New TV Deal

[Martinho II]

I watched the game om VM 2, and despite Mr negativity Kerr I listened to what he had to say. I was hoping he would be positive about the league, the new season and a record breaking crowd. But no he remembers crowds as big. I'm now of to slit my wrists, he is dreadful, the dullest fckure ever to be on tv and a bad advert for a league on the rise. They need to get someone who is positive and upbeat.

Kerr I think his days are numbered. Virgin surely have younger pundits! Wot age is he now?

[Shinkicker]

Kerr I think his days are numbered. Virgin surely have younger pundits! Wot age is he now?
I don't mind his age it's his attitude, he has to reference something he did or pats did. Bring in anybody but please replace him

[EatYerGreens]

Will be interesting to see what the TV viewing figures are for today's game at Lansdowne.

[JC_GUFC]

Surprised this TV thread hasn't been going. Reportedly Virgin have been very happy with TV viewing figures, particularly matches involving Shelbourne, which is probably a large part of why the last run of six fixtures featured four Shelbourne games.

The final two games of that run are

Rovers v Shels on Friday
Sligo v Drogheda on Friday 2nd May - that will be the first time Sligo have been on this season and I think will mean every team will have been shown at home too.


There are games on Bank Holiday Monday so you'd imagine they'll be thinking about that already

Derry v Pat's looks the most likely game but the other fixtures are Drogs v Cork, Galway v Bohs, Rovers v Sligo, Shels v Waterford.

Week 15 I would assume Shels v Pat's or possibly Rovers v Drogheda

Week 16 really could be anything but maybe the Connacht derby in Galway but Bohs v Shels is also on

Week 17 Derry v Rovers but maybe Galway v Cork (the Caulfield derby) if they haven't run with Galway v Sligo.

Week 18 Cork v Shels, maybe Sligo v Pat's

[2 Year Contract]

Surprised this TV thread hasn't been going. Reportedly Virgin have been very happy with TV viewing figures, particularly matches involving Shelbourne, which is probably a large part of why the last run of six fixtures featured four Shelbourne games.

The final two games of that run are

Rovers v Shels on Friday
Sligo v Drogheda on Friday 2nd May - that will be the first time Sligo have been on this season and I think will mean every team will have been shown at home too.


There are games on Bank Holiday Monday so you'd imagine they'll be thinking about that already

Derry v Pat's looks the most likely game but the other fixtures are Drogs v Cork, Galway v Bohs, Rovers v Sligo, Shels v Waterford.

Week 15 I would assume Shels v Pat's or possibly Rovers v Drogheda

Week 16 really could be anything but maybe the Connacht derby in Galway but Bohs v Shels is also on

Week 17 Derry v Rovers but maybe Galway v Cork (the Caulfield derby) if they haven't run with Galway v Sligo.

Week 18 Cork v Shels, maybe Sligo v Pat's

Selections have just been announced. Annoying that the Pats trip to Derry has been moved from 5pm to 7:45pm. It’s a bank holiday so would’ve been perfect for away fans to get home at a reasonable hour before work on Tuesday but anyways, what can you do.




Friday, April 25 - Shamrock Rovers v Shelbourne, Tallaght Stadium - 19:45
Friday, May 2 – Sligo Rovers v Drogheda United, The Showgrounds – 19:45
Monday, May 5 - Derry City v St. Patrick’s Athletic, The Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium - 19:45
Friday, May 9 - Shamrock Rovers v Drogheda United, Tallaght Stadium - 19:45
Friday, May 16 - Bohemians v Shelbourne, Dalymount Park, 19:45
Monday, May 19 - Shelbourne v Drogheda United, Tolka Park, 19:45

[legendz]

Is the Virgin Media App through Chromecast better for watching their LoI coverage? Virgin Media Two is only Standard Definition AFAIK. Guessing the Virgin Media App would have better picture quality for HD.

[2 Year Contract]

Updated TV fixtures announced:

Bohs Shels 16 May
Shels Drogs 19 May
Pats Waterford 23 May
Bohs Derry 30 May
Shels Rovers 13 June

[EatYerGreens]

Updated TV fixtures announced:

Bohs Shels 16 May
Shels Drogs 19 May
Pats Waterford 23 May
Bohs Derry 30 May
Shels Rovers 13 June

Some questionable choices there - with every single game purely and entirely by coincidence in Dublin.

The biggest games on those days IMO are :

16th May - Drogs-Derry
19th May - Rovers-Pats.
23rd May - Derry-Rovers
30th May - Bohs-Derry or Rovers-Galway.
13th June - Pats-Drogs or Shels-Rovers.

How is Derry-Rovers on 23rd not on TV in particular?

[2 Year Contract]

Some questionable choices there - with every single game purely and entirely by coincidence in Dublin.

The biggest games on those days IMO are :

16th May - Drogs-Derry
19th May - Rovers-Pats.
23rd May - Derry-Rovers
30th May - Bohs-Derry or Rovers-Galway.
13th June - Pats-Drogs or Shels-Rovers.

