Tag: legacy

Why Custom ERP Software Development Services Matter More Than Most Businesses Realize

Most businesses don’t start searching for ERP solutions because they love software. They start searching because operations slowly become messy.

Finance uses one platform. Inventory lives somewhere else. HR tracks information manually. Customer support keeps asking for data that already exists but nobody can find quickly. At first, teams work around those problems. Later, those workarounds become daily friction.

That’s usually the point where companies begin looking into custom ERP software development services.

And honestly, this is where many businesses make a costly mistake.

They buy a popular ERP platform assuming popularity automatically means compatibility. It doesn’t. A system built for thousands of companies rarely fits the exact operational behavior of one company that has its own reporting structure, approval process, compliance rules, and internal workflows.

The software may technically function. Employees may still hate using it.

Why Do Businesses Move Away From Generic ERP Platforms?

Because operations stop fitting inside rigid templates.

A manufacturing company may need inventory forecasting connected directly to supplier delivery patterns. A healthcare provider may require patient records tied to insurance workflows and compliance reporting. A logistics firm might depend on real-time vehicle coordination across multiple cities.

Generic ERP systems usually handle broad business functions reasonably well. Problems appear once operations become more specialized.

That’s the part many sales teams avoid discussing.

In reality, companies frequently spend months modifying off-the-shelf ERP systems only to find that the system still is not able to support how their teams really operate. In the end, the business must pay for additional licenses, third-party connectors, plugins, and manual fixes simply to enable simple processes to communicate with one another.

A custom-built ERP system approaches the problem differently.

Instead of forcing operations to adapt to software limitations, the software is designed around operational reality.

What Does A Custom ERP System Usually Include?

That depends heavily on the business model.

Some businesses merely require centralized inventory control and finance. Others need intricately linked ecosystems that concurrently manage procurement, HR, analytics, compliance, customer management, reporting, mobile access, and process automation. Healthcare institutions are an excellent illustration. 

Patient data, staff scheduling, billing, insurance verification, reporting obligations, and electronic health systems are frequently managed concurrently by hospitals and clinics. Removing fragmentation across various operational layers is typically the goal of teams looking for custom ERP software development services.

When systems stop communicating properly, small delays turn into operational bottlenecks.

Staff wastes time switching between platforms. Reporting becomes inconsistent. Decision-making slows down because nobody fully trusts the data anymore.

That operational uncertainty spreads quickly across departments.

Which Industries Usually Benefit Most From ERP Customization?

Not every business needs a heavily customized ERP environment.

A smaller company with straightforward operations can often manage perfectly well using lightweight SaaS tools for several years.

Things change once workflows become more complex.

Manufacturing businesses frequently need production visibility connected to procurement timelines and warehouse tracking. Construction firms often require project cost management tied directly to labor allocation and material usage. Retail brands operating across multiple locations need centralized inventory accuracy that updates in real time.

Healthcare remains one of the strongest examples because operational systems inside medical organizations are rarely simple.

Compliance requirements alone create technical complexity that generic ERP templates struggle to support properly.

That’s why companies investing in custom systems usually care less about “extra features” and more about operational alignment.

The goal is not flashy dashboards.

The goal is reducing friction.

How Expensive Is Custom ERP Development?

There isn’t one universal price.

A relatively small ERP platform with limited modules may cost far less than a multi-department enterprise system involving automation, analytics, integrations, security architecture, and mobile infrastructure.

What increases development cost most is complexity.

Not company size. A smaller healthcare provider with strict compliance workflows may require more engineering work than a much larger retailer operating with simpler processes.

Several factors influence ERP pricing:

Factor Why It Changes Cost
Integrations Connecting existing platforms increases engineering work
Compliance requirements Security and reporting rules require additional architecture
Automation depth Complex workflows take longer to build and test
Reporting systems Advanced analytics increase backend complexity
User permissions Multi-role environments need stronger access controls
Mobile functionality Cross-device support adds development time

One thing businesses consistently underestimate is maintenance planning.

Building software is only part of the equation.

