GAA and McAleer & Rushe break ground on new hotel at Croke Park

The GAA and leading design and build contractor McAleer & Rushe have cut the first sod marking the commencement of construction on the new €40m Maldron Hotel at Croke Park.

The modern 200-bedroom hotel will accommodate a business centre with five meeting rooms, a state-of-the-art gym, and a bar and restaurant facilities and is expected to open to the public in 2026.

Forming part of the Clonliffe Lands Masterplan, the site is situated at the junction of Clonliffe Road and Jones’s Road, in the grounds of the former Clonliffe College and just 140 metres from Croke Park.

Positioned in an established and mature part of Drumcondra, guests will be ideally located for big games and enjoy excellent connectivity to the air, road and rail network, with Drumcondra train station, and bus routes just a short walk away.

Ireland’s largest hotel operator, Dalata Hotel Group will run the hotel under its Maldron brand delivering a modern 4-star hotel offering high-quality accommodation. The Group is renowned for its superior hospitality service and has ambitious growth plans not just in Ireland, but across Europe. Recent openings include a 188-bedroom Maldron hotel in Manchester and a 268-bedroom Maldron hotel in Liverpool, both constructed by McAleer & Rushe.

As construction partner, McAleer & Rushe has worked closely with the GAA from the initial planning and design stages of the project, adding its expertise and experience in delivering quality turnkey hotel developments. Designed to complement existing buildings in the local area the hotel will have a traditional hand built red brick façade and will come with a range of environmental features to achieve a BREEAM ‘Very Good’ rating, such as green roofs, air source heat pumps and EV charging points.

Speaking at the sod cutting, Jarlath Burns, GAA President, said:

This is a positive development for the GAA and Croke Park representing an additional offering that will be welcomed by our members and supporters when planning journeys to the stadium. McAleer & Rushe are long term GAA supporters, and the GAA enjoys a positive relationship with them. Dalata is a great Irish company with proven expertise in managing world class hotels. The new hotel will support local employment and will be a positive addition to the locality. Practically, the hotel will also support the growth of our conference activity in the newly repurposed Cusack Stand.

Dermot Crowley, CEO of Dalata Hotel Group, said:

This marks an important milestone in the development of a new, modern flagship hotel at one of Ireland’s most iconic sporting landmarks. Upon completion, the Maldron Hotel Croke Park will offer high-quality guest experience, providing exceptional facilities for visitors. This new hotel in the heart of Dublin will help meet the growing demand for guest accommodation in the city, while also supporting the local economy and community. We are delighted to build upon our long-standing relationships with McAleer & Rushe and the GAA, and we look forward to welcoming our guests in 2026.

Martin Magee, Managing Director of McAleer & Rushe said:

It was a pleasure to join the GAA President Jarlath Burns to cut the first sod together and celebrate this important milestone with the key stakeholders involved. Having delivered the Croke Park Hotel for the GAA nearly 20 years ago, we are honoured to be once again entrusted by the Association to lead on this new hotel development.

It is also exciting to mark this important milestone with the Dalata team, with whom we have built a strong and successful partnership across development and construction, delivering over 3,000 hotel bedrooms across Ireland and Great Britain. We look forward to working closely with all partners to ensure the vision for this significant project is realised and engaging actively with the local community throughout construction to contribute positively to the area.

Foundations to Future exhibition launched at the GAA Museum

A new exhibition at the GAA Museum celebrates milestone anniversaries of the Associations as Gaelic Football, Hurling and Rounders turn 140 years old, Camogie 120, Handball 100, and LGFA 50.

Foundations to Future explores the creation and development of the Gaelic Games Association, with a particular focus on the inspiring role volunteers have played from the past to the present. The GAA Museum, which was recently recognised in TripAdvisor’s Travellers Choice Awards for 2024, invites all members of the Associations to visit the exhibition.

Featured items on display in the exhibition come from all of the Associations, and include:

• The Silvermines Cup, the first trophy presented at a GAA intercounty match
• The First Reference of Gaelic Games outside of Ireland from 1747
• A letter addressed to Michael Collins arranging for Collins to be a linesman in a GAA match
• Ann Downey’s Medal Collection including 12 All Ireland inter-county medals with Kilkenny in camogie
• The football used in the First LGFA All-Ireland Senior Final
• Bríd Stack’s medal collection including 11 All-Ireland Senior medals
• 1930 All-Ireland Junior Soft Ball Doubles Medal won by John Molloy
• 2017 Rounders All-Star Jersey

Foundations to Future is housed on the ground floor of the GAA Museum in Croke Park and is available to view for all GAA Museum visitors.

Following the televising of last weekend’s All Ireland Hurling Final between Cork and Clare on BBC, the GAA has enjoyed new-found interest from a whole new tranche of UK-based supporters, many of whom will no doubt soon be trouping their way to Croke Park.

Source & imagery, courtesy: Croke Park / GAA

Main image (top): McAleer & Rushe MD, Martin Magee, Croke Park Stadium Director, Peter McKenna, Uachtarán Chumann Lúthchleas Gael Jarlath Burns, Dalata CEO, Dermot Crowley, and Dalata corporate development director, Shane Casserly, during a sod turning ceremony to mark the construction of a new hotel at Clonliffe College

Sports Venue Business has launched a raft of new offerings under the SVB LIVE banner, including Networking Events & a Webinar Series, culminating in the annual SVB LIVE Conference & Exhibition, being held at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland, on October 9th and 10th, with an Opening Night Icebreaker on October 8th, 2024.