As explained to this board before, those are pathetic excuses. There is no issue in the US or Australia for the NFL, AFL and NRL to top the ratings. The Super Bowls and Grand Finals for those sports receive bumper ratings annually. The GGA cannot because the GGA is parochial and attracts really only the hardcores and those from those counties to watch the games.
RTÉ have published the Top 50 there for this year - not much improvement for the GGA there in lower rated games. There are international football fixtures with no Ireland involved and Champions League games there that are rating better than so called prestige GGA ties. The results are even better for the GGA when you consider that the majority of their big games are on Free to Air. Meanwhile rugby loses out on European games and Tour games to subscription channels and football misses out on Nations Cup and Premier League games.
The GGA are fast running out of rope.
So do the All Ireland Finals
There would be two european club semis and a final close to the top of that list last year if they were on FTA. The pool games would have been v strong as well. The OZ tour decider would have rattled the all blacks game for viewers
One off finals? Do you understand what consistent and year in year out means?
Wrong.
They get good ratings but not close to the tops annually.
If a sport really captures the imagination of a nation it will get many neutrals watching and will be a real event for the nation to watch together. There is a marked difference in the significance of a GGA All Ireland day vs say AFL Grand Final day in Victoria. Lads here from Limerick think it’s the bees nees getting 900k as a one off, it really isn’t.
What percentage of Australians watch the Grand Final? Or Americans and the Superbowl for that matter?
The hurling final gets truly remarkable viewing figures considering how little its played outside Munster, Kilkenny and South Galway
C. 17% of the Irish population watched the All Ireland finals last year.
C. 33% of the US population watched the Super Bowl.
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How? Do you realize how few people actually play American football in the US?
If you add up QF SF and Finals the averages would be higher than the average attendance at the smugby 6 nations.
Most people in America have at least some connection with an American football team whether that be High School, college or NFL. More than half the country don’t have any connection with a hurling team
It’s not that difficult.
On average viewership it is 31.5% (2018), 34% (2017) and 34% (2018). In total viewers (the Irish numbers above) it is an average of 52%.
In fairness to the GGA, 700,000 people sitting down to watch two finals both between two counties nobody really cares about on a hot Sunday afternoon in the middle of August in a heatwave when there were a hundred and one better things you could be doing is not a bad result.
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Between the All Ireland quarter final prelim and the final it was 44k.
Limerick got about 250k all in last year watching them. Rugby got 310k at home alone. Rugby fills out the stadium for the majority of the games at vastly higher ticket prices than GGA. The demand is quite clear.
You’re comparing one county to the entire country. Unreal result for Limerick and the GGA in general
Limerick Limerick Limerick
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Why would you include the QF prelim when I said no such thing mate?
By the way @Tim_Riggins what US national teams does the NFL compete against for ratings?