The Showgrounds, Sligo

History

The Showgrounds was leased until 1968 when it was then purchased for Sligo Rovers by a trust foundation representing the people of Sligo. Under the terms of the purchase it can never be mortgaged, sold or used for any commercial purposes other than sport and leisure. The Showgrounds is a 12 acre (49,000 m²) site with the stadium capacity of 3,873 seats.

On 8 November 1978 Sligo opened their new covered accommodation on the Jinks Avenue in a FAI League Cup semi final against Shamrock Rovers.

In November 2001 the new main stand was opened to the public for the League Cup fixture with St. Patrick's Athletic. The stand accommodates 1,853 seats, although there is available capacity for further seating. It has been built in cantilever style to ensure there is no obstructed view.

The Showgrounds was revamped in winter 2006 with the demolition of the ground's most famous "Shed". This was followed by the demolition of the ground's old famous turnstiles. New state of the art turnstiles were built along with front offices. In March 2009 work was finished on a new club shop which is open on match nights. This is situated on the Tracey Avenue Stand side.

In May 2009 the Showgrounds had some major upgrading work done to enable the club to compete in the 2009-10 UEFA Europa League. This work included the building of a new fully tarred car park, along with upgrading work to both all seater stands. An extra 200 seats were added to the Red Stand and also new seating was put into the jinks side of the ground. This work brought the seating capacity of the ground up to 2,700 which was required for competing in the Europa League.

In July 2012 a new stand, now known as the Pet Stop Stand, was completed at the Railway End consisting of 1,323 seats. In the 2016 domestic league season, the Sligo Rovers drew an average home attendance of 2,087, the fourth-highest in the league.

Proposed development

Plans have previously been proposed to demolish the Jinks Avenue Stand and build a new 2,000 seater stand in its place. There have also been plans to add a roof to the new Railway End and replace the old shed end with a new stand, although the roof has since been scrapped due to insufficient funds.

In May 2021, Sligo Rovers unveiled a €17 million plan to redevelop Showgrounds into a 6,000 capacity seater stadium, upgrading the facility to UEFA category 3. The redevelopment plan included a provisional agreement, which would see Connacht Rugby also use the ground for competitions.

Capacity

The record attendance at the ground, of 13,908, was recorded in an FAI Cup semi-final replay between Sligo Rovers and Cobh Ramblers on 17 April 1983.

As of 18 May 2021.

Other uses

The Showgrounds hosted greyhound racing from c.1934 - c.1947, which was initially run by the Sligo Greyhound Racing Company. In 1939, the Sligo greyhound business was purchased by Matthew J. Lyons and John E. Dorris, who then moved the entire operation to Longford Greyhound Stadium.

The North-Western Greyhound Association applied for a licence in September 1945 which was granted by the Irish Coursing Club to James Costello. The racing seems to have ended during 1947.

The Showground hosted the match between champions, Rockmount A.F.C., and Cockhill Celtic in the 2023 FAI Intermediate Cup Final.

References

References

1. "SLIGO ROVERS FOOTBALL CLUB DEVELOPMENT MASTERPLAN".
2. "VW Bank End tickets set to go on sale".
3. "EFS Attendances".
4. Farry, Jessica. (30 April 2025). "Sligo Rovers AGM: €49,932 loss, stadium plans and Russell support".
5. (18 May 2021). "Sligo Rovers unveil €17m vision to redevelop Showgrounds into 6,000-seater stadium".
6. "‘Momentous day’ for Sligo as Sligo Rovers receive over €16million from Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund {{!}} Irish Independent".
7. (1934). "17th meeting of the Sligo Greyhound Racing Company - 05 October 1934". Belfast Telegraph - Belfast, Antrim.
8. (29 March 1988). "Death of Matthew J.Lyons". Irish Independent.
9. Barnes, Julia. (1988). "Daily Mirror Greyhound Fact File, page 422". Ringpress Books.
10. https://www.fai.ie/domestic/news/fai-intermediate-junior-cup-finals-confirmed%C2%A0