The challenge set at this year’s Future-Proofing Irish Sport event was how to ensure Irish sport is equipped for tomorrow and the decades beyond.
In the first session, we spoke with Ger Perdissat of Acuity AI, as well as Vladimir Liulka and James Wynne of Blocksport, on the subjects of Artificial Intelligence and Business Intelligence, focusing on owning your own first-party data.
In the second session of the morning, we shifted to Streaming of live sport, to the specific challenges keeping Irish sport occupied, to the importance of education and upskilling, and then to how we can future-proof the learnings from the event and keep thinking collectively about the best way we can all advance.
Streaming scale with Clubber TV
From artificial intelligence, the conversation shifted to broadcasting — or more precisely, how to stream sport at scale without breaking the bank.
Jimmy Doyle, founder of Clubber TV, shared how he left Microsoft after 25 years to launch a business born out of lockdown. Today, Clubber delivers live coverage of Irish sport on a scale unimaginable until recently: last weekend alone, 100 GAA matches and rugby fixtures were streamed simultaneously, with 51 games on a Sunday afternoon.
The model is decentralised. Local videographers, often existing analysts or club media volunteers, capture games using cellular bonding technology that combines multiple SIM cards, WiFi and Ethernet into broadcast-quality streams. The result is professional coverage at the grassroots level and a growing audience.
Season passes are proving to be a turning point, Doyle revealed, creating habits more like those of traditional TV. Overseas audiences are smaller than expected, but the domestic appetite is strong, with some rural clubs drawing over 500 viewers per game.
The biggest threat is piracy, with illegal “dodgy boxes” siphoning as much as 40% of content. “It’s theft,” Doyle said bluntly. “People wouldn’t walk out of a shop with a bottle of milk, but they think nothing of it online.”
Despite the challenge, Doyle is bullish. AI cameras are improving, costs are falling, and Clubber is building analysis tools that can clip key moments like kickouts and turnovers into shareable highlights. “Our goal is scale, scale, scale,” he said. “We’re not trying to be the top-end broadcaster — we’re covering the games that wouldn’t otherwise be shown.”
Visibility, storytelling and the human touch
The session then broadened to the system level, with Clíona O’Leary of Sport Ireland and Fiona Scally of Paralympics Ireland reflecting on future-proofing from a governance and high-performance perspective.
For O’Leary, the opportunity lies in using collapsing costs to expand coverage. AI-assisted highlights, automated reporting and synthetic commentary mean sports that were invisible just a few years ago can now be shown affordably.
The real danger, she argued, is fragmentation: rights and feeds scattered across platforms that dilute reach and confuse audiences. Aggregators like the Eurovision Sport app could offer a solution, especially if integrated into RTÉ, TG4 and Virgin Media players, perhaps even with an Irish vertical.
Visibility, she stressed, drives fandom, participation and commercial value.
Scally focused on the human side. In Paralympic sport, performance comes first, but the stories that resonate are often off the track: families waiting outside venues, athletes’ first walk into the Village, or a small behind-the-scenes ritual.
Authenticity, she said, is what turns casual interest into lasting connection.
She also pointed to the growing power of personality-led content: kit reveals, fan polls, and athlete-driven TikToks. These broaden audiences beyond core supporters and help position sport as something people feel part of, not just watch. “The ‘why’ behind the performance can be as compelling as the ‘what,’” Scally reflected.
Upskilling the workforce
Next came the question of talent. Gráinne Barry of Stats Perform highlighted Ireland’s growing strength as a hub for sports analytics and innovation, with TU Dublin’s MSc programme already producing graduates who can walk straight into governing bodies, clubs and media. But she warned that continuous learning is essential. Technology is moving too quickly for a “one-and-done” approach; leaders in sport must embrace lifelong learning to stay relevant.
Ben Finnegan of Feenix Group added that education needs to run through every layer of the system — volunteers, executives, athletes. Without shared literacy in data and digital tools, Irish sport risks deepening the “haves and have-nots” divide flagged earlier by Perdissat.
Both agreed the answer is collaboration: universities, tech companies, commercial partners and sporting bodies working together, rather than in silos. The prize is not just a better-trained workforce but the chance for Ireland to brand itself globally as a centre of sports innovation.
Brian Farrell: Future-proofing through fundraising
The final contribution came from the audience itself, when Brian Farrell of Club Lotto Jackpots outlined how his company is tackling the age-old problem of club fundraising.
Traditional lottos and draws, he noted, still work but rely heavily on cash, paper tickets and older demographics. By moving the process online, clubs can reach supporters anywhere — including diaspora abroad — while automating compliance, payments and communications.
The principle matches the themes of the day: freeing volunteers from admin, broadening reach, and building sustainability. Just as AI can save hours and fan apps can generate new revenue, smarter fundraising platforms can give clubs the stability they need to focus on sport.
A Call to Keep the Conversation Alive
Closing the session, we urged those present not to let the ideas of the morning fade once they left Shelbourne Park.
Instead, we are calling on those Sport for Business members who were present to join us for a collective forum bringing together sport, business, agencies, experts, and government to ensure that discussions about AI, streaming, fan engagement, education, and funding remain live, collaborative, and forward-looking.
“Future-proofing can’t be a one-day conversation,” said Rob Hartnett. “It has to be something we carry with us — challenging each other, sharing what works, and shaping policy and practice together.”
Image Credit Martin Fallon and Eva Nolan
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