More than 1,700 Gaelic footballers, hurlers and camogie players representing 87 teams from 20 countries will travel to Ireland in August for the 2016 Etihad Airways GAA World Games.
A week-long festival of Gaelic games activity will take place between August 7th and 14th at UCD’s Belfield campus, with the finals being played at Croke Park. In total there will be over 500 games played as well as a major cultural and heritage programme and opening and closing ceremonies that will be televised around the world.
Teams from Australia, South Africa, Argentina, China, Canada, the Middle East, the US, Europe and Britain will be involved bringing as many as It is expected that as many as 7,000 people to the Festival between players, team officials, administrators, families and supporters.
Exciting
“The success of last year’s Etihad Airways GAA World Games in Abu Dhabi is still fresh in the memory,” said GAA president Aogán Ó Fearghail, “and everyone involved in the GAA is very eager to see that we continue to develop this exciting initiative.”
“It is an event that simply would not be possible without the support and commitment of Etihad Airways which has played an integral part in making the dream of a GAA World Games become a reality.”
“Etihad Airways is delighted to be a part of the continuing success story that is the GAA World Games,” added Beatrice Cosgrove, General Manager for Etihad Airways in Ireland.
“Through the Etihad Partners’ expansive network of routes we are constantly reminded of the global reach of the Irish diaspora and of the integral part that the GAA and Gaelic Games play in the lives of the Irish communities overseas.”
“Just as our sponsorship of the GAA Hurling All-Ireland championship is a chance for us to be part of something special, we are excited that the GAA World Games is a competition that will grow and has the potential to be an integral part of the GAA calendar.”
Scale
The scale of the 2016 Etihad Airways GAA World Games represents a tripling in size of the inaugural GAA World Games which was hosted by Etihad Airways and successfully staged in Abu Dhabi last summer.
It is planned to twin each of the visiting teams with a host club from Dublin, Kildare, and Meath which will enable them to forge new links with Ireland and also gain expert coaching while they are here. It will also increase their support base.
This event is being held in Dublin this August to highlight the phenomenal global expansion of GAA clubs overseas with more than 400 GAA clubs now in existence outside of Ireland.
A key feature of the 2016 World Games event will be that the growing number of new GAA clubs made up of non-native Irish people who have discovered Gaelic games and have made it their sport of choice.
Chinese
Among others, this diversity will be evidence by a native Chinese ladies football team and a native South African men’s football team who have confirmed that they will travel to take part.
The GAA will support the event with a major publicity campaign, as well as providing an army of volunteers who will help run the event over 10 pitches out in Belfield.
The finals will then be played at Croke Park on August 11 in football, ladies football, hurling, and camogie with eight finals covering the four codes.
