Peter McKenna, the CEO of Croke Park, has cast doubt on the possibility of a Katie Taylor boxing match at the iconic stadium this year. He stated that promoter Eddie Hearn, who represents Taylor, hasn't contacted him about the proposed event. McKenna believes Hearn's public statements about the fight are more of a 'megaphone diplomacy' tactic than a concrete plan. He also highlighted the logistical challenges and time constraints involved in organizing such a large-scale event.
Peter McKenna, the chief executive of Croke Park , has expressed his belief that a boxing match featuring Katie Taylor at the iconic GAA stadium is highly improbable this year. The possibility of a trilogy fight between Taylor and her rival Amanda Serrano at Croke Park was first floated by promoter Eddie Hearn , who represents Taylor.
Hearn argued that while the costs associated with booking Croke Park have been prohibitive in the past, it could become feasible in 2025, anticipating a full stadium turnout for the highly anticipated bout. 'We're not going to dwell on the costs of Croke Park, it is what it is, but there is a lot of revenue in this fight now which gives you the opportunity,' Hearn, head of Matchroom Boxing, stated last month. However, speaking at the launch of the GAA's 2024 annual report and accounts, McKenna revealed that he has not been in contact with Hearn since last October and criticized the promoter's approach as 'megaphone diplomacy.' 'Being honest, Eddie hasn't been in touch with us,' McKenna admitted. 'The last time I spoke to Matchroom was, I'd say, probably October of last year. It flashes up every so often but no, we haven't been contacted. 'It's trying to find out where would be the slot (for hosting the fight). I think the difficulty there is that, what’s the style of the event? And what time of the year it would be on. We have Oasis and Robbie Williams so with the calendar there’s not a lot of space to say, 'Yeah, I could fit it in on that weekend', or whatever.' When questioned about the possibility of Taylor's fight taking place in 2025, McKenna shook his head, indicating skepticism. 'The approach seems to be megaphone diplomacy, throw everything at it and something will happen in that sense,' he remarked about Hearn's apparent strategy. 'Katie Taylor is a magnificent athlete and I think everyone is very, very proud of what she’s achieved as an athlete. 'But to fill Croke Park with 80,000, you need an undercard, you need a whole razmatazz to go with it. Those things can’t be done in a short period of time. Even getting an event management plan together, getting the City Council to approve it and so on. 'There’d be a fair bit of work in that. So I think it’s a kite flyer rather than a genuine (plan), so I can’t see it happening because we haven’t heard about it, bar reading in the papers.' McKenna declined to comment on the possibility of a National Football League (NFL) game at the stadium this year, a topic that has been widely speculated about. However, he expressed optimism about Croke Park Ltd.'s performance in 2024, highlighting record revenue of nearly EUR60 million, partly driven by six concerts held at the venue. 'EUR59.7m, it's huge,' McKenna stated regarding Croke Park's 2024 revenue. '1.65 million people coming through the doors. They are fantastic figures. Now there’s a huge amount of work in doing that and it’s credit to everyone who pulls it together. Yeah, it is probably a record year. You could go back to different times but I would see it as being the best year we’ve had.' McKenna revealed that Croke Park will host three concerts this year – two Oasis dates and a Robbie Williams performance – but that will likely mark a reduction in revenue compared to 2024. 'That will probably pull it back a wee bit,' he predicted. McKenna emphasized that despite hosting various concerts and rugby matches, Gaelic Games remain the 'core activity' of the stadium. 'Non-core activity went very well this year, the year just recorded,' he said. 'But we had nothing (in terms of concerts) last year, 2023. So it can be very up and down. You certainly wouldn’t be booking mortgages on the back of it. When it’s good it’s very good but it can go chilly. Covid is a good example. We had matches here but there was nobody at them because that was the nature of it. We see these years as benefits rather than the norm.
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