RTÉ has launched a competitive process for what it describes as the largest broadcast sponsorship opportunity in Ireland by inviting brands to bid for the sponsorship rights to its weather service across television, digital platforms, social media and the RTÉ Guide from January 2027.
Available for the first time in more than five years, the RTÉ Weather sponsorship package combines broadcast, online, streaming, social and print assets, offering advertisers year-round access to one of Ireland’s most consistently viewed media properties.
RTÉ has put a rate-card price of €7.5m a year on the total package. According to a number of media agency sources, contacted by Adworld.ie, the final figure agreed upon will likely include a substantial discount on the rate card and will depend on the duration of the sponsorship agreement.
The most recent weather sponsor is Failte Ireland, which signed up in 2022. Prior to this, it was Glanbia’s Avonmore.
According to RTÉ, the package covers all RTÉ Weather bulletins on RTÉ One, including updates linked to RTÉ News One O’Clock, Six One and Nine O’Clock News, as well as additional weather segments throughout the day and weekend schedules. The sponsorship includes approximately 120 sponsorship stings per week, or around 6,360 annually.
In addition to television, the package includes sponsorship of weather content on RTÉ’s digital platforms. RTÉ said its weather pages generate approximately 390,000 page views each month, while weather content carried through the RTÉ News app attracts around 1.1 million page views monthly.
According to RTÉ, weather remains one of the country’s most enduring conversation points, with weather bulletins attracting large audiences. RTÉ estimates that over the course of a year, 90% of adults aged 15 and over who watch television will see a weather sponsorship sting at least once, equivalent to approximately 3.3 million people. Weekly reach is estimated at 49% for one exposure and 36% for four exposures.
The sponsorship also extends to the RTÉ Player, where a 10-second sponsorship sting will be displayed before live and on-demand weather content. RTÉ Player weather streams generated more than 6.9 million live streams and almost 255,000 catch-up impressions during the most recent reporting period.
Social media rights also form part of the package, with the sponsor’s logo appearing on RTÉ Weather posts across platforms including Facebook and Instagram, which together have around 30,000 followers.
The successful sponsor will also receive a substantial print presence within the RTÉ Guide, including a full-page advertisement in 11 issues per year, a double-page spread and sponsorship of the RTÉ Guide calendar.
The broadcaster is inviting expressions of interest by June 24, with meetings scheduled with interested parties between June 29 and July 10. Final bids are expected to be submitted by July 16. RTÉ said the successful bidder will be selected based on a range of factors including bid value, duration, brand fit and creative compatibility with the property.
The sponsorship is scheduled to commence on Jan. 1, 2027.