ERP systems evolve continuously because operations evolve continuously.

Why Do Some ERP Implementations Fail?

Usually because companies rush into software decisions before understanding their own operational problems.

That sounds simple. It happens constantly.

Leadership teams often focus heavily on feature lists while ignoring workflow behavior inside departments. Employees may already rely on manual shortcuts because existing processes are inefficient. If those inefficiencies get transferred directly into new software, the ERP system simply digitizes confusion instead of fixing it.

The strongest ERP projects spend significant time on operational discovery before development starts.

That includes analyzing:

  • approval chains
  • reporting bottlenecks
  • data duplication
  • communication delays
  • department dependencies
  • compliance exposure

What people miss about ERP adoption is that employees decide success long before executives do.

If teams feel the system slows them down, adoption drops quietly.

And once employees stop trusting an ERP platform, recovery becomes difficult.

What Features Matter Most In Modern ERP Systems?

Businesses sometimes get distracted by trends.

AI dashboards sound impressive in presentations. Predictive automation sounds exciting during demos. Yet many organizations still struggle with basic reporting consistency and workflow coordination.

Strong ERP systems usually focus on operational clarity first.

Several features consistently matter across industries:

ERP Capability Operational Benefit
Real-time reporting Faster decision-making
Workflow automation Reduced manual tasks
API integrations Better platform communication
Role-based access Stronger security control
Cloud infrastructure Easier remote accessibility
Audit tracking Improved compliance visibility

Businesses evaluating custom erp software development services increasingly prioritize interoperability because disconnected systems create reporting delays that affect finance, operations, and customer support at the same time.

That fragmentation becomes expensive surprisingly fast.

How Long Does ERP Development Usually Take?

Longer than most businesses expect.

A smaller ERP implementation may require several months. It frequently takes a lot longer to implement enterprise-grade systems that involve numerous departments, data migration, automation logic, connectors, and testing.

Clarity in decision-making is critical to development pace.

Projects slow down when needs frequently change or when internal stakeholders disagree on operational objectives.

Complications are also caused by legacy systems.

Old databases, irregular reporting formats, and antiquated procedures typically require cleansing before transfer can proceed safely.

Businesses that devote time to preparation typically steer clear of the worst implementation mishaps down the road.

Rushed ERP projects often create fragile systems that require expensive fixes after launch.

Is Cloud ERP Better Than On-Premise Infrastructure?

For many businesses, cloud-based environments make more sense today.

Remote accessibility improves. Maintenance becomes easier. Scaling infrastructure generally costs less compared to maintaining physical servers internally.

Still, certain industries continue using hybrid or on-premise environments because compliance obligations remain strict.

Healthcare organizations, financial institutions, and government-connected operations sometimes maintain tighter internal control over infrastructure depending on regulatory requirements.

There is no perfect deployment model for every business.

Operational goals matter more than trends.

What Should Businesses Look For In An ERP Development Partner?

Technical experience matters.

Operational understanding matters even more.

A development team may build technically functional software while still creating a system employees dislike using daily. Strong ERP partners spend time understanding how departments actually communicate before discussing interfaces or dashboards.

The right development company usually asks difficult operational questions early:

Why do reporting inconsistencies happen?

Where does communication break down between departments?

Why are manual spreadsheets still being used?

Which approvals create delays?

Those questions often reveal deeper operational problems long before development starts.

And honestly, that stage matters more than flashy sales presentations.

A well-designed ERP system should eventually feel almost invisible.

Employees stop fighting workflows. Reporting becomes easier to trust. Departments coordinate faster without constantly checking three different platforms for the same information.

That operational clarity is usually what businesses were searching for all along.

Conclusion

Most businesses don’t realize they’ve outgrown their systems until everyday work starts feeling slower than it should. Reports conflict. Teams duplicate tasks. Decisions take longer because nobody fully trusts the data anymore.

That’s usually the real reason companies invest in custom ERP software development services.

Not for trend-driven digital transformation language. Not for flashy dashboards.

