John Fogarty in the Irish Examiner this morning is reporting that the GAA has made or is about to make an approach to but out RTÉ from it’s 50 percent stake in GAAGo.
It made sense to go into broadcasting in partnership with experts when the service was initiated a decade ago but now it is more likely better suited to both parties for the Association to own the rights and continue to contract in the technical side from RTÉ or other parties.
RTÉ themselves will likely appreciate being taken out of the public and political scrutiny of match selection as well.
Down the years GAAGo has been involved with URCTV and LOITV, both of which have followed its lead in staying at the forefront of the sports streaming revolution that has swept through the way in which we consume sport.
Noel Quinn was appointed as the Head of GAAGo in 2023 having previously held responsibility for the negotiation of media rights for the GAA.
Fogarty’s report also confirms that GAAGo has retained the rights to show its existing package of games through the next two years, beating off a bid from TG4.
Read More of our coverage of GAAGo down the years.
SPORT FOR BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE
Controlling the media rights of your own competition, as well as the streaming potential is the way of the future for all sporting organisations with the NFL, NBA and Premier League getting more and more invested in ownership of the distribution as well as the games.
WHAT’S UP NEXT?
This will be an interesting story to follow up early in 2025.
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