Minister for Sport Patrick O’Donovan has said the €499 a day price for next year’s Ryder Cup in Adare Manor is “a matter for the organisers”.
Several Opposition spokespeople described the daily admission price as “exorbitant” given the State will have committed some €200 million in direct and indirect support to the event, which is being held in the luxury Co Limerick resort owned by businessman JP McManus.
The admission of €499 a day is almost twice as high as that charged when the Ryder Cup was held in Rome in 2023. When the Ryder Cup was last held in Ireland, in the K Club, in 2006, the daily admission was €130 (equivalent to circa €200 now).
However, the daily price was €638 ($750) when the match was held in Bethpage, New York, last year.
Some €150 million will have been spent upgrading the bypass around the Co Limerick village in time for the event in September 2027 (a development that were to occur in any event). An additional €58 million has been allotted by the Government specifically towards promoting the event and funding developments.
O’Donovan, a Fine Gael TD for Limerick, also announced that €5.7 million would be spent on legacy projects in the area and said last autumn he expected to receive a request for an additional €30 million in funding for the event.
Asked for the Minister’s view on the pricing structure, O’Donovan’s spokeswoman said: “The ticket pricing is a matter for the organisers.”
Opposition spokespeople expressed criticism of the price. Rob O’Donohoe, Labour’s spokesman on sport said the Ryder Cup was a hugely significant sporting occasion and presented “a real opportunity to showcase the country on a global stage”.
“There’s no doubt that golf fans may stretch to pay for a once-in-a-lifetime event. It’s important that consideration is given to accessibility so that as many people as possible can feel part of it and not just those who can afford the current prices,” he said.
His colleague Conor Sheehan, a TD for Limerick city criticised the significant increase since the last European event.
“This is an exorbitant amount of money and more than double the price of the event in Italy [€260] three years ago.
Sinéad Gibney of the Social Democrats said it was “disappointing” ticket prices will exclude so many golf fans.
She said: “€500 is a huge amount of money to spend for daily access – and is a near doubling of the cost of tickets in Rome two years ago. It is impossible to justify such a huge leap in prices in such a short period of time.
“Golf can be perceived as an exclusionary sport, at participation level, and these very expensive ticket prices will do little to tackle that stereotype.”
Minister of State for Sport Charlie McConalogue also said the pricing policy was a matter for the organisers and was their call.
There will be some cheaper tickets available for the practice days, and it is understood that a significant number of tickets, as yet unspecified, have been earmarked for free distribution to the local community.
Some tickets for the practice days will be available from €89 and tickets for the opening ceremony will be available for €179.
Children under the age of 16 can buy tickets for between €20 and €30 on the practice days.
Some 250,000 people are expected to attend the event during the week. The cost of hosting the event is said to be €22 million, although the income from gate receipts is expected to exceed that.