Subscribe now to keep viewing GAA sports

AFTER weeks of waiting GAA fans across Britain now know what they will have to do to insure they can watch the remainder of the Gaelic football and hurling Championships on television.

On Monday afternoon, Premier Sports, which up to now have been providing GAA games from Ireland free of charge, announced how Gaels in Britain can subscribe to the channel for the coming months.

As of Thursday, July 29, the channel will no longer be free to air and a charge of £6.99 will have to be paid if you wish to watch the likes of Kerry and Kilkenny defend their All-Ireland thrones.

While the channel did announce previously that viewers could subscribe online, many Irish Post readers contacted the paper to say they had no access to the internet and were concerned that they would miss out on their beloved games.

As a result, Premier Sports have set up a dedicated phone line through which the monthly charge of £6.99 can be paid.

To watch the remainder of the 2010 football and hurling Championships viewers need to contact Premier Sports on 0871 663 9000, or for those with internet access log on to www.premiersports.tv to secure the service.

Commercial customers, such as publicans, need to call 0871 663 9000.

There are no annual contract restrictions, meaning once the Championships end in September you are not required to keep subscribing to the channel.

However, commercial customers are being offered a special one-off payment of £100, which will cover broadcasting costs until the end of 2010.

Customers using the Sky platform will be able to pay for the service from this Thursday (July 29) and the telephone lines will not be operational until then.

A spokesman for the channel said Premier Sports intend to broadcast year-round GAA coverage, which includes the hurling and football Championships, Allianz National League and the International Rules series in October. Archive GAA matches and League of Ireland soccer will also be included in the schedule.

The subscription information followed last week’s advertisements that the free-to-air service was coming to an end.