NIFL CEO Gerard Lawlor insists local football clubs can't be forgotten as UK Government provides £50million for Casement Park redevelopment

Announcing her Spending Review on Wednesday, Chancellor Rachel Reeves confirmed a contribution of £50million “to support the Northern Ireland Executive to redevelop the Casement Park stadium”.

Rebuilding the West Belfast stadium is estimated to cost around £260m with £120m in place from the Stormont Executive, Irish Government and the GAA – the latest funding from Reeves leaves the project around £90m short of what is required.

Casement Park, which has been closed since 2013, was proposed to host fixtures at the upcoming 2028 UEFA European Championships with an increased capacity of 34,500 after redevelopment, but that plan was shelved last year due to rising costs.

While Casement Park’s future remains to be determined with multiple stakeholders set for discussions over bridging the financial gap, Irish League clubs are still waiting on the £36.2m investment which was originally promised to improve facilities in 2011.

In January, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons launched The Northern Ireland Football Fund (TNIFF) Performance Programme, inviting clubs from across the Irish League pyramid to apply for their slice of the money.

However, the £36.2m is vastly short of the amount required to undertake important improvements across all clubs and while Lawlor views a redeveloped Casement Park as “a major asset”, he says football must not be left behind.

"So today marks the long-awaited spending review, a moment many have been anticipating, though the reasoning behind some actions, focusing & decisions remains difficult to understand,” Lawlor posted on social media. “One critical issue continues to be consistently underreported, misunderstood, or ignored by both politicians and the media: The original agreement on sports infrastructure investment in Northern Ireland was for equal funding for football and the GAA, approximately £70 million each.

“Football’s share was split between the National Stadium at Windsor Park and Irish League/Domestic Grounds.

"While Windsor Park has been redeveloped, just like Casement Park, the investment promised to Irish League clubs has never been delivered often never mentioned or overlooked by many.

“As an Antrim man, I’d be genuinely delighted to see a newly built Casement Park, it would be a major asset for the county & community.

"But there’s no way we can sit back and allow our local football clubs to be forgotten.

"This isn’t just about sport, it’s about fairness, parity, and standing by commitments made to all communities & sports.”