Casement Park: Work on the stadium will begin in late January

Initial pre-enablement work included tidying up the site including removing floodlights, carrying out basic site investigations and implementing security.

It preceded the visit of UEFA officials on 28 February 2024, when Casement Park was still a candidate to host the UEFA Euro 2028.

However, with the UK government confirming in September that year that it would not make up the shortfall in funding to make the stadium ready by the summer 2027 deadline, Belfast was withdrawn as host city.

Initial plans to build a 38,000-seater stadium, expected to cost £78.5 million, were approved in 2013, but were quashed by judicial review the following year.

The redesign has brought the size down to 34,500 with those plans approved in 2021, but with no significant work yet to start, planning permission is set to expire in July.

Costs have risen significantly, with estimates of £260m given by the GAA last year, although hosting the European Championships would have risen further in order to meet UEFA’s requirements.

Currently, £170.5 million has been pledged for the redevelopment between the Northern Ireland Executive (£62.5 million), the GAA (£15 million), the UK Government (£50 million) and the Irish Government (approximately £42 million).

In January, Northern Ireland Finance Minister John O’Dowd proposed an additional £46 million in funding for the project to reflect inflation, but his draft multi-year budget has not been approved by other executive parties.

Ulster GAA Secretary Brian McAvoy confirmed in his annual report that “the principle of a phased delivery of the stadium has been accepted” which would help get the project moving before planning is finished and allow time to obtain any required funding.