DUBLIN CITY COUNCIL has released its plans to stage an outdoor screening of the Euro 2016 match between Ireland and France this Sunday at Smithfield Plaza.
The fan zone will be open to football fans hoping to soak up the pre-match atmosphere from 12.30pm onwards, the council said in a statement today.
A giant screen, measuring 48 square metres, will be put up especially for the event, which will be strictly alcohol-free.
The council organised the event in response to calls from politicians, local councillors and members of the public in the wake of Ireland’s extraordinary defeat of Italy on Wednesday night.
They now face host nation France in Lyon in the knock-out stages of the competition.
The match screening will be family-friendly, with a picnic area, buskers, bouncy castles and face-painting, Dublin’s Lord Mayor, Críona Ní Dhálaigh, said.
“I know there are plenty of people who could not make it to Lyon,” Ní Dhálaigh said.
So please come down to Smithfield Plaza and enjoy the atmosphere and hopefully a great match, on the big screen with your fellow Ireland fans and hopefully some French fans.
People are advised to arrive early and use public transport to get to and from the square, as there will be no special parking arrangements in place.
This being Ireland, fans are also being warned to prepare for changeable weather conditions.
Local Government Minister Simon Harris welcomed the establishment of the fan zone.
“The Irish soccer team’s progression to the knockout stages of the Euro 2016 is a source of great pride for the country as a whole,” he said.
On behalf of the government, I am delighted that on Sunday there will be an opportunity for fans to come together in Smithfield, in a family friendly setting, to cheer on the boys in green as they take on the host nation, France.
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