Mediahuis Ireland buys stake in Clubber

Pa Wrenn of Milltown/Castlemaine in action against David Clifford of Fossa in a Kerry football club game. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Mediahuis Ireland, the owner of the Irish Independent, has acquired a stake and board seat in Clubber, a fast-growing sports streaming start-up.

Clubber is best known for live-streaming club GAA games, offering a subscription service for fans and coaches.

Mediahuis Ireland will acquire a minority stake in the business, understood to be around 25pc, in return for investment to support Clubber’s plans for further expansion – not only in the GAA but across a broad range of Irish and international sports.

As part of the tie-up, Mediahuis Ireland titles and their readers, including those of the Irish Independent and local news titles across the country, will have access to video content, including highlight reels.

The chief operating officer of Mediahuis Ireland, Ian Keogh, will join the Clubber board as part of the agreement.

Pa Wrenn of Milltown/Castlemaine in action against David Clifford of Fossa in a Kerry football club game. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Today's News in 90 seconds - 11th August 2025

Clubber was founded by Microsoft veteran Jimmy Doyle in 2020 and has quickly established itself as a streaming platform for live sports in Ireland, with a strong focus on GAA. It delivered 1,000 live and on-demand sports events in 2024.

Its model includes agreeing multi-year streaming rights deals with GAA county boards for access to club matches, which traditionally have not been available for broadcast on any live service.

Currently, games from 14 counties are being streamed. These include the Tipperary, Cork and Kilkenny hurling championships, the club football championships from Kerry, Kildare and Meath, plus the Camogie Club Championships.

The model is built on combining scalable, tech-driven infrastructure with acquiring rights to a large volume of live sports in order to provide a comprehensive offering to fans of under-served competitions.

The model is now being expanded into the UK, and into sports other than the GAA.

David Courtney, Head of Sport at Mediahuis Ireland, said Clubber is transforming sports streaming. “We are thrilled to partner with Clubber as it revolutionises the way Irish and international sport is streamed,” he said.

“This partnership underscores our commitment to supporting local sporting communities and providing unrivalled access to sporting stories that matter.”

Last week Aviva Insurance Ireland was announced as a major partner of ClubberTV.

Click here to read article