Brooks’ return fulfils 15-year-old promise

Country music star Garth Brooks has chosen Ireland to celebrate his comeback after being off the road for 13 years.

The superstar will return to Croke Park in Dublin in July for two performance before his worldwide tour kicks off in the autumn.

The singer, originally from Oklahoma in the US, promised during his last trip to Ireland 15 years ago to return when the redevelopment of the stadium was complete.

Brooks, who was in Dublin yesterday, said he wanted to challenge himself, the band and crew, before going back on tour in the autumn.

“In ’97, we were lucky enough to play Croke Park; the stadium was under construction; 130,000-plus of some of the greatest fans in the world,” he said.

“I was quoted then as saying ‘when this stadium is finished, I would love… to come back and try to fill it again… this time to the brink’, and we’re back to do just that.”

Brooks is the number one selling solo artist in US history, shifting over 128m albums and receiving countless industry accolades.

He will play on Jul 25 and 26, and tickets, costing €65.45 each for both events, go on sale at Ticketmaster outlets at 9am on Jan 30.

Brooks retired in 2001, and moved back to Oklahoma to raise his children. He has made a few select performances, including in 2008 when he headlined President Barack Obama’s inauguration at the Lincoln Memorial.

That year he performed five concerts in two days with the money from 83,000 ticket sales going to efforts to prevent fire catastrophes. In Dec 2010, he played nine sold-out concerts to raise money for flood relief efforts in Tennessee.