Casement Park: Fans will get behind football at GAA ground - NI Secretary

An artist's impression of the proposed Casement Park stadium, which would have a capacity of 34,500

The Northern Ireland secretary has said he is convinced football supporters will back Casement Park as a venue when Euro 2028 comes to the UK and Ireland.

Chris Heaton-Harris was responding to a letter from the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters' Clubs.

It suggested Windsor Park could be expanded to accommodate the games.

Mr Heaton-Harris said he believed Northern Ireland fans would back Casement once it had been built.

Windsor Park is the home of the Northern Ireland football team, but its all-seater capacity of 18,500 is well below the minimum 30,000 requirement for the tournament finals.

Instead a redeveloped Casement Park was put forward as Northern Ireland's sole venue for the UK and Ireland bid.

However, the stadium, a Gaelic games ground, is currently derelict and plans for its redevelopment have been hit by delays and spiralling costs.

Chris Heaton-Harris says he is not in a position to spell out funding for the tournament

"I am actually quite convinced that football fans in Northern Ireland will get behind Casement Park," Mr Heaton-Harris told BBC News NI.

"I'm pretty sure that when it's built it will sell out in the Euros and beyond."

He said having a "strong legacy plan" for the stadium was important and drew economic comparison to the venues built for the London Olympics in 2012.

"Whenever people see what can be done there I think we'll be in a good space," he added.

Casement should not be source of conflict - O'Neill

Gary McAllister, chairman of the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters' Clubs, said that fans have questions and concerns about the redevelopment of Casement Park.

"It's a football tournament using money that could be used for football to build a stadium for another sport and no tangible benefit for Northern Ireland football," he told BBC Sport NI.

Mr McAllister added: "I'm pretty sure that Northern Ireland fans are behind us on this."

"People are concerned about the lack of legacy for football, they have concerns about security and safety."

He said his group would continue to lobby the IFA and "other stakeholders".

The new stadium was originally due to cost £76m, but it is now expected to run to at least £110m.

It is not yet clear who will be paying for it, as Northern Ireland continues without a power-sharing government.

When Mr Heaton-Harris was asked when the government would spell out how much funding it is prepared to provide and when that would happen, he said he was not in a position to comment.

• Casement Park and the long road to Euro 2028

• Casement project has political and sporting significance

On Wednesday, the Irish Football Association (IFA) said there is "no route to fund an expansion" of Windsor Park to make it an alternative venue.

The proposed Casement Park stadium is set to accommodate 34,500 people, but there are concerns over whether it will be ready in time.

Its redevelopment has been hindered by a number of setbacks since first being suggested about a decade ago, including long-running legal challenges.

A number of concerns were raised in the letter from the Amalgamation of Official Northern Ireland Supporters' Clubs.

These included questions over government funding promised to local clubs for the redevelopment of stadia more than a decade ago, which has not been distributed.

The organisation also suggested Northern Ireland fans may not be safe travelling to a venue in west Belfast, which has a predominantly nationalist population.

It said there would be implications for the legacy of the sport if Euro 2028 games were played at Casement Park and questioned the IFA's "plan-B" should the new stadium not be ready in time for the event.

This isn't just a sporting or stadium story - it's a political story

Analysis by Mark Simpson, BBC News NI correspondent

There is a race against time going on, a race to get Casement built on time, to get the money to build it and also to try get the fans on board.

Patrick Nelson's language is significant. He wasn't saying to the fans: "I hear you, I feel your pain, we've all got to grin and bear this."

He was on the front foot saying: "We don't have the money to pay for expansion at Windsor Park, we have to go to Casement and you have to get on board."

The elephant in the room is that this isn't just a sporting story, a stadium story - it's a political story.

It's been a political football for many, many years and Patrick Nelson doesn't ignore that saying: "Given that people here on a journey after a difficult past it would be a shame if we missed this opportunity for better engagement between the communities. This is a pivotal moment for football and society."

I've spoken to fans at matches and they don't all feel the same. Some don't love the idea of going to Casement Park but say if Northern Ireland are playing they'll be there. Some fans say they will not go, no matter the circumstances and others are in the Patrick Nelson camp of "for the greater good, let's back this".

I daresay we'll be back at Windsor Park on Monday night to ask fans what they think of this latest development.