Just last week, the kitchen door was flung open by a flustered eight-year-old. One of his half worn football socks was being dragged along like a rag as he ran, whilst the other was sprawled out on his arm like a puppet with no face. His shorts were worn the wrong way round, and alarmingly, his Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) Cúl Camps quarter-zip top was amiss. It was obvious he wasn’t calm, not in the Cúl sense at all. The exclusively Irish issue of him not being able to locate his training top seemed too crucial to ignore, sending him racing down the stairs to organise a search team.
There hardly was a mystery searching for the top – its possible hiding spots were limited to just three: on him, in his wardrobe, or inside the washing machine. To say it candidly, these tops aren’t the ones to blend in.
The rage around GAA Cúl Camps clothing pieces has quickly turned into a cultural hallmark. Its popularity transcends seasons in Ireland, from summer to spring. Just like any well-known clothing line, its past editions have left a legacy.
There have been instances when 12-year-olds, seeing their mates sporting items from an older Cúl Camps season, would approach them with a proud nod and proclaim, “Ah, 2019… I lived that era, mate. That was a splendid year for bags, but the 2018 top collection was truly unsurpassable.”
This summer, if you managed to squeeze in a holiday, you wouldn’t miss the omnipresence of this attire. Whether it was in the north-western French family campsites, Dingle or Donegal, Cambrils in Spain’s northeast, or anywhere else, it was everywhere!
So pervasive were these jerseys, zip tops, and backpacks on certain ferry crossings this summer, that foreign tourists might have mistaken the horde of children, running around the deck in same glaring tops, as part of the ferry’s crew, easy to identify for immediate assistance. Try your luck!
Fashion designers must be astounded at the profound success of these vibrant and audaciously hued clothes and bags, created seemingly by liberally applying a myriad of colours to a blueprint while blindfolded. These colourful pieces, both entertaining for children and practical for parents, have unexpectedly permeated the market.
The GAA association first moved to own the summer camps during Seán Kelly’s presidency, before which there was a somewhat rampant approach, with different GAA units running separate camps. Consolidation on a provincial level came next, but for the programme to truly thrive, central control was necessary.
Thus, on January 16th, 2006, in Dublin’s Croke Park, Kelly officially introduced the Cúl Camps – the association’s inaugural national summer excursions for kids between the ages of six and 13. The camps’ first year, sponsored by VHI Healthcare, saw the participation of 66,185 children.
Kelly fondly remembers believing in the success of the project, though he admits that the current scale of involvement from almost every club in the country was unimaginable back then. 2015 witnessed the participant numbers rising above 100,000 for the first time with 102,384 kids engaged.
This summer, an impressive 144,494 children – both boys and girls – participated in one of the 1,300 Cúl Camps nationwide. A massive effort supported by over 7,000 coaches. The Cúl Camps now rake in approximately €10 million annually. Although after covering costs like manufacturing, delivery, coach payments, and other operational expenses, its aim is to balance the books.
However, the high visibility of the gear in daily life offers immeasurable value in terms of marketing and brand awareness. Kelli O’Keeffe, managing director of sports advisory practice Teneo Ireland, credits the success to the unification of the camps under the GAA, which enabled the association to attract commercial partners.
Kellogg’s assumed the title sponsorship for the Cúl Camps in 2012 and has retained that position since then. Every year, it is estimated that the company invests nearly €400,000. As per O’Keeffe, this sponsorship provides unparalleled access to a notoriously hard-to-reach demographic in Ireland. The T-shirts and backpacks provided to campers, estimated at 150,000, act as mobile adverts that last a year until the subsequent camp.
In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, the Cúl Camps packs, which include a jersey, a quarter-zip top and a backpack, are now mailed to participants. The packs are vividly coloured and cost €75 for the first child and then €60 and €50 for the second and additional children, respectively. Intriguingly, the design selection for the gear is left in the hands of the children themselves.
