THE UFC SAY they’re keen to return to Ireland sooner rather than later, but MMA’s biggest promotion are still no closer to confirming a date.

The UFC’s Dave Allen told The42 this afternoon that although they’re still working hard to schedule their next Dublin event, there’s no guarantee they’ll be back in 2015.

The 3Arena (formerly the O2) played host to the UFC last July when Conor McGregor returned from injury to defeat Diego Brandao in the main event.

A stadium event had been rumoured for Croke Park or the Aviva, but the UFC confirmed last month that such a large show is now a longer-term goal — which has forced the promotion in to a re-think regarding their plans for Ireland this year.

“It’s no secret that last year’s UFC event in Dublin was a huge success. The dedication of the fans and the atmosphere in the city was truly something special,” said Dave Allen, the Dublin native who is the UFC’s Senior Vice President and General Manager of the EMEA region.

“So it goes without saying we would like to return to Dublin soon, hopefully in 2015. However, we are still working on dates and venues that match up with our overall global schedule and at this point cannot confirm exactly when the UFC will return to Ireland.”

The UFC has European events scheduled for Krakow, Berlin and Glasgow all inside the next six months, but it will be a major disappointment for Irish fans if the promotion doesn’t make it back to Ireland before the end of the year.

Unless they opt for a stadium, any UFC event in Ireland in the foreseeable future is also unlikely to feature Conor McGregor, given the extent to which the featherweight star’s pay-per-value in the US has risen.

Originally published at 17.05

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