Donegal GAA steams considered 'not a lucrative commercial venture' but still an 'important service'

The streams on Donegal GAA fixtures only broke the 300-mark five times in 2021 but the service, although not considered a lucrative venture, is still deemed worthwhile.

The five times did the number of viewers exceed 300 were: 2020 County Final (841); Gaoth Dobhair v Naomh Conaill senior quarterfinal (601), St Eunans v St Michaels senior semi- final (360), Cloughaneely v Dungloe Intermediate A final replay (327) and Cloughaneely v Dungloe Intermediate A final (317).

“The number of stream viewers was well down on 2020 reflecting the fact spectators were back watching games live,” said County Board PRO John McEniff in his annual report ahead of Annual County Convention on Monday week, December 13.

“With restrictions on capacity the County Board also encouraged clubs to stream their games but contrary to the experience in 2020, very few streamed games in 2021,” McEniff added. “Up to early November 2021, Donegal GAA TV had streamed 24 knock-out Championship games on a Pay Per View basis and another six were streamed free of charge on the Donegal GAA Facebook page.

“A further two, the Senior semi-final between Naomh Conaill and Kilcar and the Senior final between Naomh Conaill and St Eunans were broadcast on TG4.

“Overall, a total of 4,340 single streams were purchased throughout the year. In addition, 112 season tickets at an average price of €23.90 - the price of season tickets varied across the weeks depending on how many games were left. Viewership of the County final on TG4 was high.

“It was the most watched programme on TG4 that week and, on average, 11% of people watching TV in Ireland that Sunday afternoon tuned into the game at some stage although peak’ viewership was low by comparison reflecting the one-sided nature of the game.”

McEniff admitted there are different opinions on whether or not to broadcast domestic matches live on television, although he is of the opinion that it is an important facet in showcasing Donegal to a wider audience.

“There is a financial argument against broadcasting our premier games on TV as some potential spectators remain at home and watch on TG4 rather than travelling to the game, although this dis-incentive is easily overstated,” he added. “Promoting our games is a key PRO brief and from this standpoint the benefits of showing our games to a wide audience outweigh any negative impact on gate receipts.”

Throughout the year there were mixed responses to the coverage provided on streams, although installation of fibre broadband at MacCumhaill Park is also expected to iron out any problems with matches being streamed from the Ballybofey venue.

“The vagaries of broadband coverage has proved a problem for streaming though less so in 2021 than last year,” he added. “On the one hand there are still pockets in the county where subscriber signals are weak and the quality of download coverage is uneven. There is nothing that can be done about this from a Donegal GAA perspective. There is also a problem on the other end that the quality of the broadband at grounds is poor resulting in poor quality upload. There is a select number of venues in the County where this problem has been overcome.

“MacCumhaill Park, the venue for many of our key club matches, has broadband but not fibre and there can be upload problems from time to time. The necessary investment in MacCumhaill Park to bring it up to the required standard is, however, imminent with the installation of fibre broadband that should solve this problem.

“With spectators back at games streaming in 2021, and henceforth, is not a lucrative commercial venture that will generate substantial revenue for the County Board. On the other hand, viewership is sufficiently high to suggest this important service can be provided for those who often cannot make the actual games while still making a modest financial contribution to County Board revenue.”