TOMÁS Ó SÉ believes big inter-county games like Mayo’s thrilling victory over Donegal on Saturday in Castlebar should be available free-to-air.
James Horan’s men booked their place in the All-Ireland semi-finals with a 1-14 to 1-10 win at MacHale Park, however the match was only available on Sky Sports, who held exclusive rights.
Speaking on The Sunday Game last night, Ó Sé argued that the GAA was alienating a large portion of its support base when games cannot be seen by everyone.
“I don’t have Sky — I went to watch it in a bar last night. The GAA is a community-based, amateur sport,” he said.
“It’s all about club and community . There is an awful amount of people that can’t afford it. Even bars can’t afford it.
“It’s nothing against Sky or RTÉ, but a game like that should be seen by everybody. It’s simple as.
'A game like that should be seen by everybody' - @tomas5ky and @ConorMcManus_15 discuss GAA broadcasting rights #RTEGAA pic.twitter.com/UFY1GKeVVa
— The Sunday Game (@TheSundayGame) August 4, 2019
“We’re not like other sports. [The GAA] should not be selling rights to huge games like this that people love to see.”
Monaghan’s Conor McManus said the original vision of bringing GAA coverage to a wider, global audience had not transpired as hoped.
The idea of Sky was to bring it to a wider audience in foreign countries,” he said.
“I don’t think that should be at the expense of people at home in Ireland, regular club people that want to see the games and don’t get the chance.”
“That game was probably the pick of the ties in the championship so far in Castlebar, and people didn’t have the chance to view it.”
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