Lansdowne Road to host 2011 Uefa Cup Final?

D.S.

Apologies if this has been already been discussed but just spotted this.

http://www.sbpost.ie/post/pages/p/story.aspx-qqqt=IRELAND-qqqm=news-qqqid=39036-qqqx=1.asp

Decision, supposedly, expected from Uefa this week and Lansdowne Road may be awarded 2011 Uefa Cup Final. Would be a great event to have here!

Also, SBP reporting that that Aviva won the naming rights for the stadium so it will be known as the Aviva Stadium. It's a 10 year deal with a possible extension..

Stadium coming along nicely. Regardless of complaints regarding capacity, they are doing a first class job..

everdead.ie

ya saw that be great for the stadium and tthe country we should def try to get champions league final final in croke park i read it is one of a very few stadiums that lives up to all the uefa regulations for hosting the final.

pablomakaveli

everdead.ie wrote: »

ya saw that be great for the stadium and tthe country we should def try to get champions league final final in croke park i read it is one of a very few stadiums that lives up to all the uefa regulations for hosting the final.

The GAA won't allow it though. I think some UEFA officials when visiting Croke Park inquired about hosting a Champions League final there and were told No.

StickyMcGinty

everdead.ie wrote: »

ya saw that be great for the stadium and tthe country we should def try to get champions league final final in croke park i read it is one of a very few stadiums that lives up to all the uefa regulations for hosting the final.

how could it with the hill still being terraced? Criteria 1 of the Uefa 'elite' stadium classification:

• Stadiums must be all seated and have a minimum capacity of 30,000

redout

StickyMcGinty wrote: »

how could it with the hill still being terraced? Criteria 1 of the Uefa 'elite' stadium classification:

• Stadiums must be all seated and have a minimum capacity of 30,000

They can put in temp seating on the hill. In Germany most grounds have a terrace which is replaced for european games.

zAbbo

Temp seats have been in for all International soccer games so far in Croke Park, brings capacity down to mid 70k iir

SectionF

pablomakaveli wrote: »

The GAA won't allow it though. I think some UEFA officials when visiting Croke Park inquired about hosting a Champions League final there and were told No.

Link?

Zebra3

StickyMcGinty wrote: »

how could it with the hill still being terraced? Criteria 1 of the Uefa 'elite' stadium classification:

• Stadiums must be all seated and have a minimum capacity of 30,000

That's only for the UEFA Cup final (which imo is far too low), for a CL final the stadium needs to be much bigger. I think even Lansdowne is too small for a CL final.

bigstar

D.S. wrote: »

Apologies if this has been already been discussed but just spotted this.

http://www.sbpost.ie/post/pages/p/story.aspx-qqqt=IRELAND-qqqm=news-qqqid=39036-qqqx=1.asp

Also, SBP reporting that that Aviva won the naming rights for the stadium so it will be known as the Aviva Stadium. It's a 10 year deal with a possible extension..

aviva seriously, are they going to rename the street aviva road too.

ctrl-alt-delete

bigstar wrote: »

aviva seriously, are they going to rename the street aviva road too.

No i wouldn't say so. They will only get rights to the stadium :rolleyes:

CantGetNoSleep

SectionF wrote: »

Link?

Hate that sh1t on this forum, not everything is heard on the internet with a link to it, maybe someone told him

redout

zAbbo wrote: »

Temp seats have been in for all International soccer games so far in Croke Park, brings capacity down to mid 70k iir

Thats not true. I was at an Ireland game in 2008 cant remember which one cause I was at most of them and there was no seats in the hill and it was a qualifier I think. Might have been Cyprus although not 100% anyway there was no seats in the hill and it was closed.


EDIT: Just at to viewing a pic of that match. The hill did have seats but for some reason only the small corner of the hill was open and the the majority of it was closed off.

Benedict XVI

redout wrote: »

Thats not true. I was at an Ireland game in 2008 cant remember which one cause I was at most of them and there was no seats in the hill and it was a qualifier I think. Might have been Cyprus although not 100% anyway there was no seats in the hill and it was closed.

Yes they use temporary seats on the hill.
They had them for both the Wales and Slovakia games in 2007, and many more qualifiers I would expect.

Anyway good luck to Lansdowne on it's bid for a Uefa Cup final.

pablomakaveli

SectionF wrote: »

Link?

Here ya go. Best i could find.

http://www.independent.ie/sport/gaelic-football/champions-league-final-rating-for-fivestar-croker-109122.html

egan007

SectionF wrote: »

Link?

