Friday, 31^st January 2025: Ahead of this year’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations, Virgin Media Television has teamed up with Guinness to provide live Audio Description & Irish Sign Language for viewers, making the Championship more accessible for fans. Virgin Media Television will have live Audio Descriptive commentary, an Irish Sign Language Pop-Up Channel on Virgin Media PLAY and will be creating, in conjunction with Guinness and other participating brands across the OMG network: National Dairy Council, Gas Networks Ireland, Dr Oetker and Virgin Media, a fully accessible ad break for two of Ireland’s fixtures during the Guinness Men’s Six Nations – Ireland v England and Wales v Ireland . This is part of Guinness’s ongoing commitment to supporting impactful inclusion and diversity experiences for all. 

 

Over 500,000* people in Ireland are either blind, visually impaired or deaf, making live sporting events less accessible. Guinness’s aim is to support the Irish media landscape in becoming even more representative of our modern & diverse society, giving equal opportunity to “see, hear & experience”. Alongside Virgin Media Television, Guinness hopes to make this year’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations a truly accessible experience for all.

 

Marketing Director at Guinness Ireland, Alan McAleenan, said: "We are incredibly proud to partner with Virgin Media Television to enhance the accessibility of this year’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations Championship. We believe everyone should have the opportunity to experience the passion and excitement as some of the world’s best rugby teams come together. By providing live Audio Description and Irish Sign Language for this year’s fixtures aired on Virgin Media, we are taking a significant step towards a more inclusive and representative viewing experience for all. This initiative reflects Guinness’s ongoing commitment to celebrating inclusivity & diversity and we look forward to building this further over this year’s Championship and beyond”.

 

Sponsorship and NPD lead at Virgin Media, Hannah Meaney, said: “Virgin Media Television are excited to partner with Guinness for this year’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations to enhance the accessibility of our coverage, ensuring every fan can experience the thrill of the Championship in full. With the initiative of an Audio Descriptive commentary, a unique Irish Sign Language Pop-Up Channel on Virgin Media PLAY, and a fully accessible ad break during our Irish matches, we're proud to lead the way in making sports more inclusive than ever. This marks an important media first and the beginning of our ongoing commitment to create a more accessible experience for all.”

 

Virgin Media Sports pundit and former Italy Rugby Player, Ian McKinley said: “It is fantastic to see the steps both Guinness and Virgin Media Television are taking to create equal opportunities for those who are blind, visually impaired or deaf to experience this year’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations Championship. The Guinness Six Nations brings together some of the world’s best teams and players and everyone should have the opportunity to enjoy these matches while watching from home or in stadium. I look forward to seeing this become possible across the board for all sporting events in the years to come.”

 

Group Client Director from PHD Media, Catherine Marley said: “It has been a continued ambition for Diageo and PHD to create a more inclusive media landscape for Irish audiences. We are thrilled to partner with Virgin Media Television to make the Guinness Six Nations more accessible, giving more fans the opportunity to support the Irish team this year. Working closely with our AV and planning teams in OMG, we’re equally excited to launch a first in this market with our Accessible Ad Break, with thanks going to all our clients who have gotten involved in the initiative to promote a more inclusive environment for audiences this weekend.”

 

Key Fixtures:

Live Audio Description & Irish Sign Language will be available on Virgin Media Television for the below fixtures:

Saturday, February 1^st: Ireland vs England 4.45pm, Virgin Media One and Virgin Media Play

Saturday, February 22^nd: Ireland vs Wales 2.15pm, Virgin Media One and Virgin Media Play