The pilot events will depend on the venue capacity and “health situation”.
Concerts and live events could be piloted across Ireland as early as July with the re-opening of cultural venues, according to a Government source.
The events are expected to involve Covid-19 testing and are dependent on the vaccine roll-out programme, as well as case numbers and hospitalisation figures.
Culture Minister Catherine Martin met last week with industry stakeholders to discuss the plans and is seeking to progress proposals, agreed as part of the new re-opening plan, for large-scale test events.
While no events or venues have yet been confirmed, a Government source told the Irish Independent on Sunday that the planning is underway, describing the organisation of the events as “complex”.
“The pilot events will depend on the venue selected, capacity, and where we are from a health situation,” they told the publication.
“It’s complex, everything from planning, crowd management, and delivery of the sporting or music event must be considered.”
Martin said last week that Ireland will pilot large-scale sporting events and concerts in the coming months.
While the Minister did not give a timeline for when these events will take place, she did confirm that they will be allowed both “indoors and outdoors”.
Martin said on Thursday that she was happy to be able to give a “hopeful signal” for the summer after the Cabinet agreed to pilot the events in a move mirroring a number of other European countries.
“I’ve received agreement from my Cabinet colleagues, for pilot large-scale events, indoors and outdoors,” she said.
“This is a positive signal to the events industry whose doors have remained closed for so long, that we are planning to reopen you again in a safe way. I hope this is a positive, hopeful signal for summer to come.
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