GAA and Sky Sports end broadcast partnership

Sky Sports and the GAA have confirmed that they have ended their broadcast agreement which will put an end to GAA games being shown live on the channel.

Both parties have worked together since 2014, having signed a nine-year deal to broadcast live GAA fixtures on the English subscription sports channel.

Sky Ireland chief executive, JD Buckley, confirmed the news yesterday. In a statement, he said: "Despite our participation in the broadcast rights bidding process, lengthy negotiations and a strong willingness on both sides to continue our partnership, Sky and the GAA have been unable to reach a renewal agreement.

"A factor in this decision has been the new shortened GAA season and its knock-on impact on the number of games Sky Sports wanted to broadcast.

"We came on board as official GAA broadcast partner in 2014 and since then, we have made significant investments in GAA – from grassroots initiatives and youth forums; to marketing initiatives and our sponsorship of the annual GAA Development Conference.

"During that time, our broadcast partnership also brought GAA to new and international audiences, driving growth in support."