More than 40 football clubs in Northern Ireland can now apply for money from a £36.2m fund which was initially announced 14 years ago.

The Northern Ireland Football Fund dates back to 2011, when it was called the Sub-Regional Stadia Programme.

At the same time, £62.5m was allocated to rebuild Casement Park GAA stadium in west Belfast.

The aim of the fund is to improve sporting facilities for players and fans, with clubs like Glentoran, Cliftonville, Larne, Derry City and Coleraine among those expected to apply.

Making the announcement, the Communities Minister Gordon Lyons has admitted that much more money will be required but insisted the new fund was “only a beginning”.

An estimated £200m is needed to bring facilities in Northern Ireland up to the required standard.

Lyons was asked by BBC News NI why, in his first year in office, the Casement redevelopment had not yet been delivered.

He said: “There is a significant funding gap between the money that is on the table right now and the plans that are on the table for the redevelopment of Casement Park.”

On football facilities in Northern Ireland, he said he had been shocked at the “dire” state of some grounds.

“My vision is to improve conditions for players and to provide safe, accessible football grounds for supporters,” he said.

“This will require additional funding in due course, and I will be seeking to sustain the fund with further investment from a range of sources.”

In order to be granted money, clubs must demonstrate that they will contribute at least 5% of the total project costs.

For council-owned grounds, this rises to 40%.

The fund is open to 41 clubs in total in the men’s and women’s game.

They are all members of the Northern Ireland Football League (NIFL) or League of Ireland who play their home matches at a venue located in Northern Ireland.

NIFL chief executive Gerard Lawlor welcomed the announcement “with cautious optimism”.

He added: “This current fund will, unfortunately, have nowhere near the impact as initially intended, and as the minister himself has stated, much more is needed to have the required impact.”

Irish FA President, Conrad Kirkwood, called it a “positive step forward”.

He added: “It is long overdue and falls significantly short of the Department for Communities’ own estimated £200 million required to upgrade performance club grounds, grassroots facilities, and establish a National Football Centre for Northern Ireland.”

Not all of the £36.2m is available to the 41 clubs mentioned.

Some of the money is earmarked for grassroots facilities and the planned new National Football Centre.

The clubs can apply for one of three categories of grants:

• Projects with a total cost of up to £1.5m
• Up to £6m
• More than £6m

The application process is expected to close in mid-March.

It is not clear how long it will be before the first money is handed out, and work on new projects can begin.

Minister Lyons said he wants to see improvements at league grounds begin “as quickly as possible”.