Olympic showjumper Daniel Coyle and rising star Niamh McEvoy got a sneak preview of the newly transformed Laya Arena, ahead of its first major event — the Gallagher Dublin Horse Show, 5–8 August.
This marks the countdown to the public debut of the over 20,000-seat venue — formerly home to the iconic Anglesea Stand — following a once-in-a-generation €52 million redevelopment delivered in partnership with the RDS and Leinster Rugby.
To mark the occasion, laya healthcare also unveiled the Laya Front Row Experience — a new access platform that brings the company’s founding promise to life at the arena. Just as laya gives its members faster access to healthcare when it matters most, the Laya Front Row gives members and fans access to the moments they most want to be close to — starting with an unmissable row of pink seats at the heart of the action.
The Laya Front Row debuts on Wednesday 5 August, Day 1 of the show, featuring the opening ceremony and the first-ever Laya Arena Stakes, the first major event to be run in the newly refurbished arena, and returns on Saturday 8 August, Family Day. Members and fans can enter to win a fully hosted experience, with food and drink served to their seats.
Daniel Coyle, who jumped clear on the opening day of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games for Team Ireland, said: “For any Irish rider, the Gallagher Dublin Horse Show is the one you circle at the start of the season. Competing in front of a home crowd is as special as it gets in our sport. To do that this year in the newly refurbished Laya Arena will only make it more special. The new Anglesea Stand allows fans to be even closer to the action, and the Dublin atmosphere is already famous the world over. Hopefully we as riders can produce the performances to give the crowd every reason to dial it up another level next week.”
Niamh McEvoy, whose victory in last year’s Dublin Stakes at the Horse Show was her first five-star win on Irish soil, said: “Dublin changed everything for me last summer, so to be back and among the first into the new Laya Arena feels like a full-circle moment. This place means so much to Irish riders and Irish fans and now everyone in it is closer to the action. I can’t wait for August.”
D.O. O’Connor, Managing Director, laya healthcare said: “Access is the reason people choose laya. We help members get faster access to the care they need when it matters most. With the Laya Front Row experience, we’re bringing that same idea into the arena, giving our members and fans the chance to be closer to the sport they love and at the heart of the action. Watching Daniel and Niamh get the first look at the new arena shows exactly what this partnership is about: bringing people closer to the moments that matter most.”
Fans can enter the Laya Front Row competition at layaahealthcare.ie/layaarena/
