It was clear from within the stadium from early on that the crowd was going to be big.  As Mayo and Dublin fans began to arrive ahead of the Senior Final it was clear that a new record was going to be set and that last year’s record attendance of just under 35,000 was going to be left well behind.

When Daithí O’Sé put on his best ‘wait for it’ persona in announcing the final figure to the crowd we could not have imagined in our wildest dreams though, that it would be beaten by quite so far.

That number represents the passionate support that the players of Dublin and Mayo have brought to share their dream but it is also down to the wider awareness that has been driven by big brands getting behind the sport and placing it on a bigger stage of national consciousness.

Lidl have been to the fore in this only their second year of partnership with the Ladies Gaelic Football Association. Their widespread advertising and in-store promotion has been one of the most successful for a sport in living memory.

The players always knew but the wider public was not as familiar with the effort and the talent, or maybe they just needed it to be put for clearly before them.

The sponsors of the teams have also played their part with AIG’s consistent dual billing for men and women something that came from the culture of the company and not just as a marketing ploy.

We will shortly be announcing a new initiative backed by AIG that takes that commitment further still for players across a range of sports.

Elvery’s Intersport have also been impressive in recognising that Mayo were involved in two equally important All Ireland finals this September and reflected this in advertising and in store.

PwC, the GAA and the Gaelic Players Association are among the more than 220 organisations that play an active part of the Sport for Business community.

The size of the crowd can be put in context by a comparison to the Final of the Women’s Euro 2017 Football Championships in the Netherlands earlier this summer that drew a crowd of 28,182.

This was a special day to be involved in Irish sport as part of its wider role within our society.

We will be taking the conversation further at our third Annual Women in Sport Conference at UCD on Thursday, November 30th when we will look at a theme of ‘Game Changers’ and some exciting themes and guest speakers that have done just that.

 

The Ladies Gaelic Football Association, TG4, Lidl, Liberty Insurance, AIG and Elverys Intersport are among the more than 230 organisations that play an active part of the Sport for Business community.  

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 Image Credits TG4