The Gaelic Games of Ireland represent the traditional age old sports that are played in the country. The two primary Gaelic Games are football and hurling, with each being organized by the GAA, also known as the Gaelic Athletic Association. There are other sports also represented in the Gaelic Games, with those being rounders and handball. All of these games have both male and female events, despite the female teams not being officially organized or administered by the GAA. The Gaelic women's hurling and football events garner a fairly large following of fans. The women's hurling sport is known as Camogie, and is organized and administered by the Camogie Association of Ireland, while women's Gaelic football is run by the Ladies Gaelic Football Association. All of these games together represent the most popular sports events in all of Ireland, and most of the country participates in them either as fans or active team members.
The most popular sport of the Gaelic Games is by far the men's Gaelic football. The game is played by teams consisting of fifteen members each, and takes place on a rectangular grass field known as a pitch. At each end of the pitch is a goal, with the primary objective of the sport being to drive the ball through either of the goals, depending on which team you're playing for. Like most other sports, the team with the highest score at the end of the match wins the game. The ladies version of Gaelic football is quite similar to the men's version, however there are minor rule differences. Just to illustrate how popular Gaelic football is in Ireland, recent statistics show that it commands a market share of 34% of all total sports attendances in the country. There are numerous clubs and teams spread out all over the island, with various tiers of expertise. Be sure and check out a game or two the next time you visit the country, as it's great fun.
Irish Gaelic hurling is the second most popular sports event in Ireland, with it's market share holding steady at about 23% of all sports related attendances in the country. If you aren't familiar with the game of hurling, it is a game where a stick and ball are used on a long rectangular field, also known as a pitch. At the end of each side of the field, there is an H shaped goal, just like with Gaelic football. The main objective in Gaelic hurling is to drive the ball through one of the goals using the stick, or driving it over the top of the goal bar. Each time this is achieved a point is scored, and obviously the team with the most points at the end of the match wins. According to historians the game is over three thousand years old, making it one of the oldest organized sports in the world. It is also considered to be the fastest paced field based game in the world as well, even faster than field hockey, lacrosse, and American baseball.
The remaining major sport hosted by the Gaelic Games of Ireland, is called Gaelic handball, or as they call it in Irish Gaelic, liathróid láimhe. The sport is very similar in game play to racquetball, squash, or even Basque pelota. The league is full organized and administered by the Gaelic Athletic Association, as is the case with Gaelic football. With regard to the sport itself, handball may be played with either two, three, or four players. Unlike other similar sports, in this game players hit the ball with their hand, as opposed to any sort of a paddle or racquet. You can use both your right and left hand to hit the ball, however it depends on where the ball has been hit. Some outsiders who are newly acquainted with the game find it quite confusing and complex at first, as the rules are very dynamic. The only other sport in the world that is almost identical to Gaelic handball in both rules and play, is American handball. The game is very physically demanding.
