Early GAA report shows impact of new FRC rules on Gaelic football

The Games Intelligence Unit, a new body set up by the GAA under the Football Review Committee led by Jim Gavin, has released its first set of findings on the impact of the recent rule changes in Gaelic football.

The report, published last weekend, offers the first comprehensive look at how these changes are influencing the game in the early stages of the 2025 season.

The analysis was based on 47 National League games from the first three rounds, with the exception of one game, Wexford versus Carlow, which was cancelled due to fog that prevented meaningful data collection.

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The findings were then compared to the data gathered during the 2023 and 2024 football championships, providing a useful basis for identifying trends. However, it’s important to note that the comparison between league and championship games remains imperfect, as conditions between these two formats vary significantly.

One of the most striking changes highlighted in the report is the increase in scoring rates. The opening rounds of the 2025 league have seen a jump in the number of scores per game, rising from 25 in 2024 to 31 this year.

While this is an interesting trend, comparing league and championship scoring can be tricky, as scoring rates often rise in the championship due to factors like weather.

The new kick-out rule, which requires all restarts to travel beyond the 40-metre mark, has led to a noticeable shift in how teams approach kick-outs.

In previous seasons, the majority of kick-outs didn’t travel beyond the 45-metre line, with the figures hovering just above 50pc. However, this season, only 21pc of kick-outs have been short, demonstrating a clear move towards longer, more contested restarts.

This is in line with the Football Review Committee’s aim of creating more competitive possession battles. Indeed, the number of contested kick-outs has doubled, with two-thirds now being contested, compared to one-third in previous years.

When it comes to hand-passing, the report finds that the ratio of hand-passes to kick-passes has remained mostly unchanged. On average, for every 10 passes, there are still only three kick-passes. However, the solo-run option, which is often used as an alternative to a free kick, has seen an increase.

A total of 414 solo-runs were recorded across the first three rounds of the league, averaging around nine per game.

Despite these trends, hand-passing itself has seen a slight decline, with 394 hand-passes per game this season, down from 450 last year. While this could be partly due to the conditions of early league play, it suggests that the emphasis on kicking the ball may be increasing. This is further supported by the rise in shots per game.

Last season, teams averaged 50 shots per game, but this year that figure has increased to 56, pointing towards a greater focus on attacking play.

Another notable statistic from the report is the increase in turnovers, which have risen from an average of 28 per game in previous years to 35.7 in the 2025 league so far. This could reflect the faster pace of play as teams adjust to the new rules.

In terms of fouls, the new 50-metre fouls are relatively rare, with only 14 recorded over the sample size, but other infringements — such as delays and breaking the three-v-three rule — have been more common, with 66 and 50 occurrences respectively.

As for game duration, the average match time has dropped slightly, now averaging 77 minutes and six seconds. This is a small decrease from last year and could be linked to the introduction of time limits on kick-outs. Despite the reduced game time, ball-in-play time has decreased from 48 minutes per game last year to just 44 minutes per game this season, suggesting that teams may be losing possession more quickly or that there is simply less time spent on the ball.

While it’s clear that these new rule changes are having a marked effect on how the game is being played, a fuller picture will only emerge as the season progresses.

The Games Intelligence Unit will continue to gather data and refine its analysis, with further insights expected as the championship approaches.