Name of the game: Eight other GAA stadia ripe for naming rights
Graphic image of the proposed redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast.
On WLR Wednesday, morning show host Damien Tiernan, indicated that Waterford GAA is well down the track with a company towards an agreement on naming rights for the redeveloped Walsh Park in the city. The first phase of work is finally complete and in use since last autumn and ultimately, the plan is to turn the stadium into a 14,000-capacity compact, spectator-friendly, venue. Government aid means that the €12m overall cost will be manageable, and a naming rights agreement would keep stadium debt to a minimum. Waterford, like a lot of GAA counties, has watched and learned from the Pairc Ui Chaoimh debacle.
: Kerry chairman Patrick O'Sullivan has already expressed Kerry's ambition to redevelop the old stadium into an all-seater 40,000 arena that is capable of hosting other sports and events in the county's tourism capital. The stadium is one of the most storied in the country and would surely be a prized asset for the corporate sector in terms of naming rights. As long-time sponsors of the county, Kerry Group would surely have first refusal on such a deal - and it seems unlikely they would allow another multi-national to muscle into what has been an all-but-exclusive arrangement since Denis Brosnan's time at the help of Kerry Co-Op. Tralee's Austin Stack Park may not have the same cachet but it too captures a lot of high-profile inter-county action under its floodlights.
: Delegates at the annual convention last November were told the Pearse Stadium floodlights are one of several infrastructure projects planned for 2024. A deal on naming rights won’t come in advance of the lights, which is awaiting Sports Capital funding. Galway have made it known they want to retain the ‘Pearse’ element of the stadium title. This week it emerged American multinational Dexcom, set to open a manufacturing plant in Athenry, will instead make a deal with Connacht Rugby for naming rights to The Sportsgrounds.
In December 2022, naming rights for Cusack Park were included in a list of targeted sources of revenue for Clare GAA. Clare GAA Head of Operations Deirdre Murphy told Convention that the capacity to generate recurring revenue had to be increased. This proposal was nothing new for the ground named after Michael Cusack. In 2021, finance committee chairman Chris Ryan told a meeting of Clare GAA that the same concept was under consideration. Long-serving Clare GAA secretary Pat Fitzgerald, who stepped down in 2022, repeatedly examined the possibility of selling naming rights at Cusack Park and the Centre of Excellence in Caherlohan.
: The last game played in Dr Hyde Park was the Connacht club final between St Brigid’s and Corofin. A visible feature of that game was the ongoing construction work and rubble in front of the main stand. This upgrade is expected to be completed early this year and was financed by a combination of fundraising, capital grants and borrowing. The sale of naming rights was not mentioned as a consideration. Last December the county was also granted planning permission to develop a Centre of Excellence, to be named after great midfielder Dermot Earley.
Louth are trying to build a brand new €25m stadium in Dundalk. As it's a fresh site with no ties to any particular ground names, selling the naming rights to offset some of the build costs is viewed as a no-brainer. Treasurer Aidan Berrill is on the record as stating that they have been 'in negotiations with four or five different people in relation to the naming rights. We would expect that to come in and we're quite positive about that'. New chairman Sean McClean has made it clear that building the stadium and making sure there is no 'overwhelming debt to be repaid' is a priority.
Redevelopment work on Pairc Tailteann has been flagged to begin in spring. Like Louth, funding has been sourced through the Immigrant Investor Programme. The government has also pumped in €8.5m. A new 5,000-capacity stand is a central part of the upgrading plans. According to Royal County sources, selling the naming rights is a possibility but hasn't yet been pursued. It's understood securing naming rights for the county's training centre at Dunganny is a more immediate target. The Tailteann name refers to the ancient Tailteann Games which used to be held in the area.
: The stadium is named after Irish patriot Sir Roger Casement. Officials must tread carefully for all sorts of reasons when considering potential naming rights deals for the planned new stadium on the west Belfast site. Casement Park project sponsor Stephen McGeehan stated just over 12 months ago that naming rights is 'something that we're not currently looking at'.
He said: "Tradition and history and heritage is very important to us. At the same time, times do move on. So if there was an offer in the future around naming rights, it'd be something that we would consider - but we'd very much consider it along with our partners in Antrim GAA and see what, if anything, might be possible in the future - but it's not something we're working on right now."
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