Why Legacy Systems Are Holding Back Innovation in the Insurance Industry (and How to Fix It)

Insurance leaders love to talk about innovation, but actually getting there? That’s where things fall apart. The real problem usually lives inside their own walls — old, inflexible systems holding everything back. These legacy platforms run deep. They make the business slow, hard to change, and expensive to scale. Insurtech startups can launch a new service almost overnight, but established insurers are still slogging through projects that drag on for years.

To remain competitive, organizations must rethink their approach to digital transformation in insurance and address foundational technology constraints. A critical first step is to modernize a legacy insurance system by replacing rigid architectures with flexible, modern platforms.

Let’s look at why legacy tech keeps insurers stuck, and how you can break the cycle with modernization strategies that actually work in the real world (and don’t blow up your business in the process).

What Actually Makes a Legacy System (and Why Should You Care)?

It’s not just about software that’s “old.” In insurance, legacy systems are usually massive, tightly wound beasts—core to how you write policies, handle claims, and keep things running. The issue isn’t just age. It’s that these systems were built so rigidly — hardwired, poorly documented, and stuffed with patches — that even small changes are a headache. Over the years, short-term fixes pile up, and you’re left with a machine that’s fragile, costly to tweak, and filled with hidden dependencies.

Think about a mid-sized insurer whose backbone is a 20-year-old policy management system. Want to offer digital claims? Suddenly you need custom middleware, manual data mapping, endless rounds of testing… It drags on for months. Not because of the business process, but because the tech just isn’t built to flex.

What gets risky here?

  • They don’t play nice with modern APIs.
  • You’re stuck with dying programming languages.
  • Most of your IT budget disappears into maintenance, not innovation.
  • Only a few folks know how these systems work — and they’re eyeing retirement.

If you don’t tackle these, your big technology transformation plans will fizz out before anyone sees real improvement.

The Innovation Chokepoint — Why Projects Fail or Stall Out

Insurers toss money at fresh ideas like AI pilots, chatbots, automated workflows. Yet when it’s time to scale up, everything grinds to a halt. The reason isn’t a lack of vision. It’s that your foundational tech just isn’t designed for quick, agile change.

First, shipping anything new takes forever. Every new product has to thread its way through ancient systems wired together with dozens of interdependencies. Coordination gets tangled; delays compound. Next, connecting to cutting-edge insurance solutions? It’s a slog. AI-driven underwriting, instant pricing, advanced claims automation — all of it needs clean, updated data infrastructure. Legacy platforms scatter that data across different formats or lock it up, making real-time anything basically impossible.

Finally, any innovation that does get out tends to sit in its own corner, isolated from the rest of the business. You might roll out an AI tool for detecting fraud, but if the data pipeline’s too slow, those insights arrive after the fact. The tech exists, but the old infrastructure chokes out the real business impact.

The Hidden Price Tag — How Legacy Systems Bleed Organizations Dry

The actual cost of hanging onto legacy tech is easy to overlook because it’s everywhere — in maintenance contracts, compliance headaches, security workarounds, and endless support tickets.

But if you stack up the unchecked bills, this is what you’re really paying for:

  • Ballooning maintenance spending that eats up your IT budget.
  • Vulnerabilities that open you up to cyberattacks.
  • Compliance nightmares, where adapting to new regulations means wrestling with systems that just won’t budge.
  • A shrinking pool of folks who actually understand this tech.

The real risk, though? It’s falling behind. Competitors move to nimble platforms, get products to market faster, adapt pricing, and personalize the customer experience. If you’re stuck, your brand and bottom line slowly erode.

How Do You Even Start Modernizing? — A Playbook That Actually Works

Let’s get practical. Modernization isn’t a “deploy and forget” project — it’s an ongoing shift in how you build, run, and evolve your core technology. You’ll need to pick the right approach based on your biggest priorities and where you can tolerate risk.

