Cork City Council to offer its assistance in bringing Euro 2028 to Cork
A drone picture of Páirc Uí Chaoimh in Ballintemple, Cork. Picture Dan Linehan
Cork City Council is to write to UEFA and the FAI to offer its assistance in helping to bring Euro 2028 Leeside.
Labour Party Councillor Peter Horgan tabled a motion at this week's council meeting proposing the council write to the two bodies to “outline the benefits that hosting Euro 2028 in Cork would bring to the competition and offer as much assistance as possible to ensure its success.”
Mr Horgan said that he has been in conversation with a number of groups, saying “the FAI are in favour, the GAA are in favour, the Tánaiste and the Minister for Sport are in favour, I’ve spoken to business leaders in the city too, so I want to keep the pressure on.”
It comes as Tánaiste Micheál Martin said last month that SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh is being “seriously looked at” as a potential venue for Euro 2028 games, originally planned for Casement Park in Belfast, after the UK government announced it would not be providing funding to rebuild it in time for the 2028 championship.
Mr Horgan’s motion was unanimously agreed upon, gaining support from across party lines, including from Sinn Fein’s Kenneth Collins who mentioned he had previously opposed the usage of GAA stadiums for non-GAA sport.
Mr Horgan told
He added “the FAI are waiting for UEFA, so we are awaiting an update from them, that seems to be the final brick.”
He acknowledged that the stadium could require work, but said “the Tánaiste and the Minister for Sport wouldn’t have come out if they didn’t think it could happen.
“We’ve seen the government pony up funding for places like Adare for the Ryder Cup, and I would hope any changes could be permanent – if you get some Euro 2028 games, there’s no telling what might happen, it could open us up to other hosting opportunities which would boost the profile of Cork even more.”
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