GAA DIRECTOR GENERAL Páraic Duffy says any upgrades of his organisation’s stadiums with a view to being part of Ireland’s 2023 Rugby World Cup bid will need to be funded by the government.
The Castleblaney native, who took over his role with the GAA in 2008, underlined that it is very likely that six stadiums will be used as part of the IRFU bid. Deciding exactly which grounds is out of Duffy’s hands.
Whichever stadiums are selected to be part of the bid, the GAA chief stresses that any finance for the necessary improvements will have to come from the Irish state.
“We made it clear from the beginning that the funding would need to come from the government for upgrades. I don’t think the funding requirements would be massive. You’re talking about Croke Park and then you’d have a brand new, redeveloped Páirc Uí Chaoimh and a brand new, redeveloped Casement Park.
“We certainly wouldn’t have a problem finding three more stadiums. The areas to upgrade I would feel would be scoreboards, modern communications systems, that sort of stuff. They are the sort of stuff which will benefit our stadia. It is something we expect largely the government to fund.
“The benefits for the country economically are absolutely enormous.”
The three stadiums mentioned by Duffy above look certain to be included in the bid, although debate remains over the identity of the three others. Duffy is at least confident in those numbers.
“I think the figure will probably be around six. In terms of what stadia they are, that’s not for us to decide. We’re willing to make our stadia available. My understanding is that it will be six.
We would have discussions with them [the IRFU] on that. In fairness to the IRFU, the discussions we’ve had so far have been on that basis. I’d see no issue there.”
Gaelic games’ governing body has so far given its “overwhelming support” to the IRFU’s request to use GAA grounds in the Rugby World Cup bid, according to Duffy’s latest annual report. The same document reiterates that the GAA has made it clear that any “upgrades must be funded, in large part, by government.”
The report also points out that if the bid to host RWC2023 is successful, then a “long-term view will need to be taken of any proposed improvements at the selected GAA grounds to ensure that they meet both our needs and the likely requirements of the World Cup Organising Committee.”
- Additional reporting by Fintan O’Toole
