The Irish arm of Italian banking group Mediolanum is to bankroll a unique project in one of the most deprived parts of Dublin.
Mediolanum International Funds has announced plans to fund the delivery of the first, full-size community playing pitch for the southwest inner city.
Despite having a population of 47,000 including 8,500 young people under the age of 19, there are no playing pitches in the area, forcing local sports clubs and school teams to travel to different parts of the city to play matches.
At an event in Dublin’s City Hall on Tuesday night, Mediolanum International Funds announced that it had raised more than €1.1 million for community initiatives across Dublin.
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Approximately €500,000 will go towards funding the delivery of a “much-needed sports facility” at St James’s primary school on Basin Lane, it said.
“Liberties, Dublin 8, is an area facing some of Ireland’s toughest challenges around youth vulnerability,” the financial firm said.
“The project will not only deliver the area’s first multipurpose playing pitch for organised sport, but also create long-term opportunities for children and teenagers through access to sport, mentoring and community engagement, fostering stability and reducing risks linked to social exclusion,” it said.
The local Liberty Saints rugby club uses the site for training.
Tom Magee of Sporting Liberties, an umbrella group of local sports clubs which has been spearheading the campaign for a playing pitch, said the impact of the project would “be felt for generations”.
The hope is that the cross-community pitch can be delivered by the end of 2026.
Dublin City Council has committed to delivering a separate playing pitch as part of its planned redevelopment of the nearby Marrowbone Lane depot site.
Mediolanum‘s €1 million donation will also financially support Coolmine Therapeutic Community and Belvedere Youth Club, helping to expand Coolmine’s drug and alcohol programmes and Belvedere Youth Club’s early-intervention and youth development programmes in Dublin’s north inner city.
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“This new initiative goes far beyond fundraising or sport,” said Mediolanum International Funds chief executive Furio Pietribiasi.
“It represents a holistic, partnership-driven model of community development, one that brings together local leadership and business engagement to create real opportunities for young people,” he said.
Minister for Public Expenditure Jack Chambers said: “The Mediolanum Philanthropic Collective shows what can be achieved when communities, charities and businesses come together with a shared purpose, creating inclusive spaces and opportunities that strengthen communities through sport, education and local leadership.”
