The Football Association of Ireland and Thomond Park Stadium today (March 2) announced that they have reached an agreement to hold a football game for the first time in the redeveloped Limerick stadium. The Republic of Ireland senior team will play Australia on August 12 at the 26,000 capacity venue.
The game will be the first ever senior international fixture to be played by the Boys in Green in Limerick and will give the large number of football fans in the region a rare opportunity to see a senior international match in the Mid-West.
The Republic of Ireland are currently joint top of Group 8 in their World Cup qualifying campaign, level on ten points with World Cup holders Italy. Pim Verbeek’s Australian side is currently ranked 27th in the FIFA world rankings, two places above Ireland and includes many players well known to Irish football fans including Scott McDonald (Celtic), Harry Kewell (Galatasaray) and Tim Cahill (Everton). The friendly will provide an opportunity for preparation ahead of the World Cup Qualifier in Cyprus on September 5.
Announcing the agreement with the FAI, Thomond Park Stadium Director, John Cantwell said: “On behalf of Thomond Park Stadium and Munster Rugby, I am delighted to be in a position to announce the first major football fixture in Thomond Park. We are very pleased that the FAI has agreed to bring international football to Thomond Park and Limerick.
“It has always been our objective in the redevelopment of the stadium to work with leading sports bodies to attract major sports events to the city. It is a great boost for Limerick and the many football and sports fans throughout the region who now have opportunity to watch international football on their doorstep. We are looking forward to working with the FAI to stage this memorable event.”
John Delaney, Chief Executive Officer of the Football Association of Ireland said: “I am very happy to have reached this agreement with Thomond Park Stadium. I thank the Stadium’s management and Board for their foresight in opening up Thomond Park to other sports which will enable us to bring senior international football to Limerick for the first time. Thomond Park is a great sporting venue and we look forward to an exciting game against Australia in August.
Ticket and event information will be made available closer to the match date on both www.fai.ie and www.thomondpark.ie.
See our press conference video.
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