Euro 2020 is an opportunity for Athlone – McFadden

Fine Gael Longford-Westmeath TD, Gabrielle McFadden, has suggested that Euro 2020 could present a great opportunity for Athlone, with the redeveloped Athlone Town soccer stadium as a possible training venue for the teams involved.

“The news that Ireland is to host some of the Euro 2020 games is really positive for the tourism and sporting sectors in this country. I believe there is a great opportunity for Athlone to benefit, as our redeveloped soccer stadium puts us in a strong position to be a base and training location for the teams involved.

“Athlone has a proud soccer history with the success of Athlone Town F.C. over many years. The redeveloped Athlone Town Stadium is a great addition to the town and I would love to see it being utilised in a high profile competition. The stadium has all the modern facilities needed to cater to teams playing in a major tournament such as Euro 2020.

“In addition, we have a fantastic gym and swimming pool in the Regional Sports Centre and a state of the art running track in Athlone IT, thanks to the Sports Capital Grants secured in recent years.

“Athlone has the full package and is well equipped to welcome international football teams as part of Euro 2020. With Dublin just an hour away on the motorway we are very well situated to be a host town for this prestigious competition. International sports teams often like to locate their training base away from the capital cities in which the games are played. Athlone would allow them to get away from it all to focus on their training, while maintaining the easy access to Dublin on match days.

“Athlone also has excellent hotels to accommodate football teams and their backroom staff. Furthermore, with its abundance of restaurants, bars and hotels, Athlone could cater for the traveling fans who often like to stay near their team’s base at international competitions.

“I urge Athlone Town F.C, AIT, Westmeath County Council and the hospitality industry (Destination Athlone) to get together and submit a bid to the FAI to be considered as one of the host towns for Euro 2020. This is a real opportunity for Athlone and I would be happy to support such a bid in any way I can.”