globe and we look forward to working with all of our partners to give our games and activities the highest profile possible.”
