There are reports this morning that the WatchLoi service of streaming SSE Airtricity League Games will return with full coverage of the Premier Division and limited games from the First Division and Women’s National League, up to the mid-season break at the end of May.
With no likelihood of a return of fans until then at the earliest, this is a further opportunity for clubs and fans, as well as the FAI and the broadcast team of GAAGo that delivers the stream to determine the potential level of interest in an ongoing streaming service.
Every game not shown on mainstream TV will be included from the top flight. There were 17,000 viewers last season, including 6,000 who got theirs through their season ticket purchase at individual clubs before Covid struck.
This fell short of what was considered to be enough to continue a ‘viable minimum base’ that would justify the expense of the broadcast and make it attractive from a sponsorship perspective.
Now though, with a new season breeding optimism, and continued hunger for entertainment to keep us balanced in these challenging times, perhaps there will be a greater take-up.
If there was, the door could still be open for extending into the remainder of the season but with the Euro’s and the Olympics and Paralympics taking up the maximum resource at RTÉ, the numbers will have to be much stronger.
If that is the limit in terms of the number of fans, and it’s less than in normal times, might travel to England and Scotland to watch football from overseas leagues, then that will be a huge blow for those who believe in the domestic game.
Prices for the service have yet to be confirmed.
To purloin a hackneyed enough phrase from our lives over the past twelve months, it’s in our hands.
Sport for Business Partners