How is Derry-Rovers on 23rd not on TV in particular?

On your first suggestion for the tv game, like it or not a Dublin derby looks a million times better on tv than any game of football in United Park.

On the second one, Shels Drogs is a similar game in terms of size to the Drogs Derry one you wanted on tv 3 days earlier. Although another Dublin derby would be good for tv so not a bad suggestion (despite it going against your point about there being too many Dublin games selected).

Agree with you on the third one, Derry Rovers is a bigger game than Pats Waterford. On the last 2 dates, even by your own reckoning all 4 options are in Dublin, and they’ve picked 2 of them.

[nigel-harps1954]

Lot of it might simply be down to suitability of venues too. Derry and Drogheda are crap for tv broadcast because the facilities are brutal there. Biggest mistake made in Derry was not putting proper media facilities into the new stand.

[nr637]

Just think back when we had RTE coverage!

Now we have a TV deal with Virgin and a new TV Deal thread where we can post about the choice of matches!

I think it's brill and adds to the Greatest League in the World!

:)

[Nesta99]

Lot of it might simply be down to suitability of venues too. Derry and Drogheda are crap for tv broadcast because the facilities are brutal there. Biggest mistake made in Derry was not putting proper media facilities into the new stand.

They didnt? In this day and age that'd be one of my priorities, up there with....toilets! How much hassle is it to have a relatively small room dedicated as media studio in a new build? If the tv gantry and portacabins were umm functional and used in Oriel...

[Kingdom]

My opinion won't count for much here (and rightly so), but I've loved almost every aspect of Virgin's new broadcasting arrangement. My kids are watching it, there's proper build-up to games, it looks like professional football should look like on tv. Small things (I know they are meaningless in the general scheme of things) like the aerial shots of the grounds, these are important for the optics of what is our top league.

Was it the Drogheda game vs Shels in United Park (or whatever it is now) where the camera lens just couldn't be sheltered and thus the quality was poor; that was the only negative I think.

[bohsmug]

My opinion won't count for much here (and rightly so), but I've loved almost every aspect of Virgin's new broadcasting arrangement. My kids are watching it, there's proper build-up to games, it looks like professional football should look like on tv. Small things (I know they are meaningless in the general scheme of things) like the aerial shots of the grounds, these are important for the optics of what is our top league.

Was it the Drogheda game vs Shels in United Park (or whatever it is now) where the camera lens just couldn't be sheltered and thus the quality was poor; that was the only negative I think.

Yeah I agree.

For me the character of the league is coming across accurately too. So if there was somebody who was more of a TV viewing football fan, there is the possibility of getting a TV football experience that feels like a TV version of LOI. The stories develop on their own because they don't need to fill huge gaps of borderline media blackouts. The weekly interviews mean managers say the kind of things LOI managers have always said and then stories develop from there. Even some of the ways the LOI lets itself down at times is present and has this push/pull relationship with its better qualities. That "we want to grow" and trying to do the right things against the very real threat of it all going to absolute sh1te is part of the LOI story too. It's possibly referred to as brand identity or something but anyway I think it's present and I hope that its succesful as a TV product.

[2 Year Contract]

New 2 year TV deal for the FAI Cup with RTE. They’ll be showing 13 games over the 2 years with this year including the below

One Third Round fixture on the week ending Sunday, 17 August 2025
· Two Quarter-Final fixtures on the week ending Sunday, 14 September 2025
· Two Semi-Final fixtures on the week ending Sunday, 5 October 2025
· The Final on Sunday, November 9 2025

https://www.fai.ie/latest/fai-and-rte-sport-announce-biggest-ever-broadcast-agreement-sports-direct-mens-fai-cup-delivering-13-games-over-two-years/

[TonyD]

New 2 year TV deal for the FAI Cup with RTE. They’ll be showing 13 games over the 2 years with this year including the below

One Third Round fixture on the week ending Sunday, 17 August 2025
· Two Quarter-Final fixtures on the week ending Sunday, 14 September 2025
· Two Semi-Final fixtures on the week ending Sunday, 5 October 2025
· The Final on Sunday, November 9 2025

https://www.fai.ie/latest/fai-and-rte-sport-announce-biggest-ever-broadcast-agreement-sports-direct-mens-fai-cup-delivering-13-games-over-two-years/

Interesting that it seems RTE are looking to up their game. Has to be welcomed. They can do a good job when they want to.

[legendz]

I'd like to see Virgin Media take on the European games consistently. I wouldn't be counting on RTE to show the European games. The FAI Cup agreement probably ticks RTE's box when it comes to the domestic game.

[nr637]

RTÉ announce 2-year coverage of FAI Cup



https://www.rte.ie/sport/soccer/2025/0515/1513066-rte-and-fai-announce-2-year-broadcast-deal-for-fai-cup/

They are desperate now, after seeing the great success of the League coverage by Virgin, they are trying to make up for that loss. It's a win win day for the FAI and the fans.

