Casement Park GAA stadium: Northern Ireland soccer fan group demands answers as preparation work begins for controversial stadium intended for UEFA Euro 2028 tournament

The Press Association reported that contractors began assessing planned ground works at Casement Park in west Belfast on Monday morning, ahead of the long-delayed redevelopment of the derelict GAA stadium.

The Irish Football Association said that it welcomes the development.

The maintenance and pre-enabling works will run until April, when the demolition of the existing terraces will begin.

The GAA is undertaking the initial phase of works amid major uncertainty over the funding of the project.

The redevelopment has also been hit by rising costs, with an original projected price tag of £77.5 million now believed to have spiralled well above £100 million - some even suggesting as much as £200m.

Gary McAllister, Chairman of the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters Clubs, told the News Letter that many questions about the cost of the project remain unanswered.

"There remain many questions about the updated cost and delivery of the redevelopment of Casement Park,” he said.

These include the need to find a replacement contractor after the approved builder withdrew, he said, as well as the “actual cost” of the project and how that will be funded.

"It would be helpful if the Department for Communities were to release a proper, detailed update on the Casement Park project, including details of the department's most recent 'Gateway Review', the actual costings for the project and the timeline in terms of the appointment of a contractor.

"Once those details are known, we believe that there should be a full and proper discussion around funding for sport before any decisions are made.”

Mr McAllister added that NI football has waited for more than a decade for the second tranche of investment that it was promised, adding that it is “essential” that football is treated “fairly and equitably” on funding decisions.

Casement is being built to host soccer matches in the UEFA Euro 2028 tournament. However it would need to be completed well in advance to be approved as a venue.

Northern Ireland football fans have widely protested that the investment in a GAA stadium for the competition in a strongly nationalist area of west Belfast is grossly unfair to local soccer.

Sinn Fein counters that the project is a flagship Executive and New Decade New Approach commitment and that both the Irish and British governments and the GAA have committed to the funding.

Last week Stormont's Minister for Communities revealed that a "considerable amount" of money needed to be found to complete the redevelopment.

The BBC asked Gordon Lyons if the costs could now exceed £200m. "The number isn't finalised but even if it was … for commercial reasons I can't go into the details of what that might be," he replied.

TUV deputy leader Ron McDowell said an estimated cost of £200 million was "unjustifiable" when Stormont is struggling to fund frontline services.

Several weeks ago Secretary of State Chris Heaton Harris said that if the costs remained as originally estimated it was "completely deliverable" but that if they go "exponentially out of control" it would be "a completely different matter".

The Department for Communities was invited to give an update on the status of the project.