PLANS to build a new sports stadium in Belfast with a capacity of up to 34,000 have been revealed by the owner of Glentoran football club.
Ali Pour said the sports facility could be built in the Harbour area and used to host football matches, including European finals as well as rugby fixtures and potentially the Commonwealth Games.
He also said the stadium could be considered as an alternative to Casement Park for the UK/Ireland bid to stage the Euro 2028 finals.
"All I’m saying is there is another option. We still have a chance to build a stadium in Belfast," he told the Sunday Life.
"Casement is the favoured venue but I have seen plans change at the last minute. It is something we looked at before and we still can look at this.
"There is no reason why Casement couldn’t go in and then maybe later on a better option turns up. UEFA may look at that."
Mr Pour said the Harbour area would be "perfect" for the stadium firstly as it is "very close to where we are at the moment".
"Initially it was just about football," he said.
"It could be a new National Stadium and we could bid for European finals and you could have a lot more games played there.
"That was the original talk but in recent months we’ve had contact with Ulster Rugby. They say they need a bigger stadium to host some of the bigger games. Even athletics.
"This could evolve into a major stadium for many sports, even hosting the Commonwealth Games and that kind of stuff."
