THE FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION OF Ireland have tonight announced they will not be proceeding with plans to develop a Centre of Excellence in Glanmire, Cork. 

The plans to develop the facility in Glanmire were first formulated in 2016, but, seven years on, the FAI say they won’t proceed with the plans as “it no longer represents the greatest return on investment for the parties involved.” 

In 2016, the FAI and Foras – the supporters group who owned Cork City at the time – struck a deal with Cork City Council on the 99-year lease of a 30-acre site in Glanmire, which they intended to develop into a Centre of Excellence to serve the Munster region. It was also envisaged that the venue would be used as a training base by Cork City FC. 

“This agreement is a very positive development for football in Munster”, said the then-FAI CEO, John Delaney, when the deal was announced. “Work will now turn towards developing the site for the benefit of the game regionally and nationally in the coming years.”

The original proposals included the development of  four full-sized turf pitches, one full-sized artificial pitch, six smaller artificial pitches, two smaller turf pitches along with a gym, dressing rooms, physiotherapy room, medical room, cafeteria, kitchen, administration offices, and meeting room for the local community. 

The plans were met by local opposition later in 2016, with some locals arguing the area did not have the surrounding infrastructure to deal with a development of this size. 

The cost of the project was estimated at between €12 and €15 million, and was initially intended to be completed by the 2020 European Championships, for which Ireland had co-hosting privileges before they were removed owing to pandemic restrictions. 

The project was beset by delays, however, with State funding to the FAI suspended in 2019 amid the scandals that emerged following John Delaney’s exit from the organisation. 

The State provisionally awarded €2 million to the project under the Large Scale Infrastructure Project at the start of 2020. 

Only in 2021 did the FAI formally submit a planning application for the project. Little headway was made after that, however, and in March of this year, local TD Pádraig O’Sullivan raised the issue in the Dáil, lamenting a “complete lack of progress.” 

Now the FAI have announced they are shelving the plans.

“The Football Association of Ireland can confirm that after careful consideration, our Board and the Executive, has taken the decision not to proceed with the Glanmire project as first proposed in 2015.

“As part of a wider review of football facilities across the country, it is the Board’s view that the original proposal no longer represents the greatest return on investment for the parties involved.

“The FAI, however, looks forward to working with Cork County Council to ensure the site can still benefit the local football community and we have engaged with the Department to review other options to retain the broader commitment to football in both Cork and Munster.”