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American football will return to Dublin in 2020, kicking off a five-game Aer Lingus college football series over subsequent years.
Famed Indiana college Notre Dame, aka The Fighting Irish, will take on old rivals Navy at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday 29 August 2020.
The sides faced each other at the same venue in in 2012 in front of 48,000 fans, 35,000 fans of whom travelled from the US, resulting in an estimated €100m boost for the national economy.
Croke Park (2014) and the Aviva (2016) have since hosted college games with attendances in excess of 40,000.
The University of Notre Dame has strong historical links to Ireland and has established one of the largest and most widespread fan bases in college football.
Currently coached by Brian Kelly, Notre Dame has had the vast majority of wins in this fixture including the two occasions it was played in Dublin – Croke Park in 1996 and the Aviva six years ago.
Navy is a team made up of players enrolled in the US Naval Academy and with one of the nation’s oldest college football programmes.
The fixture between the two teams was first played in 1927 and is repeated annually.
Notre Dame Director of Athletics Jack Swarbrick said: “The University of Notre Dame, our football program, our alumni and fans had such a wonderful experience in 2012.
“The people of Ireland were incredibly welcoming and made our time on the Emerald Isle unforgettable.
“I’m so excited, not only for our student-athletes and those that will travel from the states, but for the people of Ireland and all of those that will make this another experience to cherish.”
Naval Academy Director of Athletics Chet Gladchuk added: “We are thrilled and excited to return to Aviva