[url]www.google.com:D[/url]

Deedsie

pablomakaveli wrote: »

The GAA won't allow it though. I think some UEFA officials when visiting Croke Park inquired about hosting a Champions League final there and were told No.

Was that when the visited considering an Ireland Scotland bid for Euro 2008? Thats a long while back now in fairness. Alot has changed since then. It could at the very least be looked at again.

pablomakaveli

Deedsie wrote: »

Was that when the visited considering an Ireland Scotland bid for Euro 2008? Thats a long while back now in fairness. Alot has changed since then. It could at the very least be looked at again.

No i think it happened before the first soccer match was played in Croke park.

Quint

There's plenty of 5 star stadiums in europe without having to resort to Croker.

SectionF

CantGetNoSleep wrote: »

Hate that sh1t on this forum, not everything is heard on the internet with a link to it, maybe someone told him

Uptight! You should get some sleep...

ArmaniJeanss

everdead.ie wrote: »

ya saw that be great for the stadium and tthe country we should def try to get champions league final final in croke park i read it is one of a very few stadiums that lives up to all the uefa regulations for hosting the final.

Eh, they already have a rota of about 12 stadiums that they move the final between, with more grounds queueing up to put on that rota, so its hardly one of 'a few'.

pablomakaveli wrote: »

The GAA won't allow it though. I think some UEFA officials when visiting Croke Park inquired about hosting a Champions League final there and were told No.

This is almost certainly rubbish (or at best it was an off-the-cuff comment by an official). Any application to host a final can only be made by a countries governing body (our beloved FAI) and there isnt a snowballs chance they would apply to host a CL final using a GAA ground.

Tom65

The GAA would make an absolute fortune off having a Champions League final in Croker. They'd be silly not to take it if offered.


I remember hearing a few years ago that the new Lansdowne would get the UEFA Cup final the year it's finish. I think it'll be great, though hopefully Rangers won't make to the final that year; then again, they have to come through on their promise to "follow" them to Dublin too :P

SectionF

Tom65 wrote: »

The GAA would make an absolute fortune off having a Champions League final in Croker. They'd be silly not to take it if offered.

It's a win-win. They either allow it or they make complete fools of themselves on a European stage.

I remember hearing a few years ago that the new Lansdowne would get the UEFA Cup final the year it's finish. I think it'll be great, though hopefully Rangers won't make to the final that year; then again, they have to come through on their promise to "follow" them to Dublin too

Well they've done that before

Quint

I'd love if rangers got to the final myself!

Chardee MacDennis

i have heard we have a lot less than 20,000 hotel rooms in dublin (i dont know how true this is and a quick google didnt help - f*cking hoteliers!) so where would all the people for this final stay?

Mushy

Tom65 wrote: »

The GAA would make an absolute fortune off having a Champions League final in Croker. They'd be silly not to take it if offered.


I remember hearing a few years ago that the new Lansdowne would get the UEFA Cup final the year it's finish. I think it'll be great, though hopefully Rangers won't make to the final that year; then again, they have to come through on their promise to "follow" them to Dublin too :P

Being a big GAA fan myself, if the opportunity came about now, I would definitely say they'd take it.(By they, I mean the heads of the GAA). Was announced last week that this year, they are projecting earning €4m less than last years figures, and then the year after, without rugby and soccer there, will be even less. So the chance to cash in...well any and every business does the same, so wouldn't be surprised. That is of course if the FAI agreed to it too though.

pablomakaveli

ArmaniJeanss wrote: »

This is almost certainly rubbish (or at best it was an off-the-cuff comment by an official). Any application to host a final can only be made by a countries governing body (our beloved FAI) and there isnt a snowballs chance they would apply to host a CL final using a GAA ground.

Ii was probably just an informal question from the UEFA officials if it is true. The GAA would make a forune from it if they did but the controversy that would come with that probably would'nt be worth it.

(They'd get probably get protestors in Celtic jerseys shouting no foreign games again:D)

OPENROAD

Mixed feelings about this as they are up against the Emirates and any other time would want The Emirates to get it but with the state of the economy any little bit of help would be welcomed, would be a good boost for Dublin and even the rest of the country.

pablomakaveli

OPENROAD wrote: »

Mixed feelings about this as they are up against the Emirates and any other time would want The Emirates to get it but with the state of the economy any little bit of help would be welcomed, would be a good boost for Dublin and even the rest of the country.

The Emirates migh'nt get it because Wembley is up to host the Champions League final. So if Wembley gets that the Emirates won't get the UEFA cup final. The only other stadium vying for the UEFA cup final is a Romanian one and Lansdowne is more likely to get it in that case.