Here are your main plays:

  1. Rehosting (“Lift and Shift”) — Move your systems to the cloud as-is, keeping changes small. Fast, but doesn’t solve deeper problems.
  2. Replatforming — Adjust your applications for the cloud, picking up some improvements along the way. Faster results without full rewrites.
  3. Refactoring — Redesign sections of the system for better flexibility and maintenance. More investment, but the payoff grows over time.
  4. Rebuilding — Start over with a fresh, cloud-native architecture. This opens up real innovation but takes time, discipline, and guts.

Usually, it’s a mix. Maybe you rehost less critical systems to score quick wins, while you surgically refactor or rebuild the parts most critical to customer experience or revenue.

To succeed: Tie every project to business results (not just technical goals), focus first on what impacts your customers, use APIs to slowly break apart dependencies, and bring on experts with real-world modernization experience.

Modernizing Step by Step — Without Breaking the Business

The new generation of insurance systems is all about flexibility, speed, and making sure IT supports business change — not blocks it. Here’s what to focus on:

  • Cloud-native infrastructure for scalability and resilience (so you can launch and grow faster).
  • APIs as building blocks — making it possible to plug in new systems or partners with less fuss.
  • AI and automation to speed up core processes — but make sure your data is clean and accessible first.
  • Modern data platforms that let you analyze and act on information instantly (think dynamic pricing or instant fraud detection).

Insurers moving to these modern, API-driven setups cut product launch cycles and respond to the market way faster.

Today, these aren’t just “nice to haves” — they’re baseline for anyone aiming to stay in the race.

Bottom Line — Turn Your Old Systems Into an Edge

Legacy tech isn’t just an IT issue. It’s a strategic roadblock. Insurers who ignore these limits will spend more, move slower, and watch their relevance fade.

But if you tackle legacy modernization head-on — with the right roadmap, clear business priorities, and a commitment to change — you get something your competitors don’t: speed, customer focus, and the freedom to innovate. Start early. Plan carefully. The ones who get this right won’t just keep up — they’ll lead.

In insurance now, modernizing isn’t a someday thing. It’s table stakes for lasting growth and real innovation.

Beyond Swift: The revolution of instant international payment solutions

For over half a century now, the global financial system has relied on a SWIFT mechanism that, in 2026, feels archaic. It was certainly revolutionary at the time for the banking messaging system that it is. It helped create a safer and more orderly way to get money from one bank to another.

Today, it’s seen as legacy infrastructure that brings with it a lot of friction. A transfer can take days to settle (in the 80s, sending money from the UK to Hong Kong in three days was impressive!), while fees are now seen as high and quite unpredictable. And, perhaps most disappointingly for a correspondence system, tracking the location of the funds is difficult. 

While information travels instantly, money has lagged behind – partly because replacing a large global system, which takes fraud seriously, is understandably sticky. But a quiet revolution has been happening from the bottom up. API-first financial infrastructure has been booming over the past decade, and alternative finance is growing so big that it no longer feels like an alternative.

The problem with legacy systems

To understand the magnitude of this revolution, you first have to appreciate the inefficiencies of the current status quo. Traditional Swift is a chain of correspondent banks – money doesn’t actually go from point A to B, but it passes through a series of intermediaries, all of which collect their own fee.

This structure is therefore inherently opaque. A business might send $10,000, but the recipient might receive $9,850. If the business says it wants the recipient to receive $10,000, then the sender will pay high fees, and it often won’t be clear whether they’re wire fees, exchange spreads, and so on. 

How modern API-first solutions work

The solution to this is interoperability and direct connection. Modern fintechs aim to be borderless, and they’re building their own “financial infrastructure” to achieve it. They might use SWIFT when it works out best, or they might establish entities in multiple countries and connect directly to local banking systems. They might use treasury tricks, where they can deposit/withdraw money from multiple users simultaneously to align a transfer, and achieve it even with no money ever crossing the border. In the end, it’s about choices, flexibility, and being agile.

This API-first approach means instant settlement. Because the payout is a local bank transfer, it clears within seconds.  Plus, the fees are clearer and the tracking is more accurate (fewer intermediaries).

The advantage for global business

For treasury managers and CFOs, the ability to consolidate liquidity is a game-changer for obvious reasons. Before, expanding into new regions like Latin America or Southeast Asia meant opening multiple local bank accounts, which was a bureaucratic nightmare, whether you’re a large corporation or an independent store.

