The GAA and the Department of Foreign Affairs have announced that a record 178 Gaelic games projects around the world will receive financial support in 2024 from the Global Games Development Fund.

Launched in 2013, the fund has provided financial support for the GAA in Asia, Africa, South America, the Middle East, Australasia, Canada, Europe, and the United States over the past 11 years. 

Initially supporting 14 projects in its inaugural year, the fund will now support a whopping 178 Gaelic games projects across the globe, a 20% increase on the 148 projects supported by the fund in 2023. 

Some projects supported by the fund are one-off events, while others will have activities running throughout the year. 

In a statement, the GAA described all projects as "inspirational and beneficial". 

A total of €373,975 will be made available to clubs in the seven World GAA regions, with funding allowing clubs around the world to improve training and matches and grow the game. 

The GAA added that it received 197 applications through the Global Games Development Fund award scheme in January 2024, approving 90% of all applications. 

The organization said the growth in applications was proof of the growth of Gaelic games around the world, whether for underage or adult development. 

Fianna Fáil TD Seán Fleming, the Minister of State for International Development and Diaspora, said the high number of applications showcased how the GAA is an integral part of Irish communities around the world. 

"The GAA plays a special role for the Irish Diaspora and the communities they live in. It provides an important sense of belonging and support, ensuring that the Diaspora feels an ongoing connection to Ireland and our heritage," Fleming said in a statement. 

"I am delighted in my role as Minister for Diaspora to reiterate our commitment to supporting Irish communities abroad in partnership with the GAA, through the Global Games Development Fund.

"This Fund receives matched funding from both the Department of Foreign Affairs Emigrant Support Programme and the GAA. The Fund is an important part of our Diaspora Strategy, in helping to promote the development of Gaelic Games abroad, and awareness of the games internationally."

Niall Erskine, Chairman of the World GAA Committee, said there are now over 500 GAA clubs in countries outside of Ireland and said the fund allows more members of the Irish diaspora to take part in Gaelic games. 

"We are enormously proud of the extent to which Gaelic Games are now being played and enjoyed overseas with more than 500 GAA Clubs in existence outside of Ireland," Erskine said. 

"The Global Games Development Project plays a huge part in terms of support for these Clubs. The fund provides financial support specifically for projects and initiatives that increase or improve opportunities for the Irish Diaspora and other communities abroad to play Gaelic Games." 

Larry McCarthy, President of the GAA, said GAA clubs around the world provide a sense of community and belonging for the Irish diaspora. 

"These thriving clubs, dotted around the globe, serve as hubs of Gaelic games for Irish and non-Irish alike and mirror the sense of community and belonging that are the hallmarks of our clubs across the island of Ireland," McCarthy said. 

"Their work, and our efforts to support it, are helped in no small part by the Department of Foreign Affairs, particularly through the Global Games Development Fund and we are deeply appreciative of a relationship that has had a hugely positive impact on the experience of those who play our games ‘timpeall na cruinne' (around the globe)."