Ahern expects Croke Park to be available if bid succeeds

The Taoiseach is confident that soccer matches will be played at Croke Park if the Irish/Scottish joint bid for the European Championships in 2008 is successful.

The final decision about which country/countries will host the championships is to be made on December 12th.

Mr Ahern also told the Dáil that he was confident the bid would be successful even though the GAA would not make its decision about soccer matches being played in Croke Park until next year. "The GAA has its rules and procedures and it is going to follow them. I accept that. That is its right," he said.

But he added that, if the Irish/Scottish bid was accepted - and he was confident that it would be - he had "no doubt that, in 2008, some of the games will be played in Croke Park".

The Taoiseach also pointed out that UEFA representatives believed Croke Park was the finest stadium they had seen. The representatives of soccer's international governing body had seen the stadiums of all the countries bidding for the championships.

Outlining the circumstances of the bid, Mr Ahern said that Croke Park could not be included in the written questionnaire as part of the application to stage the championships. "Everyone understands the rules," he said.

The Taoiseach emphasised that UEFA representatives and Ireland's Scottish partners in the bid understood that, too.

The Fine Gael leader, Mr Enda Kenny, said that the GAA had "always been an organisation which did not like to be shoved in a particular direction but liked to make its own decisions".

He expressed concern that the GAA would not be in a position to make a decision about the availability of Croke Park until next year and asked if Mr Ahern had informed the Scottish First Minister, whom he had met, about this.

Mr Ahern said that the GAA had its rules and procedures. The current GAA president and the incoming one "have also made their position clear in terms of their work towards a certain resolution under their rules". That was helpful. The position had been clear for some time, "if not totally satisfactorily". He added: "In fairness, it was clear when the UEFA representatives were here many months ago."

Mr Ahern emphasised that UEFA representatives had seen all the stadiums, adding: "I have seen a good few in my day, and they believe that Croke Park is the finest one they have seen on their travels."

He concluded by saying: "There are many issues to clarify in respect of where the grounds will be. I am confident that the Irish bid will be successful."