Modern platforms allow users to see their global finances in one view. Through a single API integration, a company can automate pay-ins and pay-outs in dozens of countries. This means it’s easier to track liquidity and cash flow, but it also means it’s easier to manage multiple currencies and have an FX strategy. You can build up reserves in a multi-currency account wallet and execute timely transactions when the exchange rate is favourable (or when it’s large enough to get a bulk FX discount).

Who is driving the change?

Transparent cross-border payments are made up of global generalists and specialized regional experts. Wise is perhaps the most recognizable name and it was an early mover in setting the standard for transparency and mid-market exchange rates, while Airwallex carved out a strong position by offering a comprehensive platform that combines payments with card issuing and expense management – ideal for larger enterprises. 

Latin America is always an interesting environment because it has historically been characterized by fragmented banking systems. Belvo has set the standard for Open Finance, as they’ve helped build the API rails so businesses can access banking data and initiate payments in markets like Mexico, Brazil and Colombia. On the issuing side, Pomelo provides the cloud-native infrastructure to help companies launch and scale, while Dock operates heavily in the background as a banking-as-a-service powerhouse.

Prometeo has positioned itself to focus specifically on borderless banking for treasury management. Here, the international payment solution provides a single API that consolidates these local networks to allow for automated liquidity movement between Latin America and the US.

Value movement

Instant international payments is still a new concept to larger banks. But for those looking to take advantage of maturing open banking regulations, payments is an area which is improving in quality while decreasing in cost. It has come at a time of the rise of crypto, which is in part how crypto has been kept at bay away from mainstream use. Going forward, it’s unlikely to see large corporations embrace interoperability because it’s a playing field leveller, and so bottom-up fintech movements will continue to shape consumer experience.

Digital Transformation in Banking and Financial Markets

The banking industry is experiencing one of the most significant shifts in its history. In 2025, more than 3.6 billion people worldwide are using digital banking services. Together with this 77% of consumers now prefer to manage their accounts through mobile apps or computers.

This trend highlights how digital channels have become the default choice for banking, with liquidity aggregation opportunities, advanced risk management, and enhanced user experience playing a key role in ensuring efficiency and resilience behind the scenes.

Where banks once differentiated themselves through physical presence and reputation, they are now judged by the efficiency of their platforms, the quality of their digital services, and their ability to integrate into an increasingly interconnected financial ecosystem.

From Closed Systems to Open Infrastructure

For decades, many banks operated on legacy technology. Systems were closed, data was siloed, and client access was limited to what a single institution could offer. The rapid rise of fintechs and alternative service providers has upended that model, showing clients that seamless digital experiences and global reach are not just possible, but expected.

As a result, banks are under pressure to modernize their core infrastructure. This includes migrating to cloud-based solutions, adopting real-time analytics, and rethinking how they connect with counterparties and clients.

For example, several leading European banks have partnered with fintech providers to implement cloud-native payment hubs. By doing so, they can process cross-border payments in real time, aggregate liquidity from multiple sources, and provide clients with transparent pricing — something that would have been impossible under their former legacy systems.

 

Technology as the New Competitive Edge

What sets leading banks apart today is their ability to use technology strategically. Artificial intelligence, advanced risk management tools, and automated compliance systems are now part of everyday operations. Beyond efficiency, these innovations create new opportunities to improve client experience, streamline back-office processes, and strengthen resilience during periods of market stress.

Among the many solutions reshaping the industry is liquidity aggregation, which allows institutions to consolidate liquidity from multiple sources into a unified framework. While it may sound highly specialized, its impact is broad: by reducing fragmentation and enabling more transparent pricing, it contributes to a more stable and efficient market environment.

For example, JPMorgan Chase has invested heavily in digital trading infrastructure, combining liquidity aggregation with advanced analytics to offer clients deeper market access and more competitive pricing. Similarly, Deutsche Bank has deployed AI-driven risk management and consolidated liquidity flows across multiple venues, enabling it to deliver greater resilience during volatile market conditions.

