Mandatory Credit ©INPHO/Ben Brady
It’s a massive weekend in the Energia All-Ireland League season with 13 knock-out games across Saturday and Sunday.
The feature games on Saturday are the Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A Semi-Finals while the Women’s Division takes centre stage on Sunday with the Energia All-Ireland Women’s Cup, Plateand Shield all up for grabs.
The Energia All-Ireland Women’s Cup final between Railway Union and UL Bohemian will be live streamed on Irish Rugby’s YouTube page.
For the first time ever, both Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A semi-finals will be live streamed on Saturday. The men’s games will be pay-per-view and available at Irish Rugby Live.
Pay-per-view cost for each game is €7 with revenue going directly to participating clubs. Cost of production is underwritten by title sponsors Energia and the IRFU. That means €5 from each stream will go to the home team with €1.66 going to the away team (a 75:25 split). The remaining 34c will go to a charity as chosen by Energia.
The IRFU are once again working with the team behind The Club Scene Podcast Powered By Energia to produce the live streams along with long-standing IRFU video production agents Videos On The Net.
The live streams and pay-per-view format are part of an ongoing pilot to develop the Energia All-Ireland League while identifying ways to make live streaming a more sustainable option for clubs.
IRFU Digital Content Manager Barry Cunningham said: “We are always looking for new ways to promote club action and we now produce more video for the Energia All-Ireland League than we do for anything else.”
“The right content mix is key so we combine weekly YouTube highlights for our Men’s and Women’s Divisions (up 58% on 2022) with great plays and key moments for those who just want a quick hit of the action on TikTok or Instagram.
“We’ve been live streaming the league on Irish Rugby platforms for over 10 years and the support of Energia this season has allowed us to increase that, but we’ve also seen clubs take more ownership in this space with some really innovative content and live games.”
“Live streaming is another way to promote the league and the club game, it helps to connect clubs to their wider membership and offers new ways to engage their audience and encourage membership.”
IRFU Rugby Development Director Colin McEntee said: “We’re excited to see what this pay-per-view trial can deliver for clubs. Live streaming isn’t cheap to produce at a professional level and it’s just one way of promoting the game. It’s always been our position that it needs to deliver a return on investment for clubs.”
“So, if we want to look at a sustainable model, clubs should look at using their digital platforms to generate revenue. There’s no data to suggest that live streaming games brings more paying customers through the gate, while at the same time there’s been a global shift in sports entertainment towards pay-per-view.”
“Irish club rugby can benefit from pay-per-view. We’ve seen other sports in Ireland move in this direction and this trial will have direct financial benefit for clubs, without them assuming any speculative risk.”
“We’re hopeful that club patrons at home and abroad will support.”
Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that the Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A final will be broadcast live on TG4 and the TG4 Player.
The fixture has been confirmed for Sunday May 7th at the Aviva Stadium with a 3pm kick-off.
Upcoming Domestic Rugby Fixtures –
Saturday, April 22nd 2023
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A Semi-Finals:
Clontarf v Young Munster, Castle Avenue, 2:30pm [LIVE STREAM]
Terenure College v Cork Constitution, Lakelands Park, 2:30pm [LIVE STREAM]
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Semi-Finals:
Shannon v Old Wesley, Thomond Park back pitch, 2:30pm
Old Belvedere v Highfield, Ollie Campbell Park, 2:30pm
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1B Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Semi-Finals:
Banbridge v MU Barnhall, Rifle Park, 2:30pm
Blackrock College v Nenagh Ormond, Stradbrook, 2:30pm
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 2A Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Semi-Finals:
UL Bohemian v Sligo, Annacotty, 2:30pm
Galway Corinthians v Dungannon, Corinthian Park, 2:30pm
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 2B Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Semi-Finals:
Galwegians v Bruff, Crowley Park, 2:30pm
Skerries v Tullamore, Holmpatrick, 2:30pm
Sunday, April 23rd 2023
Energia All-Ireland Women’s Cup Final:
Railway Union v UL Bohemian, St. Mary’s College RFC, 2:30pm [LIVE STREAM]
Energia All-Ireland Women’s Plate Final:
Galwegians v Blackrock College, Crowley Park, 2:30pm
Energia All-Ireland Women’s Shield Final:
Wicklow v Old Belvedere, Ashtown Lane, 2:30pm
Aviva Minis National Festival, Aviva Stadium
Wednesday April 26th 2023
IRFU X Rugby 7s National Schools Finals, St. Mary’s College RFC
Saturday April 29th 2023
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 2C Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Final:
Midleton v Richmond, Towns Park, 2:30pm
IRFU Junior Men’s Interprovincial Series Round 1
Connacht v Munster, Tuam RFC, 2:30pm
Leinster v Ulster, Tullow RFC, 2:30pm
Saturday May 6th 2023
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Final
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1B Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Final
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 2A Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Final
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 2B Promotion/Relegation Play-Off Final
IRFU Junior Men’s Interprovincial Series Round 2
Leinster v Connacht, Portlaoise RFC, 2:30pm
Ulster v Munster, Inishowen RFC, 2:30pm
Sunday May 7th 2023
Energia All-Ireland League Men’s Division 1A Final:
Clontarf/Young Munster v Terenure College/Cork Constitution, Aviva Stadium, 3pm
Saturday May 13th 2023
IRFU Junior Men’s Interprovincial Series Round 3
Connacht v Ulster, Clifden RFC, 2:30pm
Munster v Leinster, Waterford CIty RFC, 2:30pm
IRFU U16s & U18s Girls Interprovincial 7s Series
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