Sean Gannon, a former Carlow footballer, became the National Co-ordinator for the Cúl Camps in early 2022 following ex-Sligo player Charlie Harrison. Each year, Gannon invites design proposals from clothing and apparel businesses. Approximately 30 to 40 design submissions are received, which Gannon then narrows down to a handful. Gannon then visits the Cúl Camps with the sample designs, where around 1500 to 2000 children vote for their favourite design.
Gannon commented that camper-selected designs would become the following year’s gear. The most voted-for design is taken to tender to identify the production company. Owing to the quantity required, production is done on a weighted scale and in 2024, both Azzurri and Masita were involved in gear production.
Sarah Ferguson, general manager of Kellanova Ireland (Kellogg’s parent company), believes that the children’s choice of designs adds a magical element. European Parliament member Kelly, who has noticed the gear during his travels, agrees with Ferguson. Kelly, the honorary president of Belgium GAA, identified that the Cúl Camp was hosted by 30 clubs outside of Ireland in 2024.
Seeing children sporting their gear fills me with great joy, it makes me want to approach them to learn about their club affiliation and hometown. This phenomenon has truly come a long way from its inception, says the ex-GAA president.
Indeed, gear-spotting has become a common practice.
“It’s simply unavoidable,” Ferguson comments. “I’ve witnessed everyone from parents to grandparents sporting backpacks. Sometimes, you even see entire families donning Kellogg’s GAA Cúl Camps kits from different years like a walking archive.”
The most notable turnout was in 2019 when over 156,000 children participated in the camps. This impressive figure led Director General Tom Ryan to acknowledge in his annual report that these statistics reinforce the GAA as “the leading facilitator of the largest children’s sports outreach globally.”
In the recent summer, 37 Inclusive Camps were hosted for children with additional needs. Moreover, 600 free spots were given away to the School Completion Programme for children who would otherwise struggle to join the camps.
The Covid pandemic severely impacted the camps in 2020, with a drastic reduction in the number of participants to 71,000. However, this figure has been steadily increasing in the subsequent years.
With 146,460 participants in 2023 representing 18.5% of the population ranging from 6-13 years, the GAA predicts that maintaining these numbers in the future could be a challenge.
The eight-year-old enjoyed not only GAA camps but also FAI and Leinster Rugby camps, and he took away a variety of items including a football, pencil case, water bottle, string sack, and T-shirts.
With so much emphasis on the handouts, it can be easy to overlook the camps’ main objective; enabling kids to learn, improve and enjoy a new sport. Even so, the gear obtained from the GAA camps have become somewhat of a status symbol amongst the children. It engenders this ‘Cúl Cult’ ethos.
O’Keeffe states, “As the GAA transitions towards a multi-sponsor model at the senior level, there will be less high-demand naming rights. Hence, given the attendance figures and sense of community, this is possibly one of the most high-profile naming rights sponsorships the GAA possesses.”
The kit for next year’s event has already been determined and is currently in the production stage, according to Gannon. He acknowledges that not everyone will be satisfied with the chosen design, but assures that they do their best. They involve the kids in the decision-making process, and in case of disapproval, Gannon takes the brunt of the blame the subsequent year. However, Gannon may not have much to worry about, as the Cúl Camps gear is renowned for being consistently popular.
Cúl Camps started in 2006 with an attendance of 66,185. The participation rose to over 100,000 for the first time in 2015 when the count reached 102,384. The record for the highest number of kids at the camps was set in 2019, with an impressive turnout of 156,175.
Here’s a look at the attendance over the past five years:
– In 2020, the camp saw a drop in numbers, with an attendance of 71,000.
– It rebounded in 2021 with a turnout of 137,989.
– The figure increased slightly in 2022, recording an attendance of 142,030.
– By 2023 the attendance climbed to 146,460, making up an impressive 18.5% of the population between six and 13 years old.
– The attendance recorded a slight drop in 2024, with 144,494 attendees.
The figures for 2024 detail that there were 1,300 Cúl Camps, 7,000 coaches, and a total of 144,494 participants.