The Government has formally appealed for expressions of interest from the private sector in the development of a national stadium.
The appeal, in newspaper advertisements published today, follows Tuesday's Cabinet decision that no public money will be spent on the project.
The advertisements, placed by the Department of Arts, Sport and Tourism, invite non-binding expressions of interest in the provision of a stadium with a capacity of at least 65,000 spectators.
The submissions, to be recieved by October 18th, 2002, will determine whether a public tendering process for the contract is feasible.
According to the advertisement, the facility will have to comply with the standards of soccer's European and world governing bodies and be ready for use by June 2007.
"In the event that the joint Ireland-Scotland bid for the the June 2008 European Football Championship finals is successful, a number of prestigious games of the finals would be hosted in the national stadium, and therefore the venue must be in established use by the previous summer," it says.
The Government's contribution to the project is the 500-acre site at Abbotstown, vacated by the State laboratories and originally earmarked for Sports Campus Ireland.
The National Aquatic Centre, the only part of the complex to proceed to date, is nearing completion at the site and will be ready for the 2003 Special Olympics next June.
The advertisements invite broad outlines of any proposal, as well as details of the financial and technical expertise the interested parties would bring to the project.
