Lidl Ireland has announced the winners of the Lidl Plus LGFA Rewards scheme, with €80,000 in cash funding to invest in facilities, equipment or resources for Ladies Gaelic Football teams in secondary schools around the country.
Launched in September last year, thousands of schools across Ireland entered to be in with a chance of winning the coveted top prize of a set of team jerseys and €50,000 in funding to support Ladies Gaelic Football schools’ teams.
Following a video entry, whereby four schools were shortlisted, a public vote spurred by Lidl shoppers saw Coláiste Cholmcille in Donegal score the top prize of €50,000 for securing the most votes. Carlow’s Presentation De La Salle, Cork’s St Mary’s Secondary School, Mallow and Galway’s Coláiste Bhaile Chláir were runners-up, and each awarded €10,000 by Lidl.
The Lidl Plus LGFA Rewards scheme has now seen more than 800 LGFA teams benefit from new jerseys and up to €370,000 in funding over the last three years, with more than €700,000 invested in local teams altogether.
The initiative launched in September 2023 when Lidl Ireland unveiled the findings of their State of the Nation research which examined the impact participation in sport has on female secondary school students (girls 12-18 years of age), illustrating the importance of schools in keeping girls connected to sport.
Commenting on their win, Cora Fagan, Principal of Coláiste Cholmcille said:
“We’re absolutely delighted to have been awarded the top prize of €50,000. Our wonderful students and staff in Coláiste Cholmcille have worked so hard these last few months campaigning for the support of our school in this competition. A massive congratulations to Ann-Marie Coleman and her campaign to highlight the rightful place of women in sport by canvassing and promoting LGFA through the support of Lidl. The whole community got involved and really helped us to achieve this success, a great outcome creating a wonderful sense of good spirit during those long dark winter months. This €50,000 in funding will have a huge impact on growing and developing our facilities and resources and we take Lidl for this opportunity and for their ongoing commitment and support for Ladies Football.”
Eimear O’Sullivan, Corporate Affairs Director at Lidl Ireland said:
“We’ve seen through our State of the Nation research the incredibly positive impact participation in sport has on young girls and how vital schools are in keeping girls connected to sport. Through our latest Lidl Plus LGFA Rewards scheme, we are proud to award 117 secondary schools with 139 sets of jerseys and €80,000 in well-deserved funding. It has been incredible to see the support and dedication from our loyal shoppers from local communities across the country get behind their school. It is this kind of dedication that will encourage our young girls to get involved, and to stay involved, in sport.”
In January of this year, Lidl Ireland and the Ladies Gaelic Football Association launched a new campaign to ‘Get Behind the Fight’ and fill every seat at every game as research examining the public’s attitudes towards attending female sports revealed that nearly 60% of Irish people have never attended a live female sporting event.
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