Basketball Ireland has signed a three year deal with TG4 heralding the return of the sport to free to air television.
TG4 will show the National Cup Finals live in January 2015 as well as national league coverage throughout the season.
The agreement also includes the station’s online platforms with twelve Men’s Premier League games to be streamed live on TG4’s player.
Coverage is set to begin in November with highlights packages of the Basketball Ireland Men’s Premier League. Five double headers fixed for the National Basketball Arena will be showcased in a series of highlights shows leading up the marquee event in the Irish basketball calendar – The National Cup finals.
The Men’s and Women’s finals will be broadcast live on TG4 on January 24th 2015 in a return to their traditional Saturday fixture. The agreement guarantees the finals will be live on free-to-air television until 2017.
The return to Saturday afternoon will be welcomed by fans of the powerhouse teams from Cork and Limerick who have dominated in recent years and who found it hard bringing hundreds of excited children back home after a late night in the capital.
“We’re delighted to have found a home for basketball on free-to-air television for the next three years,” said Basketball Ireland CEO Bernard O’Byrne.
“We have worked well with TG4 in the past and are confident the relationship will prosper over the coming seasons”
“We are in a period of growth for basketball. The 2014/2015 season is shaping up very well and the future looks bright. Our relationship with TG4 can only strengthen our position and give us a platform to generate better talkability around the men’s and women’s game.”
“We are implementing a strategy to ensure the future of basketball as Ireland’s favourite indoor sport,” added Basketball Ireland Chair Jackie Dunne.
“Television coverage is an important part of that. Every week across the country there are people witnessing exciting basketball at a semi-professional level. We want to bring the exceptional skills of these men and women to a wider audience.”
