Boost for Louth as STATSports deal looks set to be extended
LOUTH GAA chiefs are hoping to tie up a new deal with existing sponsors STATSports in the coming weeks, as the Dundalk owners of the world-renowned sport tracking firm continue to support their home county and town.
The company founded by Alan Clarke and Sean O’Connor have been primary sponsors of Louth inter-county teams since 2017 and are also secondary sponsors of Dundalk FC. Under the new deal they will continue to adorn the jerseys of all four inter-county football and hurling teams at senior, under 21, minor and junior level.
Louth has benefitted on the double from the link-up as the deal includes access to STATSports’ industry-leading APEX device and software, which translates into a five-figure saving for a senior inter-county team.
With offices locally, in Dundalk and Newry, and globally, in Chicago and Florida, STATSports has grown to become the world-leader in GPS player tracking and analysis provider in elite sports. They count Liverpool, PSG, Juventus and the national teams of Brazil and Germany among a prestigious client list.
The company made big headlines in recent years when it sold shares to Premier League stars Alex Oxlade Chamberlain and Raheem Sterling in a deal that valued the company at over €200m.
New Louth boss Mickey Harte has been making full use of the APEX devices in recent weeks as his players have abided by the GAA’s collective training ban imposed by Croke Park in the wake of rocketing COVID-19 cases.
While Louth’s 2020 Division 3 colleagues Cork and Down were dragged over the coals for conducting collective training sessions, Harte and his backroom team have provided players with individual training plans that must be tracked and logged using the APEX GPS trackers.
The training ban was due to end this week, but the GAA has since extended it until the end of January at the earliest.
Public health authorities in both the north and south permit training by elite sports teams, which includes inter-county GAA squads. However, Croke Park passed down a separate directive prohibiting collective training of any sort.
Down were reported to the PSNI following a get-together at Abbey CBS, Newry. No action was taken by the PSNI once it was confirmed that the squad was involved in ‘elite’ sport, but the GAA may still take action under its own rules.
Cork may also find themselves in hot water after footage appeared of what appeared to be a collective training session on a beach.
Since conducting trials and a few training sessions before Christmas, Louth called a swift halt to collective sessions.
The GAA hasn’t yet indicated whether it is open to pushing back the start of the Allianz Leagues, which are due to kick off on the last weekend of February.
Training and games can proceed under Level 5 lockdown, but the GAA’s own training embargo means inter-county teams will have just three weeks of pre-season to prepare for the National League.
With the Leagues ‘slimmed down’ into two groups of four for the 2021 campaign, there is room in the calendar to push the start dates back into March and that may still happen if the COVID-19 crisis continues on its current path.
Meanwhile, the prospect of a return to club football looks even more remote as Government guidelines only permit matches at that level to played under Level 2 restrictions.