Despite knowing about all the cruelty and killing in greyhound racing, Virgin Media is again giving coverage to the activity this evening.

The company has disregarded appeals to show compassion and reject dog racing.

A notice on the Virgin Media TV website shows that the "final of the Irish Greyhound Derby 2025" will be broadcast on Virgin Media 3 at 9pm (Saturday, 27 September 2025). The programme will be presented by former bookie/government minister Ivan Yates.

“Kindly sponsored by BoyleSports, the Irish Greyhound Derby 2025 will take place live from Shelbourne Park Greyhound Stadium,” the Virgin Media notice states, laughably referring to the race as a “prestigious event”.

Virgin Media receives money from Greyhound Racing Ireland to televise greyhound racing.

Earlier this year, Paul Murphy TD asked the Minister for Agriculture to “provide Greyhound Racing Ireland's costs to sponsor the 2024 Greyhound derby semi-final and final on television on 16 and 23 November 2024”. He was told that “the cost to Greyhound Racing Ireland to sponsor the 2024 Irish Greyhound Derby Semi-Final and Final on Virgin Media was €13,300 per broadcast.”

A 2023 report in the Business Post revealed that “Virgin Media, thanks to a favourable offer from [Greyhound Racing Ireland], opted to show greyhound racing last year after RTÉ abandoned its derby coverage. Virgin was criticised on social media but was understood to be delighted with the deal and has committed again in 2023.”

Virgin Media televised race meetings in 2022 in exchange for a €40,000 payment from Greyhound Racing Ireland. This followed a decision by RTE to drop greyhound racing, further to horrific revelations of animal cruelty in its award-winning Greyhounds Running for Their Lives documentary.

Shame on Virgin Media for providing a platform to an activity that is responsible for the deaths of thousands of dogs each year.

In an appeal to Virgin to reject greyhound racing, the Irish Council Against Blood Sport stated: “Virgin Media should NOT be promoting this cruel, dog-killing activity – the public wants to see greyhound racing ended, not given a platform on national television.”

We pointed to the “Greyhounds Running for Their Lives” documentary which exposed the horrors of greyhound racing, including the behind-the-scenes killing every year of an estimated 6,000 greyhounds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZYTb2qBjlMM

Greyhounds suffer and die at tracks and Shelbourne Park is one of the worst. 351 greyhounds were injured there and 104 were killed over the past 11 years alone. This includes 12 injuries and 5 deaths in the first four months of 2025.

Among the victims at Shelbourne Park over the years were a greyhound who died after suffering a “severe fracture of the neck”, another who collapsed and died with a “haemorrhage into the abdomen from a rupture of the aorta”, a greyhound who died of a heart attack after a race and another who was carried away bleeding with a leg bone “popped out”.

At races around Ireland since 2014, at least 3,696 greyhounds suffered injuries and 1,396 died or were killed

ACTION ALERT

Join us in urging Virgin Media to show compassion and stop televising greyhound racing.

Áine Ní Chaoindealbháin
Managing Director, Virgin Media Television

Tony Hanway
CEO, Virgin Media Ireland

Email: aine.nichaoindealbhain@virginmedia.ie; Tony.Hanway@virginmedia.ie; vmtvinfo@virginmedia.ie; vmtvcomplaints@virginmedia.ie
Telephone Virgin Media Television: 01 4193333
 
Find out more about greyhound injuries and deaths at races
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2019/03/27/greyhound-injuries-and-deaths-at-irish-greyhound-tracks/

SEE ALSO

Virgin Media got €40,000 for televising greyhound racing
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2023/03/05/virgin-media-got-e40000-for-televising-greyhound-racing/

Owner of greyhound in Virgin Media broadcast was previously fined €5,500
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/09/26/owner-of-greyhound-in-virgin-media-broadcast-was-previously-fined-e5500/

Virgin Media urged to scrap plan to televise greyhound racing
https://banbloodsports.wordpress.com/2022/08/12/virgin-media-urged-to-scrap-plan-to-televise-greyhound-racing/