Joanna Byrne (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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398. To ask the Minister for Culture, Heritage and the Gaeltacht when the sports capital and equipment programme and large-scale sport infrastructure fund will open for new applications for much-needed funding; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5982/25]

Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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In 2024 allocations under the Large Scale Sport Infrastructure Fund (LSSIF) totalled €173 million, benefiting 35 individual projects. With this announcement, the cumulative investment from the LSSIF since the first round in 2020 totals €297 million.

Last year the LSSIF received an unprecedented demand for funding, amounting to €665 million from 96 applications. As a result of this significant demand, a range of valid applications did not receive an LSSIF allocation at the initial allocation stage.

In relation to LSSIF applications which have not received an allocation, it should be noted that a reserve list is being prepared by my Department. All remaining valid applications are being considered for prioritised inclusion on this list which will be published in due course.

Under the Community Sport Facilities Fund (CSFF) ,formerly the Sports Capital and Equipment Programme, over a quarter of a billion euro was allocated in 2024 to community sports clubs and facilities, representing the largest-ever investment in sports facilities in communities across Ireland.

The timing of further rounds of the LSSIF and the CSFF will depend on the necessary funding being available and in that regard the Programme for Government confirms that the Government will maintain sports funding to get more people participating in all levels of sport, particularly targeting cohorts in society where there are lower than average participation levels including people with disabilities and older people.