Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin believes that the €50m (£42.8) contribution from the Irish government for the redevelopment of Casement Park in Belfast is warranted as the venue will host games for Euro 2028.
Casement Park, derelict since 2013, is set to become the biggest GAA stadium in Ulster but it is also listed as one of 10 host venues - as is the Aviva Stadium in Dublin - for the 2028 edition of the European Football Championship, which will be played in the UK and Ireland.
Doubts had been expressed about whether the ground could be ready in time but, in the wake of the return of the Stormont executive, clearance work on the site began on Monday, followed by the announcement of the Irish government's funding through the Shared Island initiative yesterday.
A redeveloped Casement is now projected to open by summer 2027, though not in time for that year's Ulster football final.
Speaking on RTÉ Radio1's Morning Ireland, Martin said: "We all collectively want to host the Euros in 2028. It's a shared objective between the UK, England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Northern Ireland and in terms of what would be a wonderful tournament.
"And it would be a terrible shame if Belfast was not in the position to host matches in that tournament. That's the context.
"In my discussions with [Northern Ireland Secretary] Chris Heaton-Harris, I think we always made it clear that we were there to support Casement Park. I don't see really, that it should be an issue of contention."
An opinion poll last year found a majority (54%) in Northern Ireland are in favour of the venue hosting Euro 2028 fixtures but 60% of those identifying as unionist said they would prefer there were no Euros games in the six counties if they had to be played at a GAA ground.
Martin said that while he understands the issues of identity and sport "we also need to look ahead where we can accommodate different traditions, different sports and celebrate them as opposed to having issues with them.
"That's the whole spirit of the Good Friday Agreement, as parity of esteem, respect for different traditions and different cultures".
"All sports people, irrespective of the code they play, love sport and celebrate sport and that's how we should go forward and that's how I would ask in any of my discussions with my Unionist colleagues and politicians, that's the approach I would take".
Northern Ireland's First Minister Michelle O'Neill said the project is an opportunity to unite people across Northern Ireland through sport.
Speaking during a visit to a shared education school campus in Limavady, she said: "I think this week's announcement from the Irish Government is hugely positive in terms of getting us to the point where we have all the finances in place.
"I hear a lot of talk about figures, what it will cost, what it won't cost. Let's focus on getting the tender let, lets focus on actually getting the project built and let's focus on making sport something that unifies us all.
"This is a project that can leave a legacy for all sporting codes, particularly in relation to Euro 2028. This is something we should think is a great opportunity for us all. Let's use sport to unite people in the same way that education can unite people."
The projected bill for the 34,000-seater venue was first envisaged at £76 million (€88m), with £15m (€17.5m) of that to be provided by the GAA and the rest from the Stormont Executive.
But in the intervening decade development costs have risen sharply, leaving questions over what the final bill would be and how it would be met. DUP MP Jim Shannon suggested yesterday that the price tag could be in the region £220m (€255m).
The Stormont Executive committed €71m to the original project a decade ago, but is now living within a tight budgetary framework.
Mr Martin told RTÉ that he was confident the UK government would provide funding for the project, saying; "my sense was that it was secure and that it was an important part of the broader picture of increasing and improving sports infrastructure across Northern Ireland.
"I don't want to speak for Chris on this, but in my conversations, he’s an avid sports fan himself having been a soccer referee.
"So I think he has a broad view in terms of improving sports facilities more generally and that would include Casement."
"There will be a contractor appointed later in the year, not in a matter of weeks" - Ulster GAA CEO Brian McAvoy
The GAA has insisted it cannot afford to increase its contribution and Ulster GAA chief executive Brian McAvoy called on the the UK government and Stormont Executive to clarify their position following the Irish government's "generous" contribution yesterday.
"There is a limit to what we can do and that's why we've gone to the Irish government - we would have little scope for moving beyond that [£15m] but I think we did well here," McAvoy told BBC Radio Ulster this morning.
"We'll see what comes of the overall terms of the overall funding rounds because obviously the ball is very much in the court of the UK government and the executive, that's really where the ball lies now."
McAvoy said a final estimate for the redevelopment would not be possible until a contractor was appointed, a decision he believes remains months away.
"There have been lots of figures - the cost of the stadium cannot be made until a contractor is secured," he said.
"The department for communities are the contracting partners for this, they are working off a government framework and there is a process to this.
"The process is ongoing and there will be a contractor appointed later in the year, not in a matter of weeks."
