The exit of Sky Sports will have an impact on the association’s income, but streaming service GAAGO could prove to be a lucrative alternative over time, writes Rob Hartnett.

In 2014 there were two major developments in the broadcasting of GAA matches. Sky Sports came on board as a complement to the traditional relationship with RTÉ and a venture called GAAGo was created to bring games to an international audience. After eight years, the next chapter in the GAA’s broadcasting of games to an Irish and wider audience is once more linked to both.

There was an anxiety about Sky’s arrival all those years ago, that introducing pay per view would somehow disenfranchise the GAA audience. Those concerns gradually became less fervent as the sports broadcast landscape changed utterly across all sports. After eight seasons of showing a mix of exclusive games at provincial level up to a shared broadcast of the latter stages of the All Irelands, Sky Sports’ approach to GAA coverage and analysis was a winner.

Now though it has come to an end. A shorter, more compressed championships season put pressure on the number of games and the spacing of them that Sky would be able to show. The feeling was that Sky wanted more games – in the summer – and that this would prove difficult. The parting was amicable and obviously arrived at over time.

Within 24 hours of the GAA/SKY relationship ending, the GAA announced its new media rights package for the next cycle, with GAAGo now standing alongside RTÉ as the lens through which championship games will be broadcast shown.

GAAGO is a joint venture between the GAA and RTÉ and was set up to stream matches to a pay-per-view overseas audience. It has been my long-held view that the partnership was ahead of its time and would ultimately prove to be not only a winner for the GAA but also a best-in-class model for other sports to follow.

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There is hardly a sporting event taking place that is not being filmed and thus watchable live or on-demand via your mobile phone. The GAA spotted this trend many years ago and have put themselves in a stronger position than could ever have been possible when the broadcasters alone controlled the distribution.

So what does this new GAA broadcast future look like?  Broadly, games that were shown on Sky Sports are moving to GAAGO. The streamer will have 22 matches in the Sam Maguire, nine in the Liam McCarthy, and seven Tailteann Cup games. The full package is priced at €79, individual pay-per-game matches are priced at €12, and a ‘3-for-2’ bundle costs €24. GAA members can claim a 10% discount on the full package price, while GAA clubs can avail of a group pass for €150.

For presentation, GAAGO has hired in Gráinne McElwain from Sky Sports, and pundits being lined up include Donegal’s Michael Murphy, Kerry’s Marc Ó Sé, Dublin’s Paddy Andrews, Limerick’s Séamus Hickey, Kilkenny’s Tommy Walsh, and Cork dual star Eoin Cadogan.

It is not known how much Sky Sports was paying for its GAA rights, but for the GAA it was easy money. Now the association is going to work a bit harder to recoup that lost income. For its international streaming, GAAGO is a steady earner. Established at the start of 2018, GAAGO had revenue of €2.9m of 2021, made up of €2.8m subscription revenue and €80,000 in sponsorship income.

Net profit was €1m, or €500,000 each for GAA and RTÉ. Domestic streaming revenue will have to be substantial to make up for the Sky Sports exit, though of course over time once fans get into the habit of paying, then the upside could be substantial.

Rob Hartnett is the founder of Sport for Business, a publishing, events and networking business at the heart of the commercial world of Irish sport.