ABSTRACT
The Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) is Ireland’s largest sporting organization. It has a membership of almost 1 million people and a presence in every part of the island. It has advanced an amateur ideal for the 125 years of its existence, albeit in recent years there has been a considerable growth in the professional administration of Gaelic games activity in the country. This article deals with the question of corporate governance within the GAA, an issue that to date has never received any form of academic coverage. It argues that the current approach to governance in the association is outdated, unwieldy and inefficient. An argument for the adoption of a stewardship model, with the appointment of a professional board of directors, is outlined throughout the course of this article. This is seemingly all the more pressing when one considers the growing number of stakeholders who would wish to have a say about the way the GAA manages its affairs. Indeed it is notable that many of the association’s fiercest critics on this matter have emerged from within its own ranks. As these are the same individuals on whom the GAA has relied to secure its current position of strength, their growing levels of dissent should be of concern to those in positions of authority within the organization.
