James Geoghegan (Dublin Bay South, Fine Gael)
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23. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht his views on whether the Six Nations tournament should be a designated event that remains free-to-air; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10057/25]

Patrick O'Donovan (Limerick County, Fine Gael)
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The designation of major sporting and cultural events for free to air broadcasting is a statutory process provided for under the Broadcasting Act, with the criteria for deciding events coming from the EU’s Audiovisual Media Services Directive. This allows Member States to designate certain events as being of major importance to society and provide that those events continue to be available on free-to-air television.

Currently, Ireland's men's Six Nations matches are designated as free-to-air on a deferred basis only, although in practice they have always been made available live on free to air television, with the rights currently jointly held by RTÉ and Virgin Media Television.

A public consultation was launched in January 2024 to invite feedback on a number of potential new events, across Gaelic games, rugby and soccer, to be considered for free to air designation. Stakeholders such as broadcasters and national sports bodies have also been consulted as part of this process.

As part of the statutory review process, an independent analysis of the results of the public consultation, stakeholder submissions, and the potential economic impact of designation was carried out. This analysis also had regard to the criteria for designation which are set out in EU and domestic legislation, including audience viewing figures.

I expect to receive a formal submission in relation to the independent analysis shortly, following which I will bring proposals to Government in relation to the matter. If any events are to be designated, it is necessary to notify these to the European Commission, which will review them for conformity to the designated criteria, before a draft Order designating the relevant events is laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

It is important to note that this statutory process is not intended to designate an entire competition or all of one particular sport’s events. Rather, it is intended to ensure free to air coverage of major national events or events involving national teams. In addition, it is important to bear in mind that designation does not guarantee coverage. It is designed to protect certain events and ensure that, should they be broadcast, they are broadcast free to air.

It would not be appropriate to comment further on potential changes to the current list of designated events prior to a full consideration of the analysis undertaken.