They'll move the Belfast games to England or Scotland more likely. What the FAI should be making clear is NI shouldn't be guaranteed one of the automatic spots if they're unable to host games. Should only get one if there's a spare one going.
Well that too, but it's supposed to be a British and Irish tournament. There are currently 11 matches (out of 51) scheduled to be played in Ireland so you can justify it as a tournament that is being genuinely hosted across the two islands. Any reduction of that shouldn't be accepted by the government, if Belfast can't host the games they need to be moved to Dublin and not to Britain.
Keane O'Shea Given Best Smallbone
They're not going to allow two stadia in Dublin used though.
https://kesslereffect.bandcamp.com/album/kepler - New music. It's not that bad.
Technically it's a UK and Ireland bid. So they'll be moving it from one part of the UK to another. Think any of the GAA will be ****e for matches and as Nigel said their not gonna use two stadiums in Dublin.Originally Posted by Eirambler
Don't know if it's possible for them to use one stadium for two groups or not but then it's the logistics of having fans of 8 teams in one city. Unless they fancy giving match going fans free travel like the other night. Might allow them stay in other parts of Ireland and travel in but it's gonna be less hassle to use Edinburgh or some other English city that wasn't picked.
They wouldn't have had Croker on the initial shortlist if two stadiums in Dublin was out of the question. Most people attending from outside Ireland will just fly in and out anyway with a one or maybe two night stay. A good chunk of attendees will be Irish residents who will day trip. Would just be a question of sensible scheduling. The government absolutely needs to be putting it's hand up for these games now that it's obvious Casement isn't happening.
Keane O'Shea Given Best Smallbone
Re. 'Eirambler', sorry but technically it is not a "British and Irish tournament", it is a five Association tournament. And if one Association is unable to host a Group, then one of the other four will be selected to do so.
On which point, in reality, this is an English (FA) bid, since not only are they providing the bulk of the hosting as it is, but they could host the whole thing tomorrow on their own. (None of the other four could do so individually, nor even collectively, without The FA.)
Furthermore, the only reason The FA roped in the other four was due to the politics (small "p") of UEFA, where England are disliked/feared somewhat by the rest, and so needed the four extra Association votes, plus their lobbying etc. (Also helped by the fact that all future tournaments will have to be shared, unless they franchise it out to Saudi Arabia!)
Impossible technically (UEFA Rules) and practically, complete non-starter.
As for the suggestion of bringing in Croke Park, to allow Dublin to host two groups, that too is contrary to UEFA rules, procedure and precedent. And never mind that Glasgow, with 3 x 50k football stadia of their own and a considerably greater footballing heritage than Dublin would be up in arms, there's also London to consider.
For that city isn't being permitted to host two Groups, just the one at Tottenham, with Wembley only being used for knockout games up to the Final. And that for a city with twice the population of ROI alone; 3 x PL stadia of 60k capacity, plus 90k Wenbley and 80k Twickenham*; five international airports and a direct rail link to continental Europe; many more European expatriates living in the city; plus x10(?) the number of hotel rooms in Dublin.
Meanwhile, England still has a number of other large cities with perfectly adequate, bespoke football stadia which aren't being used, reflecting that no other country in the world has nearly so broad and deep a footballing culture and heritage as England - even if the NT itself is usually pretty crap! Assuming Casement doesn't make the cut (increasingly likely I'd say), the IFA Group
will be relocated to somewhere in England, which is exactly as it should be (imo).
* - I mention Twickenham, since UEFA allocates the Euro's to hosts, and hosting cities, in order to provide a legacy to the game in the selected countries - new/updated stadia, government investment, infrastructure etc. Naturally this means favouring football stadia wherever possible, rather than those of other sports like Rugby or GAA.
GAA President isn't hopeful Casement will be ready: https://www.rte.ie/sport/football/20...for-euro-2028/
Interesting framing in that article:It doesn't say on what basis it "may" be revisited. Probably just the author's opinion.The Aviva Stadium would be the only Irish stadium as part of Euro 2028, unless Croke Park replaces it.
That venue, as well as the Stadium of Light in Sunderland, West Ham's London Stadium and Old Trafford in Manchester were part of the initial proposals that didn't make the final cut.
That decision may now be revisited.
Author of Never Felt Better (History, Film Reviews).
Ita difficult to believe there is no other suitable stadium in the north.
If we get allocated other one. I think it should be outside of Dublin if possible. Cork would be ideal if the use of the GAA stadium is a runner
Time to redirect that Irish Government €50m towards tidying up Croker as an alternative venue for the games. Justify it as part of the "shared Ireland fund" by saying we're doing our bit to spare the north's blushes by keeping the games on the island to mitigate their inability to build a decent capacity stadium.
Keane O'Shea Given Best Smallbone
Can we nominate a stadium/city that wasn't in the original bid?
(I don't see us getting a second ground out of it though)
The FAI are not gonna get the IFAs games. PUC wasn't even up to standard for the RWC I believe so what makes some think it's a viable option for UEFA. UEFA probably have no issues with Croker since even without the terrace you've still got 60K seats I believe. If Casement can't be used those games are going nowhere but back to England.
I'd suspect Sunderland would get the nod if it came to it. They wouldn't give London (West Ham) a third host stadium surely, and Old Trafford is getting a lot of criticism recently for being rundown.
Surely in this instance it's only fair for the residents of the north that those games should be relocated to the originally shortlisted stadium that's most easily accessible to residents of that area. That stadium of course is Croke Park. That should supersede any concerns over having a second stadium in Dublin. Particularly if the alternative was somewhere like Sunderland, where the stadium is only 12 miles from St James Park in Newcastle.
Last edited by Eirambler; 12/06/2024 at 2:37 PM.
Keane O'Shea Given Best Smallbone
Why on earth were both Lansdowne and Croker both on the shortlist if they couldn't both host? It just doesn't make any sense
Nothing makes sense. It’s all a charade. Casement is being built to GAA specifications. Even if its built in time, it would need an immediate overhaul to host games. Basically its being built to where PuC currently is.
The plan was to build it to UEFA specs first, then change it to GAA spec (including replacing a lot of seating with terracing).
Not sure it will ever get done now, and certainly not to the standards of international sports organisations if it does go ahead.
Keane O'Shea Given Best Smallbone
I think when the original list was drafted they were still looking at a 32 team Euros. Which would have required multiple stadiums in some cities. However the point still stands, if they were potentially going to be OK with it for a 32 team Euros there shouldn't be any reason why they can't accept it now to ensure the games are kept in Ireland.
Keane O'Shea Given Best Smallbone
That was/ is a "suggestion" and not included in the actual planning application for the stadium? Possibly could mean a redraw and a new planning application which would add an extra lump on top of an already excessive cost.
i do think either a 16 or 32 team euros would be far better. this 24 team point, where only 8 teams are knocked out is pretty stupid.
same with the world cup and it's 40 team plans with 48 teams, initially 16 groups of 3 (where 2 teams qualify), now 12 groups of 4, with 8 3rd place teams going through... just go 32 or 64 teams...
A 32 team Euros seems a bit excessive though, doesn't it?
I'm sure it'll happen at some stage though, plus a 64-team World Cup. Money talks after all...
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