Burns 'pessimistic' over Casement hosting Euro 2028

GAA president Jarlath Burns believes it is unlikely that the redevelopment of Casement Park will be completed in time to stage Euro 2028 games.

The project has been plagued by delays and Northern Ireland secretary of state Chris Heaton-Harris said in April that the UK government is still "working to figure out" the cost of building the stadium in west Belfast.

A month later prime minister Rishi Sunak insisted the government will make a “significant contribution” to the scheme.

The original cost a decade ago was estimated to be £77.5m but Heaton-Harris suggested in March it could now be about £308m.

“It’s not looking as if we’re going to get the Euros,” Burns told the Belfast Telegraph.

He expects the redevelopment of Casement Park will go ahead but not to the required specification to meet Uefa standards for staging Euro 2028 fixtures.

He added: “Having attended the final of the Europa League in the Aviva, I can see what Uefa brings to a stadium and to an event. West Belfast deserves that and we’re not getting it. It’s just a great pity because the carrot was dangled in front of us and then it was taken away.

“And actually the big loser here is going to be the game of soccer in Northern Ireland society and the economy. The Department for the Economy was waiting to weigh in with all sorts of other things that were going to come from there. It’s just a pity. But we’re still very hopeful and expectant that we’re going to get the funds to make a provincial stadium where we can play our Ulster finals.”

Five games have been earmarked for Casement Park but Burns anticipates that meeting Uefa timelines is going to be difficult.

“The whole project is being run by the Strategic Investment Board and they have been telling us that in order to get the tenders in and to find out what it’s going to cost, it’s going to take six weeks - and then there’s going to have to be another four weeks for appeals to that.

"We’re working away, we’re clearing the site and that. But at the end of the day, it’s UEFA and their timelines are important. It has to be up and running for almost a year before you can actually say that it’s properly functional, so I’m now pessimistic that the Euros will be played in Casement Park."

BBC Sport NI has contacted the Irish Football Association for comment.