More Than a Game: Micheál Smith on the GAA, Community, and Four Years in San Francisco

As Micheál Smith prepares to conclude his tenure as Ireland's Consul General in San Francisco and begin a new role as Ireland's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, and Yemen, San Francisco GAA Public Relations Officer William Wayland sat down with him for a wide-ranging conversation about Gaelic games, sports diplomacy, the Irish diaspora, and the role the GAA plays in communities around the world.

When Micheál Smith arrived in San Francisco as Ireland's Consul General in 2022, the city was still in the grip of a worldwide pandemic.

Micheál Smith at San Francisco GAA Dinner Dance and Award Ceremony at Páirc na nGael on Treasure Island. Photography by William Wayland.

Four years later, as he prepares to leave California and take up a new role as Ireland's Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, and Yemen, he departs with a deep appreciation for San Francisco, but also for one of the institutions that helped shape his experience here: the San Francisco GAA.

“The GAA is not just a sporting organization. It’s a cultural institution. It’s a community network.”

For anyone who has attended a youth tournament, a championship match, a Dinner Dance, or a St. Patrick's Cup Final in recent years, Micheál has been a familiar face. More than a guest of honor, he has been a supporter of Gaelic games and a friend of the San Francisco GAA.

That support comes from an understanding that the GAA represents something unique, not only within Irish sport, but within Irish society itself.

"The GAA is not just a sporting organization. It's a cultural institution. It's a community network. For many Irish people and people of Irish heritage, their most meaningful connection to Ireland comes through their GAA club."

Representing Ireland in the American West

Micheál describes his time in San Francisco as a privilege.

Raised in South Armagh, he could not have imagined that one day he would represent Ireland in one of the world's most influential regions.

“Sport has a unique ability to connect people. It opens doors, builds friendships, and creates opportunities in ways that traditional diplomacy sometimes can’t.”

"To represent your country in a place that has such an impact on the world economically, culturally, and technologically is something that will stay with me," he said.

His responsibilities reached far beyond Northern California. The Consulate serves the western United States, connecting Ireland with communities from Seattle to Denver to Butte, Montana, and beyond. The work includes support for Irish citizens, engagement with the Irish diaspora, stronger economic and political ties, and efforts to connect Ireland to emerging technologies in Silicon Valley.

Yet throughout that work, one constant remained: people.

"The greatest resource any country has is its people," Micheál said.

For Ireland, those people live across the globe.

Sports and Diplomacy

Most people think of diplomacy as government meetings, trade missions, and political relationships. And it is those things. But Micheál points out that sport plays an important role as well, especially for Ireland.

Micheál Smith bids farewell to GAA fans at Páirc na nGael on Treasure Island. Photography by William Wayland.

"Sport has a unique ability to connect people. It opens doors, builds friendships, and creates opportunities in ways that traditional diplomacy sometimes can't."

“Sport has a unique ability to connect people. It opens doors, builds friendships, and creates opportunities in ways that traditional diplomacy sometimes can’t.”

Ireland recently launched a sports diplomacy strategy that recognizes the role athletics can play in strengthening international relationships. For Micheál, the GAA sits at the center of that effort.

"It is one of Ireland's most important networks abroad," he said. "Wherever Irish people go, they build communities. The GAA is often at the heart of those communities."

For many Irish people living overseas, the local GAA club is far more than a place to train or play matches. It is where newcomers find friends, where families gather, where traditions are shared, and where connections to home remain strong.

The Irish and American Approach to Sport

Reflecting on the differences between Irish and American sporting culture, Micheál pointed to something many Americans struggle to understand when they first encounter Gaelic games.

There is something different about the Irish relationship with sport.

“The GAA is built around your parish, your community, and your county. There’s an extraordinary sense of belonging.”

American sporting identity often revolves around a school, college, or professional franchise. In Ireland, Micheál explained, sporting identity is rooted in place.

"The GAA is built around your parish, your community, and your county," he said. "There's an extraordinary sense of belonging."

It is also built on volunteerism.

The coaches are volunteers. The officers are volunteers. The people who serve food, paint clubhouses, organize fundraisers, coach youth teams, and maintain grounds are volunteers.

That collective effort creates something larger than a sports league.

For many Irish people, the local GAA club becomes part of who they are.

And when they move overseas, they seek out another club.

Finding Family Abroad

Micheál understands that experience firsthand.

While he and his wife Claire lived in Singapore, both became deeply involved with the Singapore Gaelic Lions. They played competitively, traveled throughout Asia for tournaments, and built lifelong friendships through the club.

“Overseas, the GAA becomes family in many ways. It’s where you build friendships, create networks, and preserve and progress traditions.”

When the family arrived in California, that connection continued.

Their children played Gaelic games in San Francisco. They traveled with youth teams. They became part of the community that gathers each weekend at Páirc na nGael.

"Overseas, the GAA becomes family in many ways. It's where you build friendships, create networks, and preserve and progress traditions."

That observation resonates with anyone who has watched a newly arrived player walk through the gates at Treasure Island for the first time.

Many arrive knowing only a handful of people.

Weeks later, they have teammates, training partners, roommates, job leads, and lifelong friends.

The View from Páirc na nGael

One very memorable moment of Micheál's tenure came during the 2025 St. Patrick's Cup Finals, when he interviewed GAA President Jarlath Burns at Páirc na nGael.

The two share roots in Armagh and a connection dating back to Micheál's school days, when the current Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael was his teacher.

Yet what stood out was not simply the presence of the GAA President.

It was the fact that one of the most influential figures in Irish sport had come to a Gaelic games facility on Treasure Island in San Francisco.

Micheál Smith interviews Jarlath Burns during the San Francisco GAA St. Patrick’s Cup at Páirc na nGael on Treasure Island, June 1, 2025. Photography by William Wayland

The visit reinforced something local players and volunteers sometimes forget.

What has been built at Páirc na nGael matters.

Micheál has watched the facility evolve during his time in California. He has watched youth participation grow. He has seen larger crowds at championship matches. He has watched Americans discover Gaelic games for the first time.

After a recent visit, he reflected on the atmosphere around the grounds.

"The crowds looked bigger, the place looked great, and there was a real vibrancy around it."

For a community organization built almost entirely by volunteers, that is no small achievement.

Looking Ahead

Soon, Micheál and his family will trade the Bay Area for Riyadh.

Professionally, the opportunity is exciting. Saudi Arabia is in the midst of rapid transformation and will host both Expo 2030 and the FIFA World Cup in 2034.

But even there, the GAA will not be far away. Riyadh is home to an active GAA club that competes throughout the Middle East.

No matter where Irish people travel, Gaelic games follow.

Micheál Smith with Sean Treacy’s player, Jack Coyle, after winning St. Patrick’s Cup in Gaelic Football, June 1, 2025. Photography by William Wayland

As he prepares to leave San Francisco, Micheál's message to the Irish community is one of gratitude.

"From the day we arrived, we were made to feel at home. The friendship, support, and kindness shown to my family over the last four years has been tremendous."

For the San Francisco GAA, that gratitude is mutual.

Micheál Smith has been more than Ireland's Consul General. He has been a friend of the GAA, a supporter of Gaelic games, and a reminder that what we do at Páirc na nGael extends far beyond the pitch.

The San Francisco GAA is about sports, of course, but it is also about community, culture, and connection. We are sorry to see Micheál go, but we know the friendships forged through Gaelic games do not end with a new posting or a new continent.

We remain connected through sport, and we wish Micheál, Claire, and their family every success in this next chapter.