Expanding Beyond Traditional Boundaries

Another key element of transformation is the expansion into multi-asset services. Clients increasingly expect banks to support a wide range of financial instruments through a single interface. Delivering on this expectation requires more than technology — it demands strategic partnerships, agile operating models, and the willingness to rethink traditional boundaries.

This convergence of banking and financial technology highlights a larger trend: the emergence of connected ecosystems. Banks are no longer isolated institutions; they are nodes in a global digital network. Success depends on how well they integrate, adapt, and innovate within that network.

A good example is UBS, which has expanded its platform to provide clients with access to equities, fixed income, and digital assets within a unified environment. By partnering with fintech providers and leveraging open APIs, UBS has been able to integrate multiple asset classes into one client-facing interface. Similarly, Standard Chartered has embraced a multi-asset approach through collaborations with technology firms, enabling institutional clients to manage foreign exchange, commodities, and securities from a single digital platform.

The Road Ahead

The journey of digital transformation is far from complete. Many institutions are still in the process of modernizing legacy systems, while others are experimenting with new service models to stay ahead of client needs.

What is clear is that technology will remain at the center of banking’s evolution. Whether through artificial intelligence, open banking frameworks, or specialized solutions such as liquidity aggregation, the institutions that embrace innovation will shape the next era of financial services. Those that hesitate risk being left behind in an increasingly connected and competitive economy.

Two thirds of businesses believe ‘legacy banks’ are too slow to adapt to modern business needs — Revolut

Revolut Business, the global financial superapp trusted by hundreds of thousands of businesses worldwide, has conducted a study in partnership with market research firm Dynata, highlighting that international businesses are turning away from ‘legacy banks’ to manage their financial needs, echoing the sweeping changes seen across consumer banking. The findings come as the company launches Revolut Business 5 — the fifth generation of its financial management platform for businesses.

The recent survey of 2,850 business decision-makers from seven European countries, including respondents from every county in Ireland, found that close to two thirds (63%) of businesses believe ‘legacy banks’ are too slow for their financial needs.

Nearly four out of five (79%) respondents reported issues with ‘legacy banks’, including high fees, slow transactions, and poor mobile experiences, and three out of five (64%) large businesses are worried they will be left behind competitors without enlisting a fintech.

These concerns are driving businesses to fintechs like Revolut, where innovation and agility are founding principles. Revolut is reinforcing its focus to support large enterprise clients with Revolut Business 5, which provides an enhanced user experience across both mobile and desktop platforms to meet the evolving needs of industry leaders. Revolut Business has been redesigned to save enterprises more time and money.

James Gibson, General Manager at Revolut Business, commented on the recent survey findings and emphasised Revolut Business’s capabilities: “When we started Revolut Business in 2017, we knew that businesses wanted a banking product that evolved with their needs and provided a customer experience you’d expect in this day and age. The demand for customer-orientated business accounts has only increased since then.

“As we launch Revolut Business 5, we know we’re giving customers the ability to find features faster, spend with precision, and manage payments easily. Revolut Business is continuing to grow, and look forward to welcoming more customers who are fed up with the existing status quo in Ireland and want a solution that moves with the technology of the day.”

In Ireland, specifically, the survey also found that:

  • 72% of business leaders believe that ‘legacy banks’ are too slow to adapt to modern business needs, notably much higher than the European sample size average of 64%.

  • More than half (52%) of businesses use the services of a fintech, while a further 30% are willing to trust and are actively looking to use a fintech to manage their finances.

  • A quarter (25%) of hospitality businesses and close to one in five retail businesses (19%) now no longer use a traditional bank in Ireland.

  • Looking outwardly, more than three-quarters of business leaders (77%) said they were seeing more industry peers turn to fintechs for their business banking needs, while 81% of these already use a fintech provider (such as Revolut) personally outside of work.

  • Notably, nearly a third (31%) of business leaders in Ireland would prefer to manage their business’ financial needs solely with their fintech provider.

