The journey to Northern Ireland's national training centre

It has been mooted for many years but finally, a National Training Centre [NCT] for Northern Ireland looks set to become a reality.

The Irish FA's long-held ambition of building a facility will be realised on Wednesday with the announcement that a site located next to the Galgorm Resort, just outside Ballymena, will be its location.

It is anticipated the centre will consist of elite pitches and facilities for men's, women's and youth teams, with planning permission being requested to proceed with plans for development at the County Antrim venue.

Before the official reveal of details of the venture, BBC Sport NI examines how we reached this point and what impact the construction of the facility may have on football in Northern Ireland.

How long has a NTC been in the offing and why?

Back in June 2011, IFA chief executive Patrick Nelson articulated an 'on-the-record' goal on behalf of the governing body to build a NTC for the improvement of the game in Northern Ireland.

His comments were recorded in a response to questions after an address to the Committee for Culture, Arts and Leisure at the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Nelson explained the organisation's vision that the permanent structure would be a centre which could be used by all Northern Ireland's international teams and would provide them with "the best facilities, the best sports science and the best diet and nutrition advice" as they sought to provide optimum preparation to help teams qualify for major tournaments.

At the time, he also floated the idea that a separate regional training facility could be built outside Belfast as "a lot of things tended to be Belfast-based".

In a nutshell, the IFA have been seeking to match increased levels of professionalism and player development across their jurisdiction with a permanent facility.

The men's senior team has prepared for games at a number of locations in recent years, including training in Manchester before matches.

The ultimate goal remains to give squads the best opportunities to regularly emulate the feats of the men's national team in qualifying for Euro 2016 and the women's team in reaching the finals of their European championships in 2021.

Northern Ireland training sessions could soon be held at the new training centre

What has the IFA said since then?

The ambition to build a NTC has been a stated priority of the IFA for many years and formed a central part of the organisation's strategic plans in both 2017 and 2022.

The five-year strategy published in June 2017 saw the potential addition of a top-class facility as a way to build on Euro 2016 qualification and the construction of the new National Stadium at Windsor Park.

At that stage, the ambition was to build a state-of-the-art hub and training facility similar to the English FA's St George's Park, preferably within three years.

This would act as centre of excellence for every Northern Ireland team and could include elements such as medical facilities, a physiotherapy clinic and a gym.

The 2022 edition of the IFA's corporate strategy roadmap reaffirmed its commitment to a world-class standard NTC as a vital component of the progression of the game.

The Association's president Conrad Kirkwood told BBC Sport NI in January of that year that he was optimistic funding would soon materialise and he may have news to announce in relation to a facility later in 2022.

IFA technical director Aaron Hughes has also emphasised a national training centre as one of his priorities.

The 112-times capped international was involved in discussions on the subject while in a part-time consultancy role before occupying his present position, and in an interview with BBC Sport NI in December 2022 highlighted the possible benefits.

"It's how we build a culture and create that level of excellence. Not just the facility but the feeling it creates," he explained.

"It brings everyone together, everyone within that has an understanding of why they come to work and what they're working for. There's so much more to a National Training Centre than just pitches. That's why it would be one of our key priorities."

Michael O'Neill was part of an Irish FA group that inspected various locations in 2019

How have things moved on?

Among the developments in recent years has been the introduction of the IFA's pathway for young elite players, with their Club NI programme evolving into the JD National Performance Programme and the JD Irish FA Academy, based at the University of Ulster's Jordanstown campus, to nurture young talent and help inspire the next generation of young stars.

Meanwhile attempts to access funding and a suitable site have continued.

Previously approximately £3m of government funding was understood to have been earmarked for a new NTC from a Sub-Regional Stadia Programme for Football of £36.2m in total.

That pot has now been renamed as the Northern Ireland Football Fund and it is expected that despite the IFA linking up with a private concern for the NTC, some investment from the Northern Ireland Assembly will still be forthcoming for the project.

When launching the NI Football Fund in May 2024, Communities Minister Gordon Lyons explained that the creation of a NTC formed one of three strands which the fund would support and said that he was "looking forward to fostering our footballing stars of the future with the creation of a National Training Centre".

He reassured doubters by saying that "work is progressing at pace on a NTC for Football to host elite training for our national men's, women's and youth teams and to drive skills for people involved at all levels of the game."

Controversies along the way

In September 2023, Northern Ireland's record men's goalscorer David Healy was vocal in his criticism of the IFA for failing to supply the right infrastructure and support to build on participation in the Euro 2016 finals.

His comments were made in his role as a television pundit after the team had suffered a fifth defeat in a row in their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign - a 1-0 defeat to Kazakhstan.

In response, the IFA said that "extensive research" was being put into creating "a bespoke high quality facility" and "a second home for Northern Ireland football to complement the excellent venue at the National Stadium at Windsor Park".

"The Irish FA will make a significant investment into the facility and anticipates utilising capital funding from external sources, particularly those that that are designed to support national associations in these types of strategic infrastructure projects," read the IFA's statement.

In January 2025, the IFA was the subject of criticism from Antrim and Newtownabbey Borough Council after it ruled out basing its new centre at a site in the Birch Hill Road area of Antrim.

A spokesperson for the IFA told BBC News NI: "The council were clear at all times that Birch Hill Road was under strategic consideration along with several other locations, and that exploratory discussions about the site were at preliminary stages.

"No formal arrangements were ever agreed and we maintain an excellent relationship with Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council."