April 20, 2023: Hockey Ireland announces its plan to offer a paid live stream broadcast of this weekend’s EY Hockey League Champions Trophy finals April 23 and the Irish Senior Cup finals April 29.
This technology represents the culmination of a 2022/23 domestic season where Hockey Ireland and its League partner, EY, have looked to innovate and develop audience engagement, improving the quality, relevance and visibility of the sport at the highest level of Irish domestic hockey.
The offering is a first for Hockey Ireland as it looks to increase the visibility of its sport and deliver content to its audiences online, with the key to success being the ability to deliver the right product to the right audience in a repeatable way.
“This weekend’s, and the Irish Senior Cup’s, paid live stream supports our goal of increasing the visibility of our sport in a financially sustainable way”, commented Nick McElwee, Commercial lead for Hockey Ireland.
“We aspire to providing a live stream broadcast of every game in season 2023/24 of the EY Hockey League Division 1 Women and Men. Our role is to find the best way to make that happen and we know consumer behaviour as well as technology is bending in our favour in this regard”.
Pricing of the live stream for both finals has been set at EUR10 per match or EUR12.5 for a two-match day pass. The service will be provided through StreamSport in association with Hockey Ireland’s streaming partner HBV and will be available via the Hockey Ireland website.
The EY Hockey League Champions Trophy takes place this weekend April 22 and 23 in Banbridge, with the Women’s Semi Finals seeing UCD Vs Catholic Institute and Loreto Vs Old Alex, and the Men’s Semi Finals seeing Banbridge Vs Glenanne, and Lisnagarvey Vs Monkstown, all taking place April 22. The winners of these games will participate in the streamed finals on Sunday April 23. The Irish Senior Cup, the World’s Oldest Club Hockey Cup, takes place April 29 at UCD with the Women’s finals seeing Monkstown Vs Catholic Institute and the Men’s finals seeing Banbridge Vs Glenanne.
Frank O’Keeffe, Managing Partner, EY Ireland commented: “EY Ireland is immensely proud to sponsor the Irish Hockey League, and together with fans across the island and beyond, we look forward to tuning in to the Champions Trophy finals and Irish Senior Cup finals via this innovative livestream. These finals are an excellent opportunity to celebrate the talent, teamwork and tenacity displayed by players throughout the EYHL and across the island and we wish all the players, coaches and organisers the very best of luck.”
Heatley Tector, Proprietor, HBV Studios Ltd commented: “All at HBV Live are delighted to be involved with Hockey Ireland in streaming crucial games over the next couple of weeks. Our partnership with Hockey Ireland has grown considerably over the past six months culminating in the Live Streaming of the EYHL and Irish Senior Cup finals . The introduction of paywall technology is yet another example of wonderful innovation on the part of Hockey Ireland and I wish all participating teams the very best of luck. Enjoy the broadcast.”
To view and purchase matches please go to Hockey Ireland Livestream