Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has 14 days to reconsider its environmental assessment of the proposed Irish FA National Football Centre at Galgorm, after two local residents issued a pre-action letter over the decision.

Sarah and John Herbison, who live on Ballymena Road, have instructed solicitors to challenge the council's determination that the 22-hectare development does not require an Environmental Statement. The legal action has not reached court and does not challenge whether planning permission should be granted, only the process used to decide the level of environmental scrutiny.

The Herbisons argue the project should be treated as Environmental Impact Assessment development. Their letter says technical advisers acting for the applicant previously accepted that it was EIA development requiring an Environmental Statement, but the council has twice concluded through screening that no such assessment is needed.

Their solicitors described the idea that a 22-hectare open countryside site for a national football training centre with six pitches and capacity for thousands does not constitute EIA development as unreasonable. The position has not been tested in court.

The pre-action letter gives the council 14 days to reconsider. If it does not, the Herbisons intend to apply for judicial review, which would examine whether the council reached its environmental determination lawfully and followed correct process, not the wider planning merits. The letter also states the council has an opportunity to avoid unnecessary litigation and should discharge its obligations under the Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2017.

The planning application remains under consideration. Reference LA02/2026/0169/F covers about 22 hectares around 125 Fenaghy Road, between Galgorm and Cullybackey. The site is bounded by Fenaghy Road to the south and a railway line to the north.

The proposed centre includes six pitches: five outdoor and one indoor, with three hybrid, three artificial and three floodlit. One pitch would be for community use. One pitch would have spectator stands seating 1,100 and 500, and another would have a 500-seat stand. Plans also include a two-storey building with training, changing, medical, catering, administration and media facilities, plus a separate community pitch building, photovoltaic panels, internal roads, lighting, fencing, parking, landscaping and new accesses from Fenaghy Road.

The Irish FA submitted the application in April. It describes the centre as a long-term investment for elite, grassroots and community football and notes Northern Ireland is one of a small number of UEFA nations without a dedicated national football centre.

The Right Facility, Wrong Location campaign supports the principle of a National Football Centre but says the Galgorm countryside site is unsuitable. It has raised concerns about traffic on Fenaghy Road, noise, floodlighting, loss of countryside and potential effects on wildlife and nearby properties. Local residents, businesses and organisations have lodged objections, including Galgorm Parks Riding School and Riding for the Disabled.

The Irish FA says the development would provide a dedicated home for Northern Ireland's senior and underage men's and women's teams and support grassroots players, schools and community activities. Although the published neighbour consultation period has passed, the council planning office has confirmed representations can be accepted until the application is determined.

The council's response during the 14-day period will determine whether the dispute is resolved or moves to formal judicial review proceedings, potentially placing the environmental screening decision before the High Court while the wider planning application remains undecided.