Casement Park is one of the 12 stadiums listed in Ireland and the UK's joint Euro 2028 bid.
The park has been selected despite it not having been redeveloped yet. Work is due to begin on the stadium next year, pushing the capacity to 34,578.
Belfast's stadium got selected over Northern Ireland's Windsor Park due to the latter not meeting the seating threshold required by UEFA for European Championship matches. It only has a capacity of 18,500.
A day of massive excitement as the preliminary bid to host #EURO2028 in Britain & Ireland has been submitted, including games at Casement Park
Euro 2028 would attract visitors from across the world, helping to create jobs & boost our economy
Let’s work together to get it done! pic.twitter.com/xJigXszeMZ— Michelle O’Neill (@moneillsf) November 16, 2022
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The stadium is infamous for remaining derelict for many years as redevelopment plans stalled. Plans were first announced to give the stadium a new look in 2009 but the project was hampered by repeated objections from local residents. After years of disputes and tweaks to the proposed redevelopment, the green light was given in 2021 for work to commence on Antrim's GAA ground.
In 2019, Balls.ie visited the stadium and spoke to Antrim hurler Neil McManus about its shocking condition.
Today, @AontroimGAA should be playing Kildare in Casement Park. Instead, the game is on in a local club ground.
What should be the pride of the county is little more than a weed-infested field, surrounded by crumbling stands and busted floodlights. It’s time to #buildcasement. pic.twitter.com/RmGBgfxwkj— Balls.ie (@ballsdotie) June 22, 2019
Casement Park named in joint bid
Along with 12 stadiums across the UK, the Republic of Ireland has two listed. Both Dublin's Aviva Stadium and Croke Park are named on the bid.
The rest of the stadiums are scattered across the UK, with the majority in England. Scotland and Wales both have one each, Glasgow's Hampden Park and the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.
London has three, the London Stadium, Wembley and the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Goodison Park, the Etihad Stadium and Old Trafford represent the North West of England and the remaining stadiums are in the North East, St James' Park in Newcastle and the Stadium of Light in Sunderland.
The list of 14 stadiums is to be trimmed down to 10 in a final list to be submitted to UEFA in next April.
Casement Park has never hosted a football match before.
Take The World Class Tournament To New Heights
The FAI and the UK's various football associations released a statement promising to bring the tournament to new heights.
We are delighted that Government Partners of Ireland, the UK, Scotland, Wales and officials in Northern Ireland, support this bid. Together, we believe we can deliver a world-class tournament, and that hosting UEFA Euro 2028 will achieve a strong and sustainable legacy for football and the wider society, helping to drive economic growth in local communities.
Working with UEFA, our plan is to host a tournament that will be a catalyst for transformational grassroots football development - with a promise to share legacy initiatives with European National Associations to accelerate growth across the continent.
Ireland and the UK's track record of hosting successful major sporting events over many decades means we have the expertise and experience to take this world-class tournament to new heights.
The tournament will bring €361 million to the Irish economy according to the government. The experience of hosting the tournament will also prove valuable for future bids. Lack of experience hosting tournaments was one of the main reasons cited for Ireland's failed bid for the Rugby World Cup in 2023.
Turkey is the only rival bid so far for the hosting rights of Euro 2028.
It would be amazing to see Casement Park host a major international football fixture.
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