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The GAA is refusing to intervene to stop a Kerry club from accepting sponsorship from Greyhound Racing Ireland, despite rules prohibiting sponsorship by gambling companies.
GAA Head Office was alerted to Greyhound Racing Ireland’s sponsorship of Skelligs Ranger’s jerseys and reminded that Section 3(1)(d) of the GAA codes states: "Sponsorship by a betting company of any competition, team, playing gear or facility is prohibited."
The GAA was told that:
• Greyhound Racing Ireland is a gambling body which is "fully licensed to operate an internet wagering platform from the Republic of Ireland". It encourages people to bet at tracks and through a phone app.
• Gamblers are given the opportunity to gamble substantial sums of money, with the GRI website telling them that "deposits for debit / credit card betting must be between €20 and €3,000 (or the approximate equivalent in the currency of your choice)”
• Greyhound Racing Ireland tries to lure in potential gamblers with free bets.
• Greyhound Racing Ireland encourages gambling at its tracks via prominent "download our betting app" signs and the availability of on-site tote betting, including at tables where adults and children are seated.
• At tracks, gambling company signs are visible at several locations and include large BoyleSports banners.
• In 2023, €22 million in bets were placed at GRI tracks (Source: GRI annual report).
Responding to our appeal, the GAA had this to say:
“It has been determined that while the entity in question is licensed to operate an internet wagering platform from the Republic of Ireland, Greyhound Racing Ireland is not exclusively a betting company - it is listed as a commercial semi-state body responsible for the control and development of the greyhound industry in the Republic of Ireland. It therefore does not fall within the intention or interpretation of the GAA guidelines regarding gambling sponsorship.”
“As a result of this review, we recognise that the wording of the current guideline would benefit from greater clarity and that is something that we will be looking at,” the spokesperson added.
In a follow-up appeal to the GAA, we pointed to its "Club Gambling Policy" which clearly states that clubs "will ensure that...No betting-related sponsorship is accepted for club teams, gear, property or equipment" https://www.gaa.ie/api/pdfs/image/upload/bxeydr75ed6cqme0zdkm.pdf
“The GAA must surely agree that greyhound racing is ‘betting-related’ and therefore sponsorship is not acceptable under the Club Gambling Policy,” we stated.
The Ladies Gaelic Football Association has also been contacted after St Joseph's Ladies Gaelic Football team in Westmeath accepted sponsorship from Greyhound Racing Ireland. Photos published in the local media show team members wearing jerseys emblazoned with the logo of Mullingar Greyhound Stadium, a gambling venue where dogs suffer and die.
In a message to LGFA, we stated: “Your guidelines stress that any sponsorship ‘must be suitable for the team’. This particular sponsorship is certainly not suitable. It is wrong and reckless, at a time when there are efforts to steer the next generation away from gambling, to associate these young players with a body which encourages gambling and which oversees an activity causing so much cruelty and killing. We hope you will act swiftly to reject this sponsorship and join the many companies, clubs and charities which have rejected greyhound racing.”
ACTION ALERT
Appeal to the GAA to stop clubs from accepting sponsorship from Greyhound Racing Ireland and organising club fundraisers at greyhound tracks.
Email: queries@gaa.ie; nationalchildrensofficer@gaa.ie
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/officialgaa
Twitter: @officialgaa
Contact the Ladies Gaelic Football Association
Helen O'Rourke
Chief Executive
Ladies Gaelic Football Association
Croke Park, Dublin 3
Tel: 01 836 3156
Email: info@lgfa.ie
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LadiesFootball
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LadiesGaelicFootball/