Irish sports industry supports events taking place behind closed doors, survey finds
Horse racing became the first sport to return to action in the country on Monday
Irish Mirror, June 19th 2020, Robert Hynes
John Trainer, CEO and Founder of ONSIDE
Nine in ten members of the Irish sports industry group Sport for Business believe that major sports events should proceed behind closed doors or with reduced capacities for the rest of 2020, new research has found.
Horse racing became the first sport to return to action in the country on Monday, while the GAA have revealed a plan to allow 21,000 supporters into Croke Park for inter-county games when the season gets up and running from October 17.
The ONSIDE Covid-19 Sports Impact Monitor survey found that over half of sports industry stakeholders (53%) agree with major events going behind closed doors this year.
A further 35% think sports should go ahead in 2020 with reduced capacities in venues.
John Trainor, Founder and CEO of ONSIDE said: “There may still be a lot to play for in 2020 as 3 in 4 sports industry stakeholders expect to see sports events such as the FAI League of Ireland and Iri International fixtures going ahead later this year, with 2 in 3 anticipating the return of Guinness 6 Nations and PRO14 games in the second half of 2020.”
Meanwhile, just 7% of sponsors are currently considering dropping out of current sports sponsorships due to Covid-19 impacts, albeit one in four sports rights holders fear losing a partner as a result of the pandemic.
Trainor added: “There are several opportunities being rebooted for next generation sports presentation as the Covid-19 grip eases somewhat.
"Livestreaming is increasingly seen as a leading activation opportunity for 60% of sports industry insiders, up 16% in appeal since April.
"This is in part being driven by early learnings from overseas, with the Bundesliga and the National Rugby League in Australia returning to action and both excelling in viewership and online engagement.
"Additionally, the recent launch of a global streaming service by FC Barcelona also shows the growing potential of sports streaming worldwide”.
