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Croke Park, located in the capital city of the Republic of Ireland, Dublin and named after Archbishop Thomas Croke is a Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) stadium.
It has the capacity of holding more than 82,000 people making it the third largest stadium in Europe. It has approved certification from UEFA and FIFA.
History
On September 10th 1891, the stadium hosted its first GAA Athletics meetings. Till the early 1920s the stadium witnessed numerous athletic events taking place.
In November 1920, during the Irish War of Independence, the British Auxiliary Division entered the stadium and 14 civilians lost their lives during Dublin-Tipperary Gaelic football match.
Major Matches
Croke Park hosted the Heineken Cup rugby semi-final, in which Leinster overthrew Munster 25–6. The audience was more than 82,000 it remarked a new world record attendance for a club rugby union game.
Controversy
There was an argument which was taking place in order to utilise Croke Park for other sports rather than GAA. After numerous conflicts and discussion for many years, in 2006 GAA had reached to an agreement with the Football Association of Ireland and Irish Rugby Football Union to host soccer internationals at Croke Park.
Recent Matches
The prestigious tournaments like Allianz Football League, Allianz Hurling League, Lory Meagher Cup Final, Nicky Rackard Cup Final, Leinster GAA Football, GAA Football All-Ireland Championship, GAA Hurling All-Ireland Championship, Lory Meagher Cup and many other tournaments are held at the Croke Park.
