Game Changer ‘Activation Day’ to take place at Sunday’s All-Ireland Football Semi-Final in Croke Park

An innovative programme of events spotlighting how male allyship and positive role modelling can help tackle the problem of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence is to take place as part of the GAA All-Ireland Football Semi-Final and Junior Championship Final in Croke Park on Sunday (13.07.25).

The Activation Day will mark the eve of the launch of a new public awareness campaign for the Game Changer programme by the GAA, in partnership with Ruhama and White Ribbon Ireland, supported by the Ladies Gaelic Football Association (LGFA) and the Camogie Association..

The Game Changer programme aims to challenge the social and cultural norms and behaviours that contribute to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence. These norms and behaviours can range from catcalling, harassment and victim-blaming, to sharing of pornography, intimate image abuse which is often referred to as revenge porn, coercive control, sexual exploitation and violence.

The goal of Game Changer is to use the positive influence of Gaelic Games to promote alternative behaviours, attitudes and role models, and provide people with tools and knowledge to help them tackle domestic, sexual and gender-based violence.

Announcing the Game Changer Activation Day, President of the GAA Jarlath Burns said: “By dedicating one of the biggest days of our year to promote the Game Changer programme, we want everyone to know that Gaelic Games considers any form of domestic, sexual, and gender-based violence unacceptable.  We are delighted to work with our partners White Ribbon Ireland, Ruhama, and Cuan, to raise awareness about the serious societal issue by activating our unique reach into communities across Ireland and beyond.  I want to especially thank both the MacCumhaill’s club in Donegal and Bray Emmets in Wicklow for their leadership in participating in this awareness campaign – the second we have delivered under the Game Changer banner, alongside our sister Associations, LGFA and Camogie.”

Game Changer Activation Day Programme

A special programme of events on Sunday in Croke Park will raise awareness of Game Changer among fans and specially invited guests, Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration Jim O’Callaghan; the Minister for Education and Youth Helen McEntee; and Ruhama Ambassador, former Tánaiste, Minister for Justice and MEP, Frances Fitzgerald. Support for the Game Changer programme was highlighted as a notable achievement in a progress report by the Department of Justice published last month on its ‘Zero Tolerance Strategy on Domestic, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence’. (TBC Quote from Minister O’Callaghan).

Also among the special guests in attendance at the Activation Day will be Jason Poole, whose sister Jennifer was murdered in 2021 by her former partner. Jason will take part in a half-time pitch-side interview that will be transmitted to the anticipated full-capacity, 82,000 attendees on the stadium’s jumbo screens.

Donegal footballer Oisín Gallen, who will be playing in the Donegal versus Meath football semi-final on Sunday, features in the new public awareness campaign as a Game Changer ambassador, and a 30-second video ad that he features in will also be played on the jumbo screens.

* If you have been affected by domestic, sexual or gender-based violence or need support, you can contact:

• Women’s Aid 24-hour National Freephone Helpline – 1800 341 900
• Male Advice Line – 1800 816 588
• Dublin Rape Crisis Centre – 1800 778888
• Ruhama – 1800 02 02 02
• Women’s Aid Federation Northern Ireland – www.womensaidni.org

About Game Changer

Launched in November 2024, Game Changer is a three-year collaborative project between the GAA, supported by the Ladies Gaelic Football Association and Camogie Association, in partnership with Ruhama and White Ribbon Ireland, supported and funded by Cuan.

The new Game Changer public awareness campaign will go live on Monday next, 14^th July, with adverts set to run on out-of-home, digital and social media channels targeting 18-35-year-old men in particular.

A new www.gamechanger.ie website will go live on Sunday, 13^th July. For more information in the meantime, see https://learning.gaa.ie/gamechanger.