GAA President Jarlath Burns says the sporting organization supports Cork's Páírc Uí Chaoimh being used as a venue for the Euro 2028 after funding was pulled for the redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast.
Located in West Belfast, Casement Park was one of ten stadiums in Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and England selected to host Euro 2028. It was the only Northern Irish venue to be selected for the competition.
However, Northern Ireland's Secretary of State Hilary Benn and Northern Ireland's Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport Lisa Nandy confirmed on September 13 that they have "regrettably decided that it is not appropriate for the UK Government to provide funding to seek to build Casement Park in time to host matches at EURO 2028," citing timing and rising costs.
In the wake of the news, Tánaiste Micheál Martin told reporters on Tuesday that he and Ireland's Minister for Sport Thomas Byrne "have raised with the powers-that-be the prospect perhaps of another fixture in the Euros, perhaps Páirc Uí Chaoimh could be."
Martin said: “This is being seriously looked at because we were guaranteed that number (of games) on the island and I think people across the country would like opportunities to watch the Euros.
“It has been raised with the FAI [Football Association of Ireland], I know Thomas Byrne has done that already and it’s available.
“It could be very challenging but, nonetheless, we need to push the boat out in terms of improving our stadia and hosting more and more of these competitions or elements of these competitions.”
The Tánaiste added: “I have had discussions with the Gaelic Athletic Association who are also interested in the Páirc Uí Chaoimh idea and have put that forward.”
Earlier this year, the Irish Government, through Shared Island funding, committed €50 million to a redeveloped Casement Park to "create a high-quality sports stadium which can also host matches as part of the Euro2028 tournament."
On Wednesday, Burns, who previously shared his skepticism that Casement Park would be completed in time, said the GAA was on board with the Cork venue.
“Obviously, we in the GAA would be very supportive of that,” he said on Wednesday at a Hurling Development Committee media briefing.
“I have to give credit to the Tanaiste Michéal Martin and the Minister for Sport because I only mentioned it to Michéal Martin three days ago. It had been suggested to me by Kevin O’Donovan from Cork two months ago just to plant the seed.
“We know that Páirc Uí Chaoimh is open for all business and we would recommend as many games as possible to be in it.
“It’s great how quickly they’ve come out of the blocks but at the end of the day that’s a decision that will be made by UEFA but if we were asked to nominate a stadium for the games that were to be in Casement Park that they would definitely be in Páirc Ui Chaoimh in one of the most vibrant cities in the world, Corcaigh.
“I can’t speak for UEFA – it’s up to them – but the fact that the Tánaiste and the Minister for Sport came out very quickly in favour of it yesterday is very positive news for us.
"At the end of the day, it’s a decision for UEFA to make but we know exactly where we stand on that.”
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