Certain gaelic football and hurling matches being available to watch exclusively behind a paywall on GAAGO is harming the popularity of both sports, according to Minister of State Jack Chambers.
Mr Chambers, who was previously Minister of State for Sport, also called on the GAA to re-examine its decision to not broadcast matches on terrestrial television.
It follows widespread criticism of the GAA for putting a much-anticipated championship hurling match between Limerick and Cork on the online platform, which charges users a fee to watch games.
“The GAA do need to re-examine this, and I think it’s having a major impact in terms of sport and the wider public interest,” the minister said on RTÉ’s The Week In Politics.
“But also for the GAA itself, I think they’re losing spectators,” he added.
“They’re losing interest from people that would otherwise love to see these games and they should be using every opportunity for people to see the Cork/Limerick game yesterday.”
Mr Chambers told the programme that he believed the shortened GAA season was contributing to the number of games being available on GAAGO rather than free-to-air television.
Labour TD Ged Nash said the game between Limerick and Cork showed “the best of what this country has to offer … in terms of excitement”.
“I think the game should be accessible to as wide a number of people as possible,” he said on the same programme.
“These are our national games. They need to be protected as a function for RTÉ, indeed for other channels as well, to provide free-to-air broadcasting.
“So, I think that’s something that the Minister has to focus on.”
However, Mr Nash also made the case that the Government should ensure that both the men and women’s FAI Cup finals should be broadcast free-to-air annually.
“I remember actually a few months ago, the draft list in terms of the sports events that should be free-to-air and some of the things that weren’t included were the FAI Cup final,” he said.
“Football – soccer – is our biggest participation sport and that needs to remain to be the case as well.”
Sinn Féin’s Louise O’Reilly said matches only being available online and for a fee was an obstacle for people who cannot afford them and find it difficult to use computers.
“People deserve a chance to access them. Everybody should have been watching that game last night,” she said.
“By all accounts it was an absolutely fantastic game, but there is an issue with putting these games behind a paywall.”
Ms O’Reilly added: “It’s an issue for people who are digitally challenged, it’s an issue for people who maybe don’t have the money.
“We’re still in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis and people need access to these games.
“The GAA should listen to their own community, to their own people and they should actually lift this paywall.”
