Páirc Uí Chaoimh facts for kids
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De Park
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Stadium exterior
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| Location | The Marina Ballintemple Cork Ireland |
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| Coordinates | 51°53′59.10″N 8°26′6.15″W / 51.8997500°N 8.4350417°W |
| Public transit | Cork Kent railway station Blackrock Road bus stop |
| Owner | Cork County Board |
| Capacity | 45,000 |
| Field size | 144 m x 88 m |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | April 1974 |
| Opened | 6 June 1976 |
| Renovated | 2008 2015-2017 |
| Construction cost | IR£1.7 million (original) €110 million (redevelopment) |
| Architect | Horgan and Lynch (1974) Scott Tallon Walker (2015) |
| Tenants | |
| Cork GAA (1976–present) | |
Páirc Uí Chaoimh is a famous Gaelic games stadium in Cork, Ireland. It is the main home for Cork GAA teams. People often call it simply The Park. The stadium is in Ballintemple, close to where the old Cork Athletic Grounds used to be. It first opened in 1976 and had a huge renovation from 2015 to 2017.
This stadium is mostly used for Gaelic games like Gaelic football and hurling. Cork's home games in leagues and championships are played here. The finals of Cork's hurling and football championships are also often held at Páirc Uí Chaoimh. Besides sports, the stadium has hosted big concerts. Famous artists like Michael Jackson, Bruce Springsteen, Prince, U2, The Stone Roses, Oasis, and Ed Sheeran have performed here. It also used to host the annual Siamsa Cois Laoi festival.
The stadium was first designed to hold over 50,000 people. But over time, for safety reasons, its capacity was lowered to about 32,550. After the big renovation finished in 2017, the stadium can now hold 45,000 spectators. This makes it the fourth-largest Gaelic games stadium in Ireland.
Contents
Stadium History
Early Sports Grounds
Even before the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) was formed, sports events were held in the area where Páirc Uí Chaoimh now stands. In the late 1890s, the Cork County Board got permission to use part of the land for Gaelic games. They built their own stadium there in 1898. The Cork Athletic Grounds opened in 1904. It hosted important matches like All-Ireland and Munster finals.
By the 1960s, the Cork Athletic Grounds were getting old. Their facilities were not modern enough. So, in 1963, the county board bought new land on the west side of the city. They planned to build a huge new stadium there for up to 70,000 fans. But this plan didn't work out, and the project was stopped.
Funding the New Stadium
Building the new stadium was a very big project for the Cork County Board. It was the largest one ever for a sports group in Ireland at that time. To pay for it, they received grants from the GAA's main and Munster groups. They also sold some of their land and offices.
More money was raised by selling advertising spots inside the stadium. They also sold 3,000 special five-year tickets for the stands. This helped them gather the funds needed to build the new Páirc Uí Chaoimh.
Official Opening Day
Páirc Uí Chaoimh officially opened on June 6, 1976. Con Murphy, who was the president of the GAA, led the opening ceremony. On this special day, the Cork hurlers played against Kilkenny. After that, the Cork footballers played against Kerry. It was a big day for sports in Cork!
Concerts and Events
In the 1970s, the stadium needed money to pay off its building loans. So, a local promoter named Oliver Barry started a music festival called Siamsa Cois Laoi. This means "Fun by the [River] Lee" in Irish. It was a weekend festival held every year from 1977 to 1987. It featured country, folk, and traditional Irish music.
Many famous international and Irish musicians played at Siamsa. Some of the big names included Glen Campbell, Don McLean, Joan Baez, Leo Sayer, Kris Kristofferson, and John Denver. Irish bands like the Wolfe Tones and the Dubliners also performed.
In August 1987, U2 played a concert at the stadium. This showed that Páirc Uí Chaoimh was a great place for pop and rock concerts too. On July 30 and 31, 1988, Michael Jackson performed two huge shows as part of his Bad World Tour. Over 130,000 people came to see him! The money from these concerts helped the County Board buy another sports ground, Christy Ring Park.
Other famous artists who played at Páirc Uí Chaoimh include Prince in 1990 and U2 again in 1993. In 1995, the Féile Festival came to Cork for one year. It featured bands like Ash, The Stone Roses, Paul Weller, and even Kylie Minogue. Oasis played two nights in August 1996. Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band also performed in 2013.
After the stadium was redeveloped, Ed Sheeran played the first concerts there in May 2018. He performed over three nights.
Stadium Improvements
In 2005, the Cork County Board replaced all the old wooden seats with new plastic ones. This made the stadium more modern.
In 2007, there were plans to make Páirc Uí Chaoimh even bigger. The idea was to turn it into a 60,000-seat stadium for sports and concerts. This would have made it the second-largest stadium in Ireland after Croke Park. However, these specific plans did not go ahead.
Hosting Soccer Matches
On September 25, 2018, Páirc Uí Chaoimh hosted a soccer match for the first time. It was a special game to remember Liam Miller, a Cork-born Irish soccer player who had passed away. A team of Manchester United legends played against a team of Irish and Glasgow Celtic legends. Over 42,000 fans came to watch the game. At half-time, young Gaelic football and hurling teams played exhibition games.
Stadium Redevelopment
Plans for a New Look
In 2010, the Cork City Council agreed to make more land available for the stadium's redevelopment. The plans included building a new "Centre of Excellence" with an all-weather pitch, floodlights, and modern facilities. A museum, dining areas, and a large car park were also planned.
The new stadium was designed to hold 45,000 people. Some local people were concerned about the land being used for the stadium instead of a public park. Also, some wondered if such a big stadium was really needed, as Cork's average attendance for games was not very high at the time.
The plans showed how many people each part of the stadium would hold:
- The new South Stand (covered) would have 13,000 seats.
- The North Stand (covered) would have 8,000 seats.
- The East and West Terraces (uncovered) would each hold 12,000 people.
In 2013, the project was put on hold because of money problems.
Demolition and Building Work
In April 2014, the Cork County Board and Cork City Council announced that the redevelopment project could finally go ahead. In May 2014, the Government gave a €30 million grant to help fund the stadium's makeover.
The work was supposed to start in summer 2014. On July 6, 2014, the old stadium hosted its last provincial football final. On July 13, 2014, it hosted the 2014 Munster Senior Hurling Championship Final. This was the last inter-county game before the demolition began. In November 2014, the final approval was given, and redevelopment work started in January 2015. It was planned to finish by mid-2017.
Reopening the Stadium
The plan was to hold the 2017 Munster Senior Hurling Championship and Munster Senior Football Championship finals at the newly reopened stadium. But there were delays in construction, so these games had to be moved.
The very first match at the redeveloped stadium was a local hurling game. It happened on July 19, 2017, between Valley Rovers and Blarney. Over 10,000 people came to watch.
Soon after, in July 2017, the stadium hosted two All-Ireland hurling quarter-finals. Over 64,000 fans attended these two games. The first championship match was on July 22, 2017. Tipperary played against Clare. Clare's Tony Kelly scored the first point, and Aaron Cunningham scored the first goal in the new stadium.
By December 2017, the cost of the redevelopment was about €86.4 million. This was more than the original budget. The new stadium has modern features like four large dressing rooms with heated floors, physio rooms, and first aid rooms. By December 2018, the final cost was estimated to be as high as €110 million.
In March 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, the Cork County Board offered the stadium to the Health Service Executive for use if needed.
Stadium Capacity and Records
Before the 2017 redevelopment, the stadium had different sections for fans:
- The covered (Sean McCarthy) stand had about 9,500 seats.
- The uncovered stand had about 10,000 seats.
- The "Blackrock end" terrace held about 12,000 people.
- The "City end" terrace also held about 12,000 people.
- There was a small area for 50 wheelchairs.
After the 2017 redevelopment, the stadium's capacity changed:
- The main (covered) South Stand now has 13,000 seats. It has three levels, including a special premium level with 2,238 seats.
- The North (covered) Stand has 8,000 seats.
- The City and "Blackrock end" terraces each hold 12,000 people.
The most people ever to attend a game at Páirc Uí Chaoimh was 49,961. This happened in 1985 for the Munster Hurling Final between Cork and Tipperary.
In 1983, Páirc Uí Chaoimh hosted an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship semi-final replay. Cork played against Dublin. This was a rare event, as it was only the second time an All-Ireland semi-final had been held outside Croke Park since 1941.
