Irish Rugby
Lansdowne Road to be renamed Aviva Stadium
Scrum.com
February 12, 2009
A general view Lansdowne Road in Dublin, ireland, November, 1995
The old Lansdowne Road is no more, from 2010 the redeveloped ground will be known as the Aviva Stadium © Getty Images
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The redeveloped Lansdowne Road will be known as the Aviva Stadium when it opens its doors for business next year. The ground is named after the British Insurance company Aviva, who have paid a reported 40m euros for 10-year naming-rights at the 50,000 seat ground.

Lansdowne Road had traditionally been the home of Ireland's rugby team before it hosted its final international on 26 November 2006, when Ireland defeated the Pacific Islanders 61-17. Since the redevelopment Ireland's games have been held at Dublin's Croke Park, a ground that had previously only staged Ireland's national sports such as hurling and Gaelic football. The re-developed gound is due for completion in mid 2010.

Included within the naming-rights deal is financial support for both the Irish Rugby Union (IRFU) and Football Association of Ireland's (FAI) various grassroots initiatives.

"We believe that in the difficult economic conditions we are now going through, Aviva Stadium will be of huge benefit to the economy as a whole," said Phillip Browne, chairman of the Landsowne Road Stadium Development Committee (LRSDC) and chief executive of the IFRU. "Previous research shows that the weekend of an Ireland v England rugby international has an economic impact of up to €90 million on the local economy.

"In any given year Aviva Stadium will host around ten major international sporting occasions not to mention concerts and events such as the Uefa Europa League Final [Uefa Cup] which the FAI has already secured or a future Heineken Cup Final which we will undoubtedly get."

"Even taking the most conservative view I do not think it would be exaggerating to say that Aviva Stadium could have an impact of some €250 million on the local economy each year."

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