Over the next two weeks we are diving into the 200 page Annual report of the GAA, highlighting areas beyond the games themselves that form part of this important annual snapshot of the biggest sport and the biggest civil membership organisation in the country.
Today though we start with the numbers, the money in and money out that keeps the show on the road and we do so through highlighting some of the key figures drawn from the fully transparent and audited accounts for 2024.
What was the total revenue for the year?
The total revenue for 2024 was €132 million, up 19 per cent on 2023’s number of €112 million.
How can we put that in context?
By way of comparison the figure for 2019, the last year before the Covid interruption was €118 million and that was double what it was in 2014.
In 2020, the first year of Covid, the number plummeted to €31.9 million.
How much of that came from ticket receipts?
Attendance for the season was actually down by 10 per cent but the revenue from gate receipts climbed to €39.1 million from €38.4 million as a result of a first increase in ticket prices for more than five years.
Again looking back to 2019 the figure was €36 million but that included an All Ireland Football Final replay.
What about commercial income?
This is made up of three elements in the GAA Accounts – Sponsorship, media rights and licensing income.
The overall number for 2024 was €24.9 million, up from €21.9 million in 2023.
Speaking to Sport for Business yesterday Commercial Director Peter McKenna attributed this to a number of renewals across the commercial landscape as opposed to any single new partnership.
This figure includes the six primary sponsorships across the football and hurling Championships with Allianz, AIB, SuperValu, Bord Gais Energy, Centra and eir as well as others with Kellogs, Electric Ireland, eirgrid, PwC, UPMC and many more.
It also includes media rights income from RTÉ, TG4 and GAA Go.
How about the match day income from suites, premium seats and catering?
This saw a significant rise last year climbing from €28.9 million to €39.5 million. There are significant costs in terms of the delivery of these services but the operation delivered in style this year with the added bonus of rugby matches involving Leinster and six concerts.
How much was the stadium hire alone for those additional events?
Without any concerts in 2023 the figure was €1.5 million but last year Leinster Rugby, Coldplay, Bruce Springsteen and AC\DC produced an income line of €6.4 million. Music to the GAA years.
And on the other side of the coin what were the operating costs of generating that revenue?
The direct costs of match day and competition costs, stadium costs including replacing 30,000 seats, and the delivery of the catering and match day services came to €39.8 million while the indirect costs of operating the Association, marketing communication, IT and depreciation added €23.9 million.
So what was the surplus for 2024?
The surplus for the year was 69.0 million, the joy of being an amateur ethos volunteer driven sporting body.
And how much of that went back into the games?
The biggest figure on the distribution side is that which goes to games development and player welfare. This rose last year from €23.0 million to €28.1 million, future proofing the continued appeal of the sports.
The distribution to provincial Councils and County Boards, the GAA Units was €18.2 million and the Capital and operating grants to the units was another €16.5 million, amounting to a total distribution back of €62.9 million or 91.1 per cent of the surplus.
What were the main Capital Investments in Croke Park?
The refurbishment of the Cusack Stand and realigning of the structure of the suite level came to €13.1 million. The seat replacement in the same stand came to €2.2 million. A key water harvesting project sucked up €2 million and the construction costs on the new hotel on Jones’s Road took up €1.4 million in the course of those 12 months.
Join us again over the coming weeks as we take a daily dive into different areas of the report from integration with the LGFA and Camogie Association, to sustainability, Values, Volunteering and more.
SPORT FOR BUSINESS PERSPECTIVE
This is a vital look at our biggest sporting body, holding itself to account for major revenue generation and expenditure
WHAT’S UP NEXT?
On Monday we will look at what was said about Gaelic Games integration.
The GAA, LGFA and Camogie Association are among the 300+ organisations that are members of the Sport for Business community.
The Sport for Business Membership comprises nearly 300 organisations, including all the leading sports and sponsors, as well as commercial and state agencies.
