GAA Sponsorship Deals

GAA Sponsorship Deals

Following hot on the heels of the announcement of a free boots deal between Dublin and Adidas, comes news of another GAA sponsorship. The newly revived Newbridge Cutlery firm has agreed a 5-year arrangement with Limerick County board that will see each Limerick player, in both codes, from juvenile level upwards, equipped with a top of the range knife. Players will be able to select a knife of their own choosing from the wide Newbridge range. A straw poll amongst the hurling and football panels last night showed a strong preference emerging among the footballers for the 8" fish filleter, though some of the backs favoured the cleaver. Among the hurlers, the strap-on bayonet was a clear favourite, most seeing its potential for improving the effectiveness of butt-end rib jabbing.

GAA top brass have hinted that this is just the start of an expected avalanche of sponsorship deals with the advent of the liberalising presidency of Kerryman Sean Kelly. Already there are whispers of talks between officials in Kelly's own county and Fota Wildlife Park that will see the Kerry menagerie spend their non-playing weekends behind cage bars at Munster's biggest zoo. Fota chiefs are said to be quietly confident of closing the deal and securing the biggest animal attraction in the country. Other deals rumoured to be in the offing are tutus and ballet pumps for the Kildare squad (though there are suggestions that Martin Lynch is negotiating a solo deal with a scuba gear company and a reported arrangement between Armagh and Portaloo.

Talks are said to be at an advanced stage between Galway and Vanity Pocket Mirrors Ltd. of Cappataggle, while Mayo are being courted by the Wide-Angle Lenses division of Kodak ("get the picture, no matter how wide the shot" is their famous slogan).

Observers of the sports sponsorship market have been indulging in speculation over other obvious possible arrangements, such as Wicklow and Ifor Williams Trailers (for bulk referee transport) and Donegal and Budget Travel ("let your best players take a break between matches"). Meanwhile, Meath County Board have strenuously denied rumours of approaches by various companies, including Muggers-R-Us (Everything for the committed robber"), Sports Music Publishers Ltd. (who made their name with the massive 'hit' - pardon the reference - "Take me Out of the Ball Game") and the National Lottery ("We have draws every week").