Will Casement Park host Euro 2028 games?

Walking outside the locked gates of Casement Park, it is hard to believe a major football tournament could be held at the stadium in less than four years.

Casement Park is one of 10 stadia included in the UK and Ireland's successful Euro 2028 bid, but work has yet to begin on the gaelic games stadium, which has been derelict since 2013.

The bid to redevelop the west Belfast stadium has been set back by a number of legal and financial challenges.

With every passing day, the prospect of the stadium hosting five matches at Euro 2028 fades away with the Belfast summer.

So what is the latest as the clock continues to tick down? BBC Sport NI takes a look.

Opened in 1953, Casement Park was the long-time home of gaelic games in Belfast and, along with Ulster rugby's Ravenhill ground, and Windsor Park, home of Northern Ireland's and Linfield's football teams, was earmarked for redevelopment at the start of the last decade, leaving it unoccupied since 2013.

However, while Ravenhill and Windsor Park have long been redeveloped, Casement remains in a state of disrepair after numerous financial, safety and legal hurdles.

The original plan for a 34,000 capacity stadium was successfully challenged by local residents in 2014. An adjusted proposal with a reduced capacity was put forward, and another objection by residents failed in 2022.

However, the cost of the project and, crucially, who is providing the funding, has meant work on the site has yet to begin.

The price of the project was originally estimated to be at £77.5m. Since then, the cost has skyrocketed and in March it was reported to have risen to more than £300m.

The Northern Ireland Executive has pledged to pay £62.5m towards the project and the Irish government has put forward £43m.

The GAA - the governing body of gaelic games which owns the ground - has said it will not fund any more than the £15m that it pledged to the project prior to the numerous delays.

In June, GAA president Jarlath Burns added he was "pessimistic" that Casement would be constructed in time to host Euro 2028 matches.

A Uefa delegation visited the site in February, but any serious building work has yet to take place as funding has not been finalised.

Casement Park is the sole stadium in Northern Ireland included in the bid for Euro 2028.

This is despite the home matches of Northern Ireland's football team taking place at the 18,500 capacity Windsor Park, which falls below Uefa's requirement for hosting matches at the tournament.

The prospect of Northern Ireland playing football at Casement Park, which is in a predominately nationalist area of Belfast, and away from Windsor Park has been divisive amongst the fan base.

In October, Gary McAllister, chairman of the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters Clubs, questioned the legacy that would be left by hosting the Euros at Casement Park, adding he felt it should be held at football stadia.

However, the Irish FA has previously said that increasing the capacity of Windsor Park, even temporarily, is not possible.

There has also been frustration amongst local football fans about the lack of funding for Irish League stadia and the releasing of funds which had been earmarked for more than a decade. After political instability in Northern Ireland, the reformed NI Executive said in May those funds would finally be released.

At Northern Ireland's match with Bulgaria at Windsor Park on Thursday, and a number of previous matches, there was a banner saying no to the developed stadium as a number of fans highlighted their objections to the project.

If Casement Park is not redeveloped in time for Euro 2028 and an alternative solution is not found, it also would leave Northern Ireland's place as a 'host nation' in question.

The noises coming out Westminster, both in the previous Conservative government and after Labour's election victory, is that Casement Park will be redeveloped.

Whether it is built in time for Euro 2028, however, is another issue altogether.

In July, Hilary Benn, secretary for state for Northern Ireland, said Casement Park “will be built”. However, when asked if that would be in time for the Euros, he could not give a definitive answer and said there were two issues.

"[The] first is cost and there’s a certain amount of money in the pot but it’s not enough," said Benn, adding that people should "bear with him".

“The second issue is we’re into extra time in trying to get it built in time for the Euros."

Gordon Lyons, Communities minister in the NI Executive at Stormont, has said that the decision is in the hands of the Labour government about how to proceed but his department still has "outstanding questions" over the "affordability and deliverability, and value for money" of the project.

With each passing day without an announcement about the project, the likelihood of Casement Park hosting matches at Euro 2028 diminishes.

Of the 10 stadiums included in the UK and Ireland's Euro 2028 bid, only Casement Park and Everton's new ground at Bramley Dock were in need of being constructed.

However, Everton are set to move into their new stadium ahead of the 2025-26 Premier League season, leaving Casement as the sole unknown of the bid.