Revolut Business 5 offers faster navigation, personalised layouts, and easy access to card details and analytics right from the home screen. Updated features notably include B2B SEPA Direct Debits, streamlined payment tools for online and in-person sales, dedicated treasury tools for currency exchange, and multi-layered approval options for managing team spending across departments.

Revolut Business is already contributing 15-25% of the company’s overall gross profit, with some of Revolut’s notable customers in Ireland including Aer Lingus, O’Neills, and DID Electrical. The company also recently announced that global annualised revenue for Revolut Business has surpassed $500M (€461m). This growth is a testament to the demand for Revolut Business, as more companies turn to digital banks for a faster, more flexible way to manage their financial needs.

For more information, please visit: www.revolut.com/business

THE GIRLS IN GREEN LEGACY: Seeing Televised Professional Sport provides A Real Incentive To Take It Up, But Access To Local Clubs Is Vital

More than 2.4m people watched RTÉ television’s coverage of the Women’s Football World Cup in Australia and New Zealand last summer.  In that tournament, the Republic of Ireland’s game against Canada was the most watched women’s team sport event in Irish TV history with an average of 551,000 viewers.

New research from Royal London, the founding partner of the first British and Irish Lions Women’s Rugby Tour, shows the wider significance of viewing figures like these. Almost one in four (24%) of parents surveyed across Ireland say the more sport is shown on TV, the more likely their children are to take it up. Furthermore, 15% of parents in Ireland say their child took up a team sport after seeing it live professionally, and 15% say their child got into team sports as they were inspired watching a sporting role model on TV. However, the ability to play alongside their friends is also a big draw for children when it comes to sport, with more than one in three (35%) of the parents in Ireland surveyed citing the opportunity to play alongside their friends as the reason their children became interested in sport.

Over a fifth (23%) of parents in Ireland say their children have been involved in team sports due to having access to a local club. When looking at how realistic this is for children across Ireland, more than seven in ten (72%) of adults have a sports club within half an hour of their home. However, one in five (22%) have to travel longer than 30 minutes, while 6% don’t know where their local sports club is. Interestingly, while the numbers were low overall, of the women surveyed, they were seven times as likely as men not to know the location of their local sports club (7pc of women versus 1pc of men).

When reflecting on their own decision to take up team sports, 44% of adults in Ireland did so to play with friends and three in ten (30%) said it was a fun way to keep fit that wasn’t solo. A quarter (25%) were encouraged to play by a teacher or coach.

Shaunagh Brown, professional rugby player for England and Harlequins, says: “This Women’s Lions tour, the first of its kind, will allow more people to witness women playing rugby at a high level. I was interested, but not surprised, that the research showed more adults would consider taking up a team sport if they saw people who looked and sounded like them playing it. To believe you can do it, you have to see someone like you living, breathing and enjoying it. And, even if you don’t end up following a professional path with sport, the benefits you will feel from playing as part of a team in terms of greater confidence, resilience and improved social skills will be with you for the rest of your life.”

Susie Logan, chief marketing officer at Royal London says: “At present, through either a lack of airtime or wider exposure, some women’s sports have not yet been visible enough to inspire future generations.

The blend of seeing it played well on TV and taking it up with friends is key. Team sports create a community and can become an important part of a child’s development. We need to keep striving towards equality at all levels, whether that be what’s televised or at grassroots. Both are essential to create foundations for the future and give every child the inspiration and access they need to thrive playing team sport. This is why we’re proud to partner with the first British and Irish Lions Women’s Rugby Tour.

Royal London has been announced as Founding Partner of the first ever Lions Women’s team. The partnership will see Royal London invest in player development in each of The British & Irish Lions constituent Unions through the delivery of a special elite players’ Pathways Funding grant. The grants will support the elite women’s player and coach pathways in Scotland, Wales, Ireland, and England, to help Unions develop more players and coaches capable of being selected for the inaugural Lions Women’s Tour. In addition, Royal London will also be investing in women’s and girls’ grassroots rugby across the UK and Ireland in the run-up to the Tour.”