Windsor Park - Redevelopment

Redevelopment

Owing to the increasingly poor condition of Windsor Park, various proposals for its replacement were mooted, including the idea of a multi-purpose stadium hosting football, rugby union and Gaelic games on the site of the former Maze prison, or a national stadium built as part of a major leisure development at Sydenham in east Belfast. The plans for the multi-purpose stadium at the Maze site was strongly protested by essentially all the Northern Ireland match-going supporters. Various petitions in opposition to the suggestion, as well as organised displays of opposition at matches and the presentation counter-proposals, were arranged by Supporters Clubs in a bid to block any move to the Maze. In September 2009, the Irish Football Association (IFA) announced that its preferred option was to remain at a redeveloped Windsor Park. In 2011, the Northern Ireland Executive allocated £138m for a major programme of stadium redevelopment throughout Northern Ireland, with £28m allocated to the redevelopment of Windsor Park into a brand new, 20,000 all-seater stadium.

In 2012, details of the stadium's redevelopment were released. The plan will see Windsor Park become an 18,000 all-seater stadium with a series of phased works intended to begin in the summer of 2013. This will see the demolition of both the East and South Stand structures, to be replaced by new purpose built stands that will partially enclose the stadium; complete renovation of the existing North and West Stands; and construction of both new conferencing facilities and a new headquarters facility for the IFA.