Kudos to the FAI! :love:

*Just adding my take onto the previous posts.

[nr637]

I'd like to see Virgin Media take on the European games consistently. I wouldn't be counting on RTE to show the European games. The FAI Cup agreement probably ticks RTE's box when it comes to the domestic game.

It suits the RTE Sports decision makers such as Declan McBennett RTÉ Group Head of Sport as they can fit these games into the gaps during the GAA schedule, I expect! :confused:

[nigel-harps1954]

GAA season finishes in July now, and the cup for LOI sides starts in August, so it fits their schedule well.

[Calcio Jack]

GAA season finishes in July now, and the cup for LOI sides starts in August, so it fits their schedule well.

The big plus is that this means we’ll see Tony O’Donoghue back on screen …. He’s such an advocate for the League ….. a modern day Philip Greene

[Dermobohs]

The big plus is that this means we’ll see Tony O’Donoghue back on screen …. He’s such an advocate for the League ….. a modern day Philip Greene
If ever there was a solid case made against rte…………

[Shinkicker]

If ever there was a solid case made against rte…………
A little note, I happened to be home in Ireland this weekend, went for an early evening meal with family and went to Duffy's malahide, one tv was off and

[oriel]

Lads, as much as its great to see more LOI (fai cup) games on tv, its another €0.00 deal for the clubs.

Unless a proper TV deal is negotiated where clubs are appropriately compensated for, its a freebee for RTE / Virgin.

5k per game, maybe 1k for expenses for away team would be a good start, then build on it.

[Shinkicker]

A little note, I happened to be home in Ireland this weekend, went for an early evening meal with family and went to Duffy's malahide, one tv was off and
Hit sense by mistake.nobody watching the tv and we ordered drinks, we asked the waitress could the tv be turned on to Virgin Media 2 to watch football? She brought back the drinks and said "unfortunately no we are only showing golf and rugby. We supped up and left.

[Nesta99]

I dont mind the rugby but golf on the tv in a pub unless its the final round like the recent masters just sucks the life out of a place, lads sitting at the bar staring in to a tv space in silence nodding occasional approval, when there is football on that there will have greater passive interest at minimum. Slghtly better than snooker I suppose, ports I could watch at home myself but not Friday evening in a pub.

[brendy_éire]

They didnt? In this day and age that'd be one of my priorities, up there with....toilets! How much hassle is it to have a relatively small room dedicated as media studio in a new build? If the tv gantry and portacabins were umm functional and used in Oriel...

It's in the stage 2 plans for the Mark Farren stand, afaik, but even then the club had to push for it.

The MF stand had other strange issues, like no proper area for the fourth official. I suppose it's things like that (and the pitch) the club could sort out when/if they get the long-term leasehold of the Brandywell.

I doubt that limited media facilities is the reason for not having more Brandywell matches on Virgin, mind. I'd guess it's cheaper to do a Dublin game just, and maybe they'd get higher viewing figures. Doesn't bother me in the slightest. Virgin will do whatever they think will be the most profitable for them.

[TonyD]

Hit sense by mistake.nobody watching the tv and we ordered drinks, we asked the waitress could the tv be turned on to Virgin Media 2 to watch football? She brought back the drinks and said "unfortunately no we are only showing golf and rugby. We supped up and left.

I was in Austria on a skiing holiday at the beginning of March, and expected to miss the Rovers v Pats game. On the Wednesday evening they had the Liverpool champions league game on in one of the local bars, no real surprise there. It was down at the other end of the bar, and I wasn’t paying that much attention. However, at half time I noticed that Didi Hamman was on the panel. I thought he must be doing German or Austrian TV now. Then I noticed that Kevin Doyle was sitting beside him, which meant that it had to be RTE. So it seemed to me that if they had RTE, there must be a fair chance they’d have VM as well. I asked the Scottish guy running the bar, who I’ve known for years from going to the same place. He said he didn’t think so, but he’d check for me on Friday. So , checked again on the Friday and they did indeed have VM 2. So there I was, in a little village in the Austrian alps, watching Pats and Rovers on TV, which was a bit surreal. Unfortunately Pats lost, but you can’t have everything I suppose.:):)

[outspoken]

I dont mind the rugby but golf on the tv in a pub unless its the final round like the recent masters just sucks the life out of a place, lads sitting at the bar staring in to a tv space in silence nodding occasional approval, when there is football on that there will have greater passive interest at minimum. Slghtly better than snooker I suppose, ports I could watch at home myself but not Friday evening in a pub.

Was in the bank in Newry during the euros in 2020, place was absolutely empty, asked if they'd put on the Wales game, waitress said we don't show football in here, another lad walked in and asked the same. Ate the dinner as quick as I could and went to a pub next door. I've never been back.

[nr637]

It suits the RTE Sports decision makers such as Declan McBennett RTÉ Group Head of Sport as they can fit these games into the gaps during the GAA schedule, I expect! :confused:

That's what I meant to say, nice 1 m8. :)