Mediahuis Ireland reports €3m drop in turnover

Mediahuis, publisher of the Irish Independent and Sunday Independent, saw its turnover fall by €3 million to €92.3 million last year.

Recently filed accounts for Mediahuis Ireland Limited also show the publisher spent €2.56 million acquiring a 25 per cent stake in Irish sports-video streaming service Clubber in 2025.

The deal valued the streaming service, best known for live-streaming lower-tier GAA games, at €10.4 million.

Clubber was set up in 2020 by former Microsoft Ireland executive Jimmy Doyle.

The accounts show Mediahuis Ireland made a profit of €6.5 million last year, up from €6.3 million in 2024.

The company – which also publishes the Sunday World, Belfast Telegraph and several regional titles – is a wholly owned subsidiary of Belgian media group Mediahuis MV.

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The turnover recorded for Mediahuis Ireland Limited relates entirely to activities in the Republic, the accounts noted.

During the financial year, the company was approved for funding from Coimisiún na Meán totalling €1 million to support eligible journalism.

“The purpose of the funding was to supplement and enhance coverage of local authorities and district and Circuit Court hearings, and news reporting that is underprovided for or at risk of underprovision,” they said.

The accounts also show Mediahuis Ireland employed 392 staff at the end of 2025, up one on the previous year.

The two directors of Mediahuis Ireland were listed as chief executive Sheena Peirse, who joined the board in October 2025 when former chief executive Peter Vandermeersch exited, and Ian Keogh, who was appointed a director in February 2024.

Earlier this year, the company acquired Image Media, the publisher behind Image magazine and other titles, for an undisclosed sum.

It said the acquisition was aimed at building “a more-diversified, digitally led and multi-platform media business”

Accounts for the parent group Antwerp-based Mediahuis MV indicate it made a profit of €156.7 million last year on the back of a €1.23 billion turnover.

The company operates primarily in Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg and Germany and has more than 30 titles in its stable.