Safefood and GAA launch new healthy eating for sports resource

New nutrition resource will support juvenile players, their parents and coaches in their Gaelic games activity.

09 September 2025: Safefood and the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) have teamed up to launch ‘Fuel your Game’, a new free healthy eating resource to support juvenile players, parents and coaches in choosing the right foods to support their Gaelic games activity and overall health and wellbeing.

The pack will help guide parents, coaches and young players in their food and drink choices, whether that’s before training or after a match. Currently being made available to more than 600 clubs in the Irish Life GAA Healthy Clubs programme and online via the GAA’s educational platform Tobar, ‘Fuel your Game’ will be further distributed to clubs during 2026.

Launching the new resource at Croke Park, Dr Gary A Kearney, Chief Executive, Safefood, said “We’re delighted to see this new free resource hit the field and support young players, their parents, and coaches. We’ve worked in partnership with the GAA with input from Sport Ireland to agree on the most important nutrition advice for young players to ensure they can play their best. With ‘Fuel your Game,’ young players learn to see sport and health as inseparable. It’s a great way to help build healthy behaviours at a young age.”

"Through this new resource, we can encourage young players to develop healthy habits from a young age, support their parents in how they can play their part, and equip our coaching network with practical tools and advice to build on those habits.”

— Bríd O’Dwyer, National Healthy Club Coordinator

Bríd O’Dwyer, National Healthy Club Coordinator continued “We are excited to work with Safefood to make ‘Fuel your Game’ available through our network of clubs in the Irish Life GAA Healthy Clubs programme this year. Our local clubs play such an important role in the health and wellbeing of communities across the island. Through this new resource, we can encourage young players to develop healthy habits from a young age, support their parents in how they can play their part, and equip our coaching network with practical tools and advice to build on those habits.”

The ’Fuel your Game’ pack focuses on four key areas of nutrition, hydration, planning and after sport:

Before playing or training - check your child has eaten a small meal or snack 2-3 hours beforehand
Stay hydrated - encourage your child to drink fluids before they feel thirsty - thirst is a sign their body has needed fluids for a while
What's in their kit bag - ensure your child has packed a snack and water. Extra snacks can help them perform better.
What to eat after sport - encourage your child to eat something as soon as possible after a match or training. This will help them recover and maintain muscle mass.

The ‘Fuel your Game’ pack consists of a practical guide for coaches; a helpful guide for parents to build on these healthy habits; a suite of posters for club facilities and dedicated social media assets to help promote the resource more widely.

For more information, please see www.safefood.net/news or https://learning.gaa.ie/fuelyourgame  

Ends

To request an interview please contact:

WHPR: Deirbhile Brennan
Email: [email protected]
Mobile: 086 457 6093

Safefood: Dermot Moriarty / Hayley Linehan
Mob: 353 86 381 1034 (Dermot) / 087 406 9110 (Hayley)
Email: [email protected]

Editor’s Notes

‘Fuel your Game’ builds upon previous work by Safefood in sports nutrition education on the island of Ireland. Safefood are currently the official healthy and safe eating partner for the Irish Football Association in Northern Ireland, and a partner of Special Olympics Ireland bringing health education through sport to children with intellectual disabilities.

Applications for new clubs to join the Irish Life GAA Healthy Clubs programme opens on November 22nd at www.healthyclubs.gaa.ie.

For more information and to access the resources, visit: https://learning.gaa.ie/fueltheirgame.

Photo caption: Safefood, in collaboration with the GAA, today launched 'Fuel Their Game', a new suite of resources designed to support youth players, parents, and coaches in making informed food choices to enhance their Gaelic games activity and overall health and wellbeing. Pictured at the launch in Croke Park is Dr. Gary Kearney, Safefood, centre, with, from left, GAA community and health co-ordinator Brid O'Dwyer, Tipperary Hurler Jason Forde, Dublin Ladies footballer Leah Caffrey, Kerry Footballer Joe O’Connor, Kilkenny Camogie Player Mairead Kennedy and Jack Cooney, National Player Development Lead demonstrating the importance of healthy eating and hydration for peak performance. For more information and to access the resources, visit: https://learning.gaa.ie/fueltheirgame.

Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile *** NO REPRODUCTION FEE.