RTÉ have retained the rights to 31 senior championship games each year for the next five years, while Newstalk have lost the rights to live radio broadcast with RTÉ Radio now the exclusive holders.
The national broadcasters live TV match include all provincial hurling and football finals, both All-Ireland hurling and two All-Ireland football quarter-finals, and the All-Ireland semi-finals and finals in both football and hurling.
Meanwhile, Sky Sports have also maintained their package of 20 games, 14 of them exclusive, including two All-Ireland football quarter-finals. They will, as previously, broadcast the All-Ireland hurling and football semi-finals and finals on a simulcast basis with RTÉ. BBC Northern Ireland will once again broadcast live TV coverage from the Ulster senior football championship.
However there have been changes to the Saturday night Allianz League games, as well as radio rights.
TG4 will continue to show league games on Sundays, as well minor championship games up to and including the finals.
However, Saturday night games will now be broadcast on eirSport with highlights continuing to be shown on TG4.
Meanwhile, Newstalk have lost the rights to broadcast live matches on the airwaves as RTÉ Radio will now hold full and exclusive live radio rights for all GAA games including inter-county league and championship action while RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta will again broadcast all-year long as Gaeilge.
In a statement released by Newstalk’s Off the Ball team they questioned why, “despite RTE continuing to benefit from 85 per cent of the licence fee, today’s decision begs the question as to why the state broadcaster would use state funding to purchase rights for a service that was already available to the public, free of charge, via Newstalk.
“We believe we made a very competitive pitch to retain our live GAA commentary rights and we are disappointed that, after six years of innovative and extensive coverage, the GAA has decided not to renew that agreement.”
On television a total of 45 games will be broadcast live across the GAA Football and Hurling Championships while RTÉ will continue to broadcast the Sunday night highlights programme The Sunday Game.
The GAA has retained its clip rights for all games across their digital platforms. Football Championship sponsors eir will also have access to these rights in addition to access to the GAA archive. Sky Sports will have clip access for their 14 exclusive games.
