Croke Park
| Croker | |
 |
|
| Location | Jones Road, Dublin 3, Ireland |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 53°21′38.70″N 6°15′4.80″W / 53.3607500°N 6.2513333°WCoordinates: 53°21′38.70″N 6°15′4.80″W / 53.3607500°N 6.2513333°W |
| Public transit | Drumcondra railway station |
| Owner | GAA |
| Capacity | 82,300 (73,500 seated) |
| Field size | 144.5m x 88m |
| Surface | soil pitch |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | 1880 |
| Opened | 1884 |
| Renovated | 2004 |
| Construction cost | €260 million (2004 renovation) |
| Architect | Gilroy McMahon |
| Project manager | Seamus Monahan & Partners |
| Structural engineer | Horgan Lynch & Partners |
| Tenants | |
| Gaelic Athletic Association | |
| Website | |
| www |
|
Croke Park (Irish: Páirc an Chrócaigh, IPA: [ˈpaːɾʲc ən̪ˠ ˈxɾˠoːkˠə]) is a GAA stadium located in Dublin, Ireland. Named in honour of Archbishop Thomas Croke, it is often called Croker by some GAA fans and locals. It serves both as the principal stadium and headquarters of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA).
Since 1884 the site has been used primarily by the GAA to host Gaelic games, most notably the annual All-Ireland finals in football and hurling. Both the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2003 Special Olympics, as well as numerous music concerts by major international acts, have been held in the stadium. During the construction of the Aviva Stadium, Croke Park hosted games played by the Ireland national rugby union team and the Republic of Ireland national football team. In June 2012, the stadium was used to host the closing ceremony of the 50th International Eucharistic Congress during which Pope Benedict XVI gave an address over video link to approximately eighty thousand people.
Following a redevelopment programme started in the 1990s, Croke Park has a capacity of 82,300, making it the third largest stadium in Europe, and the largest not usually used for association football.
The area now known as Croke Park was owned in the 1880s by Maurice Butterly and known as the City and Suburban Racecourse, or Jones' Road sports ground. From 1890 it was also used by the Bohemian Football Club. In 1901 Jones' Road hosted the IFA Cup football final when Cliftonville defeated Freebooters.
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