It doesn’t get much more Irish than GAA. With a pace and atmosphere that international sports could only dream of, it’s no surprise to see GAA growing elsewhere, with clubs popping up around Europe and an increased coverage on Sky Sports in the UK. In recognition of Black History Month, James O’Connell takes a look at a very special GAA community growing in the heart of Africa.
As we embrace Black History Month, it is essential that we look at the enduring impact the GAA (Gaelic Athletic Association) has had beyond Irish shores since its formation in 1884. While its roots are still very much planted in Irish culture, the GAA’s core values of community, pride and inclusivity resonate worldwide due to a strong combination of Irish diaspora and the Digital Age.
Uganda GAA exemplified this when PE teachers Moses Amanyire and Robert Bakaza encountered videos of matches on YouTube and TikTok in 2019. The pair introduced it to their students and thus began an extraordinary journey from donations of kit and equipment to St. Patrick’s Day blitzes, raising €20,000 in aid of the construction of a new pitch and clubhouse.
Built on the banks of Lake Victoria outside the country's capital Kampala, organisers predict the ground will potentially be a useful foreign training resource for Irish teams going forward. Ideal for high altitude training, it would be the highest altitude GAA pitch in the world as well as the first full-size GAA ground on the continent of Africa.
The club can be followed on Instagram @officialugandagaa and X @UgandaGaelic.
The latest club to follow up on the inspiring work of Uganda GAA was ‘Nile Óg Cusacks GAA Club’ founded in July of this year by North Clare native John Conroy and launched by Irish ambassador Kevin Colgan. After 15 years experience coaching, Conroy decided to set up this project in Jinja by the source of the Nile in Eastern Uganda where he had been previously volunteering since 2009. However, what's unique about Nile Óg Cusacks is that the club very much focuses on the GAA’s key value of inclusivity with a specific focus on catering for deaf and children with special needs from the Walukuba West Primary School in Jinja.
Since the establishment of the club, Conroy and seven of his fellow Clare volunteers managed to raise almost €60,000 for a local hospice, renovating a classroom and also bringing over enough gear from home to get the club up and running.
Conroys remarkable progress can be followed on his X (formerly Twitter) page @ConroyJohn65262.
Uganda is only one example that stands as a testament to how international GAA clubs have become vital hubs for cultural exchange and fostering that sense of belonging for local communities and diaspora alike. And indeed during Black History Month, how the values championed by the GAA are so socially ubiquitous once implemented in Africa.