What’s so good about GAA being an amateur sport?

parc

I saw that the All-Ireland hurling final was on BBC2 over the weekend.

Lots of talk about it being the fastest sport, 80k+ fans in Croke Park, skill, passion, represents Irish culture, thousands of years old etc.

Then they always mention that it’s an amateur sport, as if that’s somehow a great thing. This has always seemed a bit daft to me. You mean it’s a big part of your national identity but the guys who dedicate their lives to it don’t get paid and have a day job working as teachers?

To me it just seems daft, and limits the appeal of it actually spreading to other countries in any serious way. You have professional rugby players, Aussie rules players, cricket players, lacrosse players etc. etc.

Any reason why it’s still amateur despite “doin it for the love of the game”?

mikethecop

Some of it is to do with Pride and self respect. you play for your club with your closest friends, where you grow up, represent your families and friends, then county. its rare and exceptional to switch counties as an adult.

not having the mercenary like players seeking only personal glory for themselves isn't a factor.

there is "sort of " compensation for élite players but the gaa is a wildly unfair organization who get all its best talent for free .

There is also the factor that the gaa is more strongly culturally significant that rugby or soccer, linked to Irish independence and identity

Pauliedragon

Most of those sports you mention are international so you'd have to pay the players so they could go abroad for tours. Aussie rules is the biggest sport in a big but isolated country. There's been plenty of GAA players who have gone over to OZ to try and go professional there. I'm not a big GAA fan but I think what we have is pretty unique and if it's not broken don't fix it would be my opinion.

Happyhouse22

I think what’s so good about it is that the players are doing it for the love of the game.

Once your passion becomes your job things change, you see it with rugby now, before players played for the love of their local area and country and now the sport has become more mercenary. Sure the quality and spectacle has gotten better, and probably the stakes are higher but it doesn’t have the same joy and passion, and how could it as players are obviously more worried about their livelihoods and next contracts rather than winning or losing.

Also I don’t think GAA in its current guise generates enough revenue to be profitable. Would need less teams and more games ala AFL

Charles Babbage

If GAA was professional then Clare would not have a team at all, nor would Armagh.

WesternZulu

Money has corrupted almost all sports that it's refreshing when a sport played at its highest level is amateur.

It's far more easy relate to the players on the pitch than some millionaire that has no real affiliation to the soccer club he plays with.

I guarantee every single one of them Clare players on Sunday dreamed of winning an All-Ireland with Clare. How many Man City players grew up dreaming of playing for Man City (I'm a massive soccer fan too before I get jumped on).

An interesting perspective about amateur players that is often missed is that you could argue they are far more rounded individuals with a developed career come retirement and don't have to start completely afresh they hang up their boots.

In saying all that I just wouldn't have the dedication to do it for no money.

Charles Babbage

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/122416791#Comment_122416791

Like Shane O'Donnell from Clare and his PhD in microbiology.

arctictree

What about the gifted hurler that's born in Cavan. Will he ever reach his potential? A lot of very unfair things in the GAA.

Jack Daw

I'm a GAA fan and one of the thing that annoys me is the constant poor mouth from a lot of the players and media about them being amateurs, 95% of people competing in the Olympics are amateurs and compete at a much higher level than GAA players do.

Having said that the amateur status of GAA is what makes it great in a lot of ways as players have to play for pride of their county and it can't pick and choose who they play for unlike in club soccer where the game is being ruined by money and essentially players being mercenaries (almost none of the top players play for clubs because they care about them they play for clubs who can win and pay them the most money) and where it's pointless for the smaller clubs to even try and compete (look at what has happened to Bologna this summer who had the best season in decades and have now lost their manager and 2 best players) , there is always the hope if you work hard on your underage development and get things right even the smallest can be successful and maintain it for a decent period (like Monaghan).

dublin49

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058360917/what-s-so-good-about-gaa-being-an-amateur-sport

Wow ,where to start,professionalism hollows out finances ,go for a drive around the country and marvel at the magnificent facilities that are in GAA heartlands ,and compare them with the local soccer clubs.Secondly professional sport generally takes all the joy of the sport from the participants,and were we to move to professionalism Dublin would win every year as all top players could not be denied the opportunity to earn more.

Iscreamkone

The GAA is not popular enough to go professional. The crowds are big for a couple of games only.

Cork and Clare played 7 championship games only. Leinster hurling had plenty of small crowds.
There isn’t enough money to go fully pro in the current format.

square ball

It's community based. You play for the club you are born into with your friends and families. If you are good enough you move onto the next level and play for your county but you still play for your club as well.

The guys playing are accessible because they are living and working around us. Some of the younger guys will be coaching in Cul camps for the summer, allowing all the kids in the county to meet their heroes and some of them will be teaching them in schools, on placement etc.

I'm from Clare and have worked and played with or against a good few of the panel. Mostly sound lads who happen to be exceptional at hurling. But regular guys like you or I. They put their heart and sole into doing their best on the field and anyone that knows them are proud of their efforts win lose or draw but they give it all.

Professional sport at the end of the day is a job. For most it's a dream but for some they are only playing because it's a job. Look at the joy of all the Clare players on Sunday after the final whistle. If they weren't playing they would be fans in the stands.

Iscreamkone

Maybe the GAA should start with professional referees

CatLick

A professional GAA will reduce the number of viable clubs and result in Dublin teams winning everything. It might be different if GAA sports were played across Europe. Even still you d end up with something similar to Rugby's provincial structure.