Ryan says August All-Ireland Finals possible

GAA director general Tom Ryan says the All-Ireland Senior Finals could be moved back to August but has ruled out the showpiece games returning to the previous traditional September dates.

Speaking in his annual report, Ryan spoke of the "gathering mood to shuffle the finals back by a week or two".

"That may well transpire in the future. Stretching the season out a little would be no bad thing but I don't foresee a return to September," said the director general.

GAA president Jarlath Burns said last April that a return to September dates could potentially happen if counties adopted a uniformed club championship model but Ryan appears to take a different view.

Ryan added that the suspension of the pre-season inter-county competitions this year could potentially lead to the Allianz Leagues being brought forward to earlier in January.

"It's probably too early to reach conclusions around this yet. 2025 is just a trial and the competitions are still on hold. But it merits debate," added the GAA director general.

Concerts & rugby increase GAA revenue

Ryan reported that the GAA's revenue increased from £93m in 2023 to £110m in 2024, which was largely explained by the six concerts and two rugby games that was staged in Croke Park.

Attendances at inter-county games dropped by 10% in 2024 which Ryan believes was partially explained by the "lack of jeopardy" in several championship games and dissatisfaction with the style of modern-day football - something GAA bosses will hope that the new rules may rectify.

Croke Park Ltd, which runs GAA headquarters, had a 42% increase in turnover with revenues generated just short of £50m thanks to the concert schedule which included four Coldplay dates and shows by Bruce Springsteen and AC/DC.

After salaries (£15m) were deducted, some £13.3m of the £50m figure went directly to the GAA's Central Council.

The GAA director general's report also outlined that the association spent over £17m on stadium improvements at Croke Park which included an £11m upgrade of the Cusack Stand.

While Croke Park's financial picture was positive, the picture was less rosy in counties with county boards cumulatively posting a profit of £1.5m as opposed to the £3.4m figure of 2023.

GAA Finance Director Ger Mulryan cited inter-county team expenses as being the major factor in the drop with the cost of preparing squads in 2024 reaching nearly £37m.

"It's difficult to see how the level we have now, where that's going to take us in five to 10 years time if we don't arrest it," added Ryan.