THE LAST WORD: Cork GAA is not in the position to turn down badly-needed revenue

'EVERYTHING is up for discussion,’ Cork GAA CEO Kevin O’Donovan explained after Tuesday night’s county committee meeting, as the backlash over the renaming of Páirc Uí Chaoimh rumbled into its second day.

At 9.20pm on the same night, and as the behind-closed-doors meeting continued – remember, as of last Friday, the media are not allowed attend the monthly meetings – Cork GAA released a statement that confirmed it’s in discussions with SuperValu regarding the naming rights for Páirc Uí Chaoimh, but there is no white smoke yet. 

‘SuperValu and Cork GAA remain committed to continuing their engagement,’ the statement added, so while the deal is not signed, it appears it’s only a matter of time. Days, maybe weeks, but the plan is to have the partnership finalised before the championships start in April.

It’s no secret that the naming rights of Páirc Uí Chaoimh are up for grabs, and have been for some time. The reality is that Cork GAA needs the money, desperately.  The powers-that-be are not in a position to turn down badly-needed finances when it’s being weighed down by the Páirc Uí Chaoimh debt that stands at over €30 million. It will be a heavy cloud lingering over the stadium until that debt is finally cleared. 

‘The Páirc Uí Chaoimh Stadium Company made a loss of €331,000 (EBITDA) before depreciation of €2.845m, capital grant credit of €1.343m and interest of €0.855m,’ Cork GAA CEO Kevin O’Donovan said at the county convention in December.

‘The lack of concerts during 2023 had a major effect on income and with one concert on the books for 2024, returning to profitability will be a major goal. Crippling energy costs, along with fixed charges such as rates present major obstacles.

‘Current stadium debt levels, now resting at over €30m, continues to present a major challenge. In this regard a major positive from 2023 was the signing of a 25-year loan agreement with CLG which will allow a more long-term sustainable approach to repaying debt.’

To repay the debt every penny counts, and that’s why Cork GAA chiefs are not in a strong bargaining position – and perhaps why SuperValu could push for the stadium to be renamed SuperValu Páirc rather than SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh, the latter being an easier sell to supporters. 

Think TUS Gaelic Grounds, FBD Semple Stadium, Kingspan Breffni Park; the sponsors name is tagged on before the venue’s title, whereas SuperValu Páirc as a name has no connection whatsoever to this county; it sounds more like a theme park that offers far cheaper rides than the next rather than the jewel in the crown of Cork GAA. 

The sticking point is the dropping of Uí Chaoimh – the stadium is named after Pádraig Ó Caoimh, former GAA director general – from the proposed new name more so than selling the naming rights because the latter needs to happen. The deal is reported to be worth between €250,000 and €300,000 per year, and that will be guaranteed revenue over the length of the partnership, up to 2026. Cork GAA has to take these financial opportunities, and a link-up with a strong brand like SuperValu has plenty of merit too, so does it all come down to what Páirc Uí Chaoimh will be called? Perhaps. 

And perhaps what has played out this week is all part of the plan. Stick with this theory for a moment. A wise man once said if you need a proposal to go through, put a bad option on the table first. When the anger subsides, what follows – the compromise – seems far more digestible. Sound familiar?

Such was the disapproval and backlash this week, this deal was never going to get the greenlight from delegates at the county committee meeting on Tuesday night. 

The compromise seems straightforward – if the deal proceeds, then surely both parties will agree on SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh. It ticks the necessary boxes. The sponsors get their name up in lights, as they should given the money they’re investing, while the stadium keeps its identity and the county board coffers are boosted.

The news that emanated from the media-less county committee meeting on Tuesday suggests, too, that SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh would receive the nod of approval from delegates, but we’re now at the wait-and-see stage.

‘We got positive feedback from the delegates on the views around commercial partnerships and the positive and negative aspects of potential deals,’ O'Donovan told RTÉ after the meeting. ‘We do know that there has been a lot of discussion over the last 24 hours and we’re listening to that. We’ll be listening very closely to our clubs and that will inform our discussions as we proceed. All aspects of the deal will continue to be considered.’ 

Interesting, too, the timeline of events this past week. On Friday, Cork GAA announced it’s ‘no longer appropriate for the media to attend’ the monthly county committee meetings, and then days later the SuperValu Páirc story hits the headlines and there is no media allowed inside the first county committee of the year when this is all discussed. The cynic would suggest both are linked, the powers-that-be were getting out in front, trying to wrestle some control of the narrative. Again, that’s what a cynic might suggest. The county board is sticking to their guns, though, and plans to proceed without the media present at its monthly meetings.

‘The media can continue to report fairly and accurately. It is not appropriate for them to attend board meetings. No high-profile, functioning organisation has regular open board meetings. We are mirroring practice at national level and indeed common practice in this regard,’ Kevin O’Donovan told The Southern Star this week, and while it’s been a busy week for the Kilmeen man, this could yet work out for all parties. Several national papers carried the story as their front-page news on Wednesday. It’s been discussed on national television and radio. 

‘It shows the value of the Cork brand, it shows the passion people have, it shows it was discussed in many households across the country over the last 24 hours. That shows you the interest we have in our games, in our brand, in our family in our 140 years of history. That’s a serious commercial revenue-stream that we feel we can maximise in the future,’ O’Donovan added, and it’s that revenue that can help Cork GAA pay their way out of the Páirc Uí Chaoimh debt.