Shamrock Rovers have threatened to block RTÉ from providing live coverage of League of Ireland matches at Tallaght Stadium for the rest of the season.
However, under the league’s participation agreement, the Football Association of Ireland decide what games are televised.
Rovers’ issue centres around national broadcasters, which include RTÉ, TG4 and Virgin Media, not showing any European qualifiers involving Irish clubs this year.
Instead, the first leg of Rovers’ playoff against PAOK in Greece on Thursday to reach the Europa League group stages, will be streamed on LOITV.
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“The club exhausted every avenue across the four rounds of European matches to deliver matches on a free to air national broadcaster, but to no avail,” said the club via a press release. “Live streaming has provided fans with the option to follow the Hoops home and away in Europe in July and August.
“It has been a disappointment that these thrilling games have not been showcased to a wider Irish audience.”
If Rovers lose to PAOK over two legs they will be rerouted to the Conference League, where they are guaranteed six European nights, three at home, and a windfall of at least €4 million.
RTÉ and Virgin do not have rights to the group stages of the Uefa Conference or Europa Leagues.
“The club is considering if it will facilitate any future requests from the national broadcaster to show SSE Airtricity Premier Division fixtures from Tallaght Stadium in 2024,” the Rovers statement concluded.
But it is the FAI that decide what games are televised. RTÉ have shown eight of an agreed 18 fixtures this season with the next one expected to be Shelbourne against St Patrick’s Athletic on September 13th.
Thereafter, a domestic game will be broadcast most Friday nights until the end of the tightly contested campaign that currently has the five in a row chasing Rovers lying fifth in the table, 10 points behind Shels.
The Dublin derby between Rovers and Shelbourne in Tallaght stadium on October 4th is set to be shown live on RTÉ2.
St Pat’s Conference League first-leg playoff against Istanbul Basaksehir FK this Thursday, also in Tallaght, will only be available on a streaming service.
It would cost close to €200,000 to broadcast St Pat’s and Rovers over two legs this week and next. RTÉ indicated that budgetary constraints, due to long-standing commitments to cover the Euros in Germany and the Olympic Games in Paris, led to no League of Ireland teams in Europe being visible on terrestrial TV.
Last November, RTÉ informed the FAI that European club qualifiers would not be televised after being forced to reduce their budget for 2024 by a six-figure amount. This also led to two horse racing fixtures and two GAA club championship games being dropped, and the rugby programme Against the Head is temporarily removed from the schedule.
The current RTÉ budget was in place eight months before €725 million in Government funding, to be paid over the next three years, was announced in July.
RTÉ and Virgin share rights for the Champions League but Premier Sports, the Irish-based subscription service, have first choice of group games. This Wednesday, RTÉ are contractually obliged to show Young Boys versus Galatasaray in the Champions League playoffs.
Premier Sports also hold the rights for the Conference and Europa League group stages, so it will cost Rovers, and possibly St Pat’s fans, €11.99 a month to see their teams play European football on that platform this season.
There are no plans in place to put Irish clubs in Europe on terrestrial TV next year but RTÉ do intend to cover the World Athletics Championship in Tokyo.
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