Derry City Football Club is eagerly looking forward to securing a portion of the £36.2m stadium funding from Stormont, as indicated by its CEO Sean Barrett. The funding, announced by Communities Minister Gordon Lyons, is designated for the development of stadia across Northern Ireland and has remained unchanged for over a decade.
The Northern Ireland Football Fund, previously known as the sub-regional stadia programme for soccer, is anticipated to allocate a significant portion of the money to clubs in the Northern Ireland Football League (NIFL). This has sparked hope for financial assistance among teams such as Glentoran, Cliftonville, and Coleraine.
Derry City FC, a team that has been participating in the top tier of the Republic of Ireland’s football league since 1985, is “in the mix” for a share of the funding, according to Chief Executive Sean Barrett. He expressed confidence that this funding would contribute to the fulfillment of their redevelopment plans at the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium.
The initial phase of the redevelopment project at the Brandywell, valued at £7m, commenced in 2018 with the construction of a new stand. However, the subsequent phase, despite obtaining planning permission, is yet to be realized. The planned future enhancements at the stadium involve increasing the overall capacity and introducing a safe-standing covered terrace behind one of the goals, along with the demolition of part of the Southend Stand.
With Derry City as the primary tenants of the council-owned facility, Institute FC, a NIFL championship side, also holds its home matches at the ground. Institute was compelled to vacate its former grounds, the Riverside Stadium, due to extensive flood damage in 2017, and ongoing issues with Japanese Knotweed. The club has aspirations of relocating to a new site in the Waterside area of the city at a later time.
The £36.2m stadium funding, set to be distributed through an application process, is scheduled to be disbursed from April next year. Communities Minister Gordon Lyons believes that this funding presents an unprecedented opportunity to revolutionize football in Northern Ireland. Meanwhile, Sean Barrett revealed that the club has already prepared a business case for funding and remains confident based on their discussions. He also emphasized the club’s entitlement to the funding, stressing that they are a Northern Ireland-based club that contributes to local employment and tax revenue.
Sean Barrett’s interview with BBC Radio Foyle further underscored his confidence in Derry City FC’s chances of securing their “slice of the cake” from the stadium funding. He expressed that as a club rooted in the region and making a positive impact within the community, there should be no question regarding their eligibility for the funding.