RTÉ InvestigatesIrish bid to co-host Euro 2028 to be brought to Cabinet

RTÉ InvestigatesIrish bid to co-host Euro 2028 to be brought to Cabinet

The Cabinet will be asked this morning to sign off on a bid for Ireland to be a joint host of the European football championship in 2028.

The proposal, to be submitted by Ministers Catherine Martin and Jack Chambers, would involve the football associations of Ireland, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland co-hosting Euro 2028.

If successful, the Aviva Stadium and Croke Park would potentially share seven games, with 120,000 fans expected to travel to Ireland for the tournament.

A preliminary bid must be submitted to UEFA by tomorrow, with a more detailed plan finalised by April. UEFA will take a decision in September.

The bid is believed to have a strong change of success, with Turkey the only other rival to host football’s second biggest tournament.

There is no hosting fee, but host nations have to pay to upgrade venues to the required standards, policing and fan zones.

Meanwhile, the Cabinet will be asked to approve the publication of the Gambling Regulation Bill.

The legislation is being led by Minister of State James Browne and will lead to the establishment of a gambling regulator for the first time.

It Is understood the post will cover gambling online and in person, with powers to regulate advertising, gambling websites and apps.

Mr Browne recently announced the appointment of a CEO Designate of the Gambling Regulatory Authority of Ireland, Anne Marie Caulfield.

The objective is to minimise the time required between the enactment of the legislation, and the date on which the regulator can commence operations.

Nearly 4,000 construction industry apprentices have registered so far this year, according to Further and Higher Education Minister Simon Harris.

He is expected to update his Cabinet colleagues that the Government is on track to meet targets set out in the Housing For All Plan.

It is understood 2,101 apprentices registered on electrical, 664 on plumbing and 587 on carpentry and joinery programmes.

The minister is expected bring a memo to Government shortly on long-term plans to meet the Housing for All targets between now and 2030.

Minister for Social Protection Heather Humphreys will brief ministers on the payment dates for the four lump sum cost-of-living measures announced in Budget 2023.