FUTURE SECURE DESPITE LOSSES AMAZON INTEREST IN A GAA TV DEAL

Coventry v Norwich

THE GAA can sustain 2020’s record losses again in 2021, insists director of finance Ger Mulryan.

Central Council’s takings came in at a whopping €73.9m in 2019 but, largely as a result of having to run the entire 2020 Championship behind closed doors, that figure dropped to €31.4m for last year.

The earnings of Croke Park Stadium also plummeted from €47.6m in 2019 to €7.4m. Gate receipts accounted for only 12% of the GAA’S earnings in 2020, with the first five rounds of the Allianz

Leagues completed before the first lockdown kicked in last March.

It meant that Central Council and Croke Park Stadium finished 2020 with deficits of €15.6m and €10.2m respectively.

The Irish Government rode to the rescue as state funding shot up by €12.4m to €18.5m, more than half of what the GAA took in, while savings were made elsewhere such as the cost of running matches, which decreased by €7.4m.

With capacity crowds highly unlikely to be a feature of this year’s inter-county season, Mulryan expects to be looking at similar losses in 12 months’ time.

Mulryan (above) explained: “If I’m sitting here looking at a similar loss next year, which realistically I probably will be, we have lines of credit in place.

“We’ve had to review our going concern as a collective unit and as an association and we have presented our cash-flow projections and business models.

“We are comfortable that we will be able to proceed for the foreseeable future, up to 12 months and beyond, so I’m confident that won’t be a problem.”

Meanwhile, Mulryan said that the GAA’S commitment of £15m towards Casement Park’s redevelopment remains in place.

He added: “Our commitment is £15m and is on the record. There’s no one stepping out of that but equally the funding hasn’t been finalised. We’ll be taking an active part in any of those discussions, as that plan is put together.”

AMAZON has emerged as a contender for the GAA’S broadcasting rights, which are up for grabs again next year.

The GAA received criticism for bringing Sky Sports on board as a broadcasting partner in 2014 having only dealt with free-to-air terrestrial stations in terms of live Championship output up to then.

But now the possibility of linking up with another subscription service is emerging, according to the GAA’S commercial director Peter Mckenna.

Amazon has had a share of the Premier League broadcasting deal in recent years, with its Amazon Prime service exclusively airing 22 cross-channel games this season.

The GAA’S current broadcasting rights deal is worth €14.5m per annum and has been a valuable source of revenue with games going behind closed doors.

Mckenna said: “There are some positives in the media rights landscape. We certainly got huge support from TG4 and RTE in allowing streaming to occur even though it was contrary to the contracts we had with them.

“Streaming and digitisation are going to be a bigger part of the contracts. The importance of sport in a national broadcast sense is far more important now when you see what other content is available and where it is available.

“We have a very good product for media rights negotiation and I think there is a lot of players in the market now and new ones coming into it.

“I would be very confident that we’ll have a very healthy discussion with the existing partners.

“But there are newcomers coming into that frame too, like Amazon for example.”

7pm

BY DAVE ARMITAGE

COVENTRY skipper Matty James is demanding referees protect Callum O’hare.

Relegation-threatened Coventry host leaders Norwich, and James (above) said he had a word with the referee during Saturday’s 3-1 defeat at Cardiff.

“It’s hard for Callum as he has such a low centre of gravity and with his quick feet it sometimes looks like it’s not a foul. But some of the challenges on him I don’t agree with,” said James.

“I tried to speak to the ref and said to him, ‘Listen, he’s probably one of the most fouled players in the Championship. You have to protect him and give him the licence to be able to dribble without having to worry about having his Achilles trodden on or his ankles kicked’.

“The amount of fouls on Callum was very, very frustrating. Hopefully it’s something they look at and start to protect him.”

Norwich beat Coventry in the FA Cup in January and drew at Carrow Road in November.

Canaries boss Daniel Farke said: “They always play with lots of passion and desire. Coventry know what they have to do to stay in this league, they will be aggressive.”