The GAA is the first of the three main sporting bodies in Northern Ireland to agree in principle to use the proposed stadium earmarked for the Maze prison site, according to Tony Whitehead of the North's Strategic Investment Board.
The go-ahead from the British government for the £80 million (€118 million) 42,000-seater stadium hinges on guarantees that it will be used for crowd-drawing Gaelic, soccer and rugby games. This commitment from the GAA is viewed as a major boost for the venture.
Mr Whitehead said he hoped this would prove a spur for the other two sporting bodies, the Irish Football Association (IFA) and the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU), to make similar commitments.
"Before ministers could take any decision on commitment on proceeding with the stadium, we needed the three sports bodies to commit to the assumptions that we put together in the business plan," he said yesterday.
"What happened since then is that the GAA has written back now and committed in principle to the minimum use of the stadium required."
Mr Whitehead said one of the GAA conditions for using the stadium was that there would be "neutral" access to the facility, in that supporters would not have to pass through potential sectarian flashpoints to get to games.
The Maze is directly off the M1 and the promoters of the project are confident that there would be no difficulty opening a slip road from the motorway to the venue. Mr Whitehead said he would be working "very hard" to persuade the IFA and IRFU to make similar pledges. "When we get the two other bodies over the line, ministers can then make a formal decision on the stadium itself," he added.
If the green light for the stadium is given it is hoped it would be completed by 2010. This would also allow three or four soccer games associated with the London Olympics in 2012 to be played there, said Mr Whitehead.
For "commercial reasons" he declined to say what, at a minimum, the GAA rental commitment was worth. It is hoped the stadium running costs would mainly come from Gaelic games, rugby and soccer and concerts.
It is understood the GAA has agreed that one of the two International Rules series games staged in Ireland on alternate years would be played at the stadium.
There are, however, no guarantees for specific games such as the Ulster football final.
Mr Whitehead said an Ulster final involving, say, Armagh versus Tyrone would draw a Croke Park crowd, but if that were a drawn game the replay could be played at the Maze stadium.
"For a stadium to be viable it's not necessarily bums on the seats but ticket prices," he said. "We asked the three sports bodies to commit to a minimum rental per year and the GAA have committed to that."
GAA spokespeople dealing with the issue could not be contacted yesterday.