A state-of-the-art sporting facility in Cavan has received a major funding boost through the announcement of an extra €15 million for the project.
The Cavan Regional Sports Campus will see a covered indoor arena and sports facility built in the region in the coming years.
It will include the indoor sports facility and arena, changing facilities, a café, outdoor pitches and athletics facilities.
This latest funding has been allocated from the PEACEPLUS programme from the Special EU Programmes Body, which manages EU funding programmes in Northern Ireland and the border counties to help foster peace and prosperity in the region.
It follows a previous grant of €19 million from the large-scale sports infrastructure fund last year.
The project is part of the wider Cavan Regional Sports Campus being developed by Cavan County Council, along with Cavan GAA and the Royal School in Cavan.
It will be located southwest of Cavan town between the Royal School and Kingspan Breffni Park.
Cavan County Council has said that the overall aim is to use sport and physical activity to connect communities in Cavan and across the border, as well as addressing an imbalance of investment and to provide a "hugely significant and iconic symbol of reconciliation leveraged from the partnership between two of Cavan's oldest institutions".
The campus was granted approval by An Bord Pleanála in November 2024.
A two-stage tendering process is expected to commence shortly, with construction expected to commence in 2026 over two years.
Minister for Rural and Community Development and Gaeltacht Dara Calleary, whose department played a role in securing the funding, said it would provide "significant transformation through the repurposing of land and reimaging of current structures and spaces".
SEUPB Chief Executive Gina McIntyre said the project got funding under the Re-imaging Communities theme.
"This facility will provide a safe, inclusive and welcoming environment where people can come together, collaborate and build lasting relationships.
"The Cavan Regional Sports Campus is a powerful example of how sport and community infrastructure can be used to bridge divides and create lasting connections.
"This is a truly transformative project which will serve as a beacon of inclusion and collaboration for generations to come," Ms McIntyre said.
Northern Ireland Communities Minister Gordon Lyons said the investment would provide a new multi use facility with the capability to host cross-community and cross-border sports, education, health and community events.
The announcement was welcomed by local Fianna Fáil TD for Cavan-Monaghan Brendan Smith, who said the campus would bring benefits to Cavan and the wider region.
"It will be transformative for recreation and sports for a wide area and for so many different sporting disciplines," he said.
Mr Smith commended the work of Cavan County Council, Cavan GAA and the Royal School and said the project would be of "huge significance to our region" and a "game changer".
