Help send Berkeley Hurling to National Events! | Fall 2026

Who are we, and why do we need your support?

The Hurling Club at Berkeley is a co-ed sports team, practicing and competing in the ancient Irish sports of Hurling and Gaelic Football. We are fundraising to compete at the Collegiate GAA events across the country! In October, we will be heading to Missoula, MT for the NCGAA Western Regional tournament. In 2027, we hope to be traveling further east for national collegiate events in the Spring! 

These events bring together teams from across the nation to represent their colleges in hurling/football at the national level. Hurling Club at Berkeley is the primary Irish-American association on campus. Our RSO connects those born in Ireland (including exchange students) with Americans born to Irish parents and even some students with no Irish connection at all! Through the power of sport, Hurling Club at Berkeley fosters positivity and connection between Golden Bears of all abilities, interests, and academic pursuits.

This fundraising season is especially important for our club, as it is the fourth and final year for a handful of our original cohort who helped revive GAA at Berkeley following the COVID pandemic, and we are hoping to send them off into the sunset with a bang! Excitingly, we have a great group of young student-athletes who are excited to continue our now-established GAA traditions in Berkeley over the coming years.

Furthermore, this season marks the start of a new era for Gaelic games at the collegiate level in North America: World GAA is stepping up to host an event for teams across Canada and the US during the Spring semester, and we couldn't be more excited! With multiple high-stakes events this year, we need your support more than ever!

What is Hurling?

Hurling is a national pastime in Ireland, of great cultural significance. It is a field sport, played outside in teams of fifteen players. The players use wooden sticks (hurls) to hit a small leather ball (the sliotar) into their opponents’ goal or over the crossbar, scoring goals and points. The sliotar can be hit through the air, along the ground, or passed from the hand. It is known as “the fastest game on grass” and has a growing fanbase across the world because of how exciting the games are to watch! In the US, collegiate hurling is organized by the National Collegiate Gaelic Athletic Association (NCGAA). The Hurling Club at Berkeley is an NCGAA-registered collegiate hurling team. 

The All-Ireland Hurling Final 2023 - watch to get an idea of the sport at the highest level!

Go Bears! (or, in Irish) Na bearanna abú!"    

How we'll use our funds

The vast majority of our funds will be used to reimburse our students for travel expenses related to our events. This includes hotel stays, airfare, and necessary incidentals like taxis/rental cars to/from the fields. Any funding in excess of our goals will be spent on equipment (hurls, helmets, jerseys, etc.) for new (and returning!) players. All estimates are rough only, and actual expenditures may vary.

We do our best to minimize costs during travel so that your generous donations go as far as possible! If we meet our $6,000 fundraising goal this Fall, the funds will be spent in the following way:

• 45% (~$2700) on round-trip flights from San Francisco to Missoula for our eight student-athletes
• 22% (~$1300) on three nights' Airbnb for eight people in Missoula during the regional tournament
• 20% (~$1200) on two nights' stay at the national event in the Spring
• 13% (~$800) on partial reimbursements for flights to the national event for our student-athletes

If we do not meet our goal, we will still use all funds raised to help pay for our attendance at October's regional tournament. We will disburse those funds evenly between players who attend the tournament to help reimburse students for the cost of attendance. Every little helps! We will continue fundraising through different venues and strategies throughout the year to reach our goal by various means.  

The Impact 

The NCGAA National Championships are the highest level of competition for a college hurling team. To reach the National Championships, teams must first compete at the Regional Championships every year. At regionals, our team will gain invaluable knowledge of the sport and improve our skills hugely by competing against teams from across the west coast. There is also an important social and cultural aspect to this trip, because our team will be able to meet and forge friendships with other hurling players from a variety of backgrounds. Many of our team share Irish heritage, and some are international students from Ireland, so for them meeting students from other colleges who share a love for Irish sport and culture is hugely affirming. We are excited to raise the profile of hurling across the United States, and bring the sport to new audiences and potential players. As a co-ed team, our Hurling Club also plays an important role in promoting the profile of women within the sport. 

Thank you for supporting Cal Hurling Club, and GO BEARS!

Feel free to contact us via email at calhurlingclub@gmail.com or Instagram DM @calhurling.

Want to make your gift by check, donor-advised fund, or employer matching program? We are happy to help! Please email calcrowdfunding@berkeley.edu and include how you would like to support this project. Our team will provide the appropriate instructions, coordinate gift processing, and help ensure your contribution is credited to this campaign whenever possible.