Dublin’s Senior Footballers enter the All Ireland Championship fray this weekend in front of what will be the biggest crowd of the summer so far.
They do so as overwhelming favourites to retain the Sam Maguire cup, a feat last achieved only twice in the last 24 years and not by Dublin since 1977.
They are the best commercially backed county in the country by a considerable margin.
AIG came on board in a five year deal after last year’s All Ireland and have been using the assets at their disposal well through 48 sheet posters and digital activations during the spring. These have centred on getting free kids jerseys or discounted adult ones when taking out an insurance policy.
They will be able to call on the experience of previous international sponsorships with Manchester United and the All Blacks to maximise what they gain from the deal.
In addition to that Dublin also have sponsorship deals with Toyota, the Gibson Hotel, Aer Lingus, The National Sports Campus, Skins, Louis Copeland, Deep Riverrock and Ros Nutrition, all of which either add to the funding available or save on the cost of providing the back up needed to keep the winning show on the road.
“We are looking forward to the season ahead and to working with Dublin GAA as the teams look to add further silverware to the trophy cabinet,” said Ian Corbett, Marketing Operations Manager for Toyota Ireland.
“We’ve worked closely with the team since January,” added David Conway, CEO of the National Sports Campus. “We look forward to playing a part in their preparations for their Championship defence throughout the summer through the world class facility and service we offer at the Centre and on the Campus”.
This is the second year of an initial three year deal with the Campus and has also been extended to include the U21 football team who lifted their All Ireland earlier this year.
The Dublin County Board appointed a full time commercial manager in Tomás Quinn at the start of this year year and he is charged with making the most of the commercial opportunities presented by a winning team.
The test of whether they will be so again begins at 4pm on Sunday at Croke Park.
The GAA, Toyota, Aer Lingus and the National Sports Campus are full members of the Sport for Business community. Discover more about membership here.
