New National Football Centre site secured by IFA

Irish FA technical director Aaron Hughes believes a National Football Centre can be a game-changer for Northern Ireland's international fortunes after plans to build the new facility near Ballymena were unveiled on Wednesday.

The IFA has secured a 50-acre site opposite the Galgorm resort where it plans to build a "state-of-the-art, multi-million pound" campus that will serve all levels from national teams to grassroots programmes, with a goal of opening the doors for the first time in 2028.

After a wide-ranging search for a suitable site, Wednesday’s announcement is a significant concrete step in realising an ambition which dates back more than a decade, to create what will be the leading football facility in the country.

"You’re trying to align everything, to create your own identity, culture, your own space that you can call home," Hughes said.

"When people drive through the gates, you’re creating that environment that speaks for itself before a ball’s even been kicked."

Artists impressions revealed on Wednesday show four outdoor pitches and one indoor facility, but Hughes said those are purely to give a rough idea for now. Having secured a site, the next job is to work out how to best make use of the available space.

"It’s got to serve different levels," Hughes added. "For our senior international players coming in from maybe some of the training grounds (in the Premier League and Championship), they’ve got to feel like they’re walking into something that is not less than what they’re used to.

"They’ve got to feel like they’re walking into a high-performance environment. But our senior players are probably going to use it the least because they’re only in and out of camps. So then it has to serve your daily programmes, youth