DSB

This country definitely does not deserve to host a major international/continental sporting event. Regardless, would be fun if it was a high profile final instead of like Rangers and Zenit.

redout

DSB wrote: »

This country definitely does not deserve to host a major international/continental sporting event. Regardless, would be fun if it was a high profile final instead of like Rangers and Zenit.

and why would that be ?

DSB

If the country can't sustain a well attended national league/cup competitions, theres no way it should be higher in the pecking order than countries with a sporting public with a legitimate interest in attending football matches.

shane86

DSB wrote: »

This country definitely does not deserve to host a major international/continental sporting event. .

Yawwwwwwwwwwnnnnnnn.

Yeah, it should be kept in England and the like. Countries full of passionate Man Utd and Chelsea fans from places like Lincoln and Shrewsbury while their local town teams play to a few hundred.

It would be some party with the visiting Scots if Celtic made the final.

DSB

shane86 wrote: »

Yawwwwwwwwwwnnnnnnn.

Yeah, it should be kept in England and the like. Countries full of passionate Man Utd and Chelsea fans from places like Lincoln and Shrewsbury while their local town teams play to a few hundred.

You're aware the worst attended League 2 teams in England have similar attendances to the top clubs over here right? So fair play on the intentions and all, but you're spouting tripe. There is a contingent of glory hunters from England too, but its a million times better situation than that over here. Sure Irish prefer watching the big game in the pub anyway. Much better craic.

redout

DSB wrote: »

If the country can't sustain a well attended national league/cup competitions, theres no way it should be higher in the pecking order than countries with a sporting public with a legitimate interest in attending football matches.

What a load of bull. There is a huge football supporting community in this country who may not support local teams but who do follow British teams in massive numbers and have done so for many years and I am quite sure UEFA are well aware of that. Every week thousands travel from this country to the UK to watch their teams. We are to small a country to sustain a well supported football league in the first place. Look at Scotland with a population of 10 Million and excluding Rangers and Celtic they to have dismal turnouts to SPL games week in week out. I think your reasoning is wrong.

DSB

redout wrote: »

What a load of bull. There is a huge football supporting community in this country who may not support local teams but who do follow British teams in massive numbers and have done so for many years and I am quite sure UEFA are well aware of that. Every week thousands travel from this country to the UK to watch their teams. We are to small a country to sustain a well supported football league in the first place. Look at Scotland with a population of 10 Million and excluding Rangers and Celtic they to have dismal turnouts to SPL games week in week out. I think your reasoning is wrong.

If UEFA were to take that into account, they'd be utterly ridiculous. These sort of competitions should definitely go to countries with high attendances the whole year round, not just when a big event comes to town.

redout

DSB wrote: »

If UEFA were to take that into account, they'd be utterly ridiculous. These sort of competitions should definitely go to countries with high attendances the whole year round, not just when a big event comes to town.

I dont agree. The like of Belgium and Netherlands have been awarded big tournaments as have Austria and Switzerland and also Portugal. These countries apart from a couple of big sides in Portugal and Holland have very low attendances week in week out. Now explain please ?

DSB

redout wrote: »

I dont agree. The like of Belgium and Netherlands have been awarded big tournaments as have Austria and Switzerland and also Portugal. These countries apart from a couple of big sides in Portugal and Holland have very low attendances week in week out. Now explain please ?

You're aware these 'very low' attendances are still much higher than those here right?

redout

DSB wrote: »

You're aware these 'very low' attendances are still much higher than those here right?

You say high attendances the whole year. That only leaves a handful countries who should host a tournament then going by your way of thinking. That is ridiculous in my opinion. Why give the world cup to South Africa or the USA ?

Pal

cannot see lansdowne getting any european final when the inspectors discover that they buily a pokey little stand behind the goal. its daft i tell you.

invincibleirish

DSB what kind of attendance do you think LoI teams should be getting?

Its rather pointless comparing LoI attendences to the UK or Belgium as they are countries with far higher population densities. On this island we have 1 big city in Dublin with multiple clubs and then 2 medium to small cities in Belfast & Cork, the rest are towns by European standards and with our dispersed population, and popularity of other sports, the EL attendances are pretty decent. Sure they are poor by PL standards but you're not comparing like with like.

Pigman II

And what happens when the final isn't Manchester United vs Ireland and as a result there isn't enough local interest to fill the ground on final day?

Build all the stadia you like, Ireland should never be granted a UEFA final so long as we demonstrate there is no real interest in football in this country outside of casually playing it and endlessly discussing the fortunes of British clubs.

DSB

invincibleirish wrote: »

DSB what kind of attendance do you think LoI teams should be getting?

Its rather pointless comparing LoI attendences to the UK or Belgium as they are countries with far higher population densities. On this island we have 1 big city in Dublin with multiple clubs and then 2 medium to small cities in Belfast & Cork, the rest are towns by European standards and with our dispersed population, and popularity of other sports, the EL attendances are pretty decent. Sure they are poor by PL standards but you're not comparing like with like.

I'm not comparing with PL standards though. Even comparing with the midtable League One sides would be an achievement. Most European countries with any ambition to host a competition of this nature would be averaging attendances maybe at the bottom of end of the Championship. The League Of Ireland attendances would be better compared to bottom of League 2 for the best clubs, Blue Square Premier for those in the midtable, and the Blue Square regionals at worst. Just not good enough for this kinda thing. Its nonensical to say 'oh well they do love their English clubs so they might come out'. There needs to be a proven track record and thats why this sort of thing should go to countries with at least moderate attendance records.

eirebhoy

Pal wrote: »

cannot see lansdowne getting any european final when the inspectors discover that they buily a pokey little stand behind the goal. its daft i tell you.

So is Hill 16 in fairness.

invincibleirish

DSB wrote: »

I'm not comparing with PL standards though. Even comparing with the midtable League One sides would be an achievement. Most European countries with any ambition to host a competition of this nature would be averaging attendances maybe at the bottom of end of the Championship. The League Of Ireland attendances would be better compared to bottom of League 2 for the best clubs, Blue Square Premier for those in the midtable, and the Blue Square regionals at worst. Just not good enough for this kinda thing. Its nonensical to say 'oh well they do love their English clubs so they might come out'. There needs to be a proven track record and thats why this sort of thing should go to countries with at least moderate attendance records.

Fair enough but surely you hold UEFA to a higher standard then perhaps expected?. I would guess Euros & Dollars are the main factor in deciding where to host their showcase games, Monaco isn't host to Supercup games for the weather.

eirebhoy

Pigman II wrote: »

And what happens when the final isn't Manchester United vs Ireland and as a result there isn't enough local interest to fill the ground on final day?

Build all the stadia you like, Ireland should never be granted a UEFA final so long as we demonstrate there is no real interest in football in this country outside of casually playing it and endlessly discussing the fortunes of British clubs.

The Irish are more interested in the UEFA Cup fantasty football than the British anyway:
http://en.ucupfantasy.uefa.com/M/stats.mc?stat=bestcountries

Only Portugal seem to have a higher fantasy manager per head of population ratio. Obviously doesn't tell us who'd actually go to games but I'd say the demand in this country would be huge for any final with 2 half decent teams.

CiaranC

No way should Ireland host any major european final or international tournament. These should go to countries with a genuine interest in football.

SantryRed

Ireland should NEVER EVER get to hold any football tournament or final.

They do not deserve it.

Mossy Monk

CiaranC wrote: »

No way should Ireland host any major european final or international tournament. These should go to countries with a genuine interest in football.

Nice try.

eagle eye

CiaranC wrote: »

No way should Ireland host any major european final or international tournament. These should go to countries with a genuine interest in football.

I am interested in top class soccer. Most people are interested in top class soccer.

I presume you are talking about the lack of support of the LOI. I supported it a long time ago. But I grew tired of it for a number of reasons.

Just because a lot of people do not support a league which is clearly much lower in standard to the majority of the leagues that Irish people take an interest in, The Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and then of course the SPL has its share of Irish fans also, but just because we choose to watch better soccer than whats on offer in this country does not mean we don't have a genuine interest in Soccer.

As I've said before, there is another football sport in this country that is not available in those countries or at least is not popular in those countries and you have the opportunity to attend the very best standard of this game every week, so its going to be more interesting to the majority of Irish people than some random relatively poor standard of soccer thats on offer.

ziggy

This post has been deleted.

Pigman II

eirebhoy wrote: »

The Irish are more interested in the UEFA Cup fantasty football than the British anyway:
http://en.ucupfantasy.uefa.com/M/stats.mc?stat=bestcountries

Only Portugal seem to have a higher fantasy manager per head of population ratio. Obviously doesn't tell us who'd actually go to games but I'd say the demand in this country would be huge for any final with 2 half decent teams.

That's great. Maybe we can hold the final of UEFA cup fantasy football tournament here in 2011 (provided a UEFA 5-star rated cybercafe can be made ready in time)?