South Dublin County Council has invited tenders for the naming rights for Tallaght Stadium by October 13. Council official Jason Frehill outlines the commercial opportunity.

Each county has a huge amount of pride in its county stadium, whether that’s Semple Stadium in Tipperary, Thomond Park in Limerick or Turner’s Cross in Cork.

South Dublin County Council’s Tallaght Stadium is no different. Universally accepted as the most modern and family friendly stadium in the League of Ireland, the venue is home to Shamrock Rovers Football Club, the current SSE Airtricity League of Ireland Premier Division champions, Ireland’s Women’s national football team, and Ireland’s Under 21s men’s football team.

Tallaght Stadium has also hosted important events such as the opening ceremony of the Special Olympics, Cristiano Ronaldo’s first game in the famous Real Madrid shirt, as well as some really memorable League of Ireland and European football nights.

As a venue that consistently creates memories and stirs emotion, Tallaght Stadium’s role in the sporting and cultural identity of Ireland is without question.

But Tallaght Stadium is more than that. It’s also the beating heart of the local Tallaght community – an iconic symbol of pride and progress for everyone who lives there. So far this year 100,000 fans have attended matches at the stadium, warmly welcomed by the local community.

In Association with

To build on the success already achieved, South Dublin County Council, the owners of the venue, is currently investing €11.5m to expand Tallaght Stadium.

The works include building a fourth stand to extend the seating capacity to 10,000, renovating the West Stand to incorporate a high-quality corporate area with internal and external seating for 100 people, as well as the creation of three new state of the art conference and meeting spaces suitable for a range of uses.

The sod-turning for the new North Stand took place in June and the facility is due to be completed by July 2023, further cementing Tallaght Stadium’s position as a top-class arena.

Given the venue’s proximity to the M50 and the Luas line, the Council also intends to utilise the stadium as a major concert, entertainment and festival facility which can accommodate up to 20,000 people through stadium seating and temporary on field seating.

This multi-million euro investment will complement the ongoing injection of €80m in other community infrastructure projects such as the delivery of a new innovation centre, the development of a new Heritage Centre in Tallaght’s Cultural Quarter, a new public transport interchange, a new affordable rental housing scheme and the district heating project.

Combined, this investment will significantly enhance the vibrancy of the existing retail, community and cultural framework in an area that has a population approaching almost 100,000 people.

Exciting opportunity

Given the considerable potential for the venue, South Dublin County Council has spent some time analysing the advertising and branding opportunities for the venue, and is now in a position to offer an exciting opportunity to engage with an interested party to take up the naming rights at Tallaght Stadium.

Maintaining the high international standards of a stadium of this scale means that revenue generated through this unique naming right opportunity will be used to support the current investment in the stadium, its ongoing operations, as well as investment in the local community.   

South Dublin County Council is seeking interest from local, national and international brands to add their name to the stadium. The successful tenderer will benefit from a multitude of commercial options including substantial branding opportunities, extensive editorial mentions, TV broadcast, digital media exposure venue rental opportunities.

As far as we are aware, this is the first time in Ireland that a tender process has been engaged for a naming rights opportunity by a local authority for a sporting venue. But that doesn’t really surprise us, as Tallaght Stadium has always been at the forefront of change and innovation.

The degree of sophistication employed to activate a naming rights partnership has elevated significantly in recent years.

Amazon is showcasing its environmental sustainability efforts via the ‘Amazon Climate Pledge Arena’ in Seattle, while the ‘Spotify Camp Nou’ in Barcelona is a high-profile example of how technology firms have entered this space by partnering with a world-famous football club and arena.

However as is the case for all sponsorship, successful fan engagement in naming rights deals is key, particularly when such deals can cause concern among fans. While meaningful activation is important, ideally driven by purpose, the onus is also on brands to ensure they engage with and play a positive role within the community in which a venue is located.

And that’s exactly who we are looking for to help us make Tallaght Stadium an even bigger success. A brand that is committed to a long-term sustainable partnership, who wants to be at the very heart of a thriving sporting and local community, and who, importantly, will embrace the prospect of working together to make Tallaght Stadium a venue of even more local, national and international significance.

This is an exciting time for the venue, but in many ways, the story is really just beginning, and now is someone’s chance to not just name but also shape that story for many years to come.

Further details on how to tender for the naming rights for Tallaght Stadium are here.

+ Jason Frehill is Director of Service for Economic, Enterprise & Tourism Development at South Dublin County Council