The Government is expecting a request for money to address infrastructure and hospitality needs in Adare connected with the hosting of the 2027 Ryder Cup in the Co Limerick village, the Minister for Sport Patrick O’Donovan has said.
Mr O’Donovan said the Government expected a request for further funds to support the event this year.
His comments come after the Irish Times reported on Monday that an additional €30 million in public funding is expected to be sought to facilitate the hosting of the golf event at Adare Manor, the exclusive Co Limerick hotel and golf resort owned by billionaire businessman JP McManus.
The State has already committed €58 million in support to the event, as well as €150 million for major transport infrastructure to be completed in time for the competition in 2027.
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Mr O’Donovan, who was speaking at the Fine Gael think-in in Mullingar, disputed any characterisation that funding was being given to Mr McManus, saying the Government “haven’t given anything to JP McManus”.
“The McManus family and Adare Manor are looking after everything inside the walls of the golf club and we look after everything outside of the venue. We have received no requests from Adare Manor with regard to any monies,” Mr O’Donovan said.
“But we will have a request to Government by the end of the year for public works outside of the hotel venue . . . This is expected across a range of Government departments.
“There are some works that will be needed in the village around infrastructure and around hospitality.”
Mr O’Donovan defended the Government’s investment in golf, citing the success of the Irish Open which concluded on Sunday with a victory for Rory McIlroy.
He said that two major infrastructure projects – a rail link between Limerick and the port of Foynes, with a stop in Adare, and the Adare bypass – would be part of the event’s legacy for the locality.
The Government has invested €150 million to accelerate completion of a 7km Adare bypass, to remove unnecessary through traffic in the Co Limerick village. This investment is to ensure the bypass is completed by June 2027, in time for the Ryder Cup that September.
The Irish Times has learned the operational budget for Ryder Cup 2027, which covers transport, security and local authority costs, has proved grossly insufficient. This originally accounted for €14.3 million of the €58m allocation of State funding, but a further €30 million is now being sought.
A spokesperson for Mr O’Donovan’s department confirmed the Government steering group overseeing planning for Ryder Cup 2027 would be seeking a significant increase to the operational budget. In a statement, the spokesperson said the department could not quantify how much extra in taxpayer support was being sought, but an application for additional funding would be made before December.
“A full review of the operational budget [transport, security, local authority costs, etc] is taking place in parallel with the strategic planning to host the event which is governed by the Government steering group.”
[ Ryder Cup 2027: Adare anticipates €160m bonanza from hosting golf eventOpens in new window ]
The chairman of the Government steering group is Martin Fraser, a former secretary general at the Department of An Taoiseach and the current Irish Ambassador to the UK. Mr Fraser, did not respond to an interview request.
Tom Enright, the project director of the golf competition’s 2027 edition, confirmed a review of costs was under way, but he did not comment on the specifics of how much extra funding was being sought.
A source familiar with the operational budget for the Ryder Cup told The Irish Times the Government would be asked to provide significant extra funding.
The source, who did not wish to be named, said: “Extra costs in the region of €30 million are being sought for approach-road improvements, community engagement, road widening and park-and-ride sites. Also for recruitment of additional staff for the State agencies."
Sources familiar with the ongoing review stressed that while costs had been underestimated, the Government was also expecting an increased return for the taxpayer. The Government’s initial projections of a €160 million benefit to the Irish economy were now viewed as “conservative”. Apart from 300,000 attendees spending a minimum of €500 each per day, most of the benefit to the economy will come from Ireland being showcased on 50 television channels broadcasting to 375 million homes.
“It’s difficult to say exactly what the figure will be, but it will be significantly greater than €160m,” the source said.
The last time the event was held in Ireland in 2006, at the K Club, Co Kildare, a Deloitte report concluded that it generated €143 million in direct revenue for the Irish economy.
The last two Ryder Cups held in Europe were in France (2018) and Italy (2023). They generated €235.7 million and €262 million respectively.
It is expected that informal discussions will take place between Mr McManus and a ministerial delegation when they meet in person at the upcoming Ryder Cup in New York later this month.
