Munster GAA conducting feasibility study for air dome 

Munster GAA chairman Tim Murphy said an air dome in the province would be "worth its weight in gold". It is expected a dome in Munster would exceed the €3.1m which the Connacht GAA air dome cost

The Connacht GAA airdome is expected to be operational in April following extensive storm damage last year. Pic: INPHO/James Crombie

Munster GAA is in the process of carrying out a feasibility study into the cost and potential location of a new dome, provincial chairman Tim Murphy has confirmed.

Following on from Munster CEO Kieran Leddy’s remarks in his recent annual report that the development of a dome is a strategic aim of the provincial body, Murphy has revealed that a feasibility study is currently underway.

“We are doing a feasibility study on it at the moment in relation to a) where it might be located and b) the costs associated with it,” the Munster GAA chairman told the Irish Examiner.

Over 650 games were played from September 2024 to March 2025 across primary, post-primary, and third-level in Munster. In that context, Murphy has said having an indoor arena in the province would be “worth its weight in gold”.

“You saw there at the weekend there were games called off and games moved because of the weather we are having. The volume of games we have in such a condensed period of time, and at the worst time of year from a weather point of view, would suggest we need to do something.

“With that trend going to continue, a dome would be worth its weight in gold to get games played in any sort of weather conditions. Plus, the technology in developing artificial pitches has moved on considerably as well, so it is not an issue any more for teams to play full games on artificial surfaces.” 

The Connacht GAA dome, opened at the beginning of this decade, came with a €3.1m price tag. While Munster GAA have not yet arrived at an approximate cost figure, Murphy said it will be well north of what their Connacht counterparts forked out.

“Depending on where it is, there'd be the land cost. And obviously there has been inflation since the Connacht dome was built, so it certainly would cost more, but what figure, we haven't got to that point yet.” 

While the construction of a Munster GAA dome is a “priority”, it is not a “short-term objective”. Focus at present is on delivering centre of excellence facilities in each of Munster’s six counties and having a fully floodlit artificial pitch within these centres. To this end, €1.2m has been allocated to each county.

Cork and Waterford are the two Munster counties without a centre of excellence. Cork GAA announced last month the ring-fencing of €1.75m to develop a centre of excellence.

“By the end of this year, we hope Kerry, Limerick, and Clare will have fully floodlit artificial pitches in play, with the other three to get done over the next couple of years. The dome is certainly a priority, but it is probably more a medium-to-long-term priority once the six counties are sorted.” 

The Connacht GAA air dome is expected to be operational in April following extensive storm damage last year. It's currently being manufactured in Slovenia and will be transported to Bekan later this month.