GAA+ profits strengthen association's hand as broadcast talks loom

Negotiations for the next round of GAA championship rights will begin in the coming months

GAA+ pretax profits for 2025 were up almost 26% to €1.4m. Pic: Ben McShane/Sportsfile

For a Friday story, the GAA+ 2025 accounts released last week sure made pretty reading for the association.

Pretax profits for 2025 were up almost 26% to €1.4 million and subscriptions rose to €5.77m, a jump of close to 9%. Accumulated profits are €2.56m and sponsorship is now worth €365,168. In three years, pretax profits have increased more than 60%.

With every figure, the reasons why the GAA chose to buy out RTÉ’s 50% share of GAAGO have been made crystal clear. Their interest in becoming sole owners, which was reported by this newspaper in December 2024, became a reality in early ’25 and the €3m deal was completed in February this year.

On their own, the GAA doesn’t have the shield of RTÉ to absorb criticism when GAA+ put big games behind their paywall. Having said that, the numbers demonstrate that people see value in the product even when the season pass price rose to €95 from €79 for non-GAA members this year.

For what is essentially an 11-week window, starting with their coverage of the first round of the provincial championships in early April to the Saturday of All-Ireland quarter-final weekend in late June, GAA+ was earning €75,000 per day in subscriptions. That doesn’t consider the revenue it generates as the international rights holder but tapping the home market has become so fruitful.

What the GAA determines to give its streaming arm in the next round of media rights will be watched closely. They have nothing to fear from the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC). Last November, the CCPC determined the GAA’s purchase of GAAGO Media Limited would “not be to substantially lessen competition in any market for goods or services in the State…”

Initial negotiations for those championship rights, to commence from 2028, will begin in the coming months. The relationship between key officials in the GAA and RTÉ is frayed but that is nothing new and goes back over 10 years.

Nevertheless, it would seem difficult for RTÉ to retain its 35-championship game live TV package when they are facing so many financial haircuts.

At least the new football championship format will be reflected in the new agreement. It is not in the current deal and as a result GAA+ had first choice when the Kerry-Donegal All-Ireland SFC Round 1 game was scheduled for a Saturday in May.

One suggestion being mooted is RTÉ receiving first refusal to show certain high-profile games provided they pay a premium on them. Otherwise, they will be streamed on the pay-per-view service.

On another note, there is some reluctance in RTÉ to carry Allianz in the title of their National League package. Presenter and journalist Joanne Cantwell has spoken on air about that unease and they may also be a consideration in future deliberations.

At this stage, it would appear Sky Sports won’t be making a bid next year – the July finishes to the All-Ireland championships were a no-no for them – although Virgin Media could throw their hat in the ring provided the product is packaged for them. GAA+ turning producers is not such a far-fetched idea.

For now, it remains a predominantly Gaelic football medium. Just 10 of the 40 championship games it streamed this year were hurling. It remains a Joe McDonagh Cup-free zone.

For the promotion of the game, TG4 may be better suited to carrying the second-tier hurling games and filling in its live GAA coverage between the National Leagues, under-age championships and the start of the club championship window.

GAA+ itself may expand to take in National League games. After last week’s accounts, the GAA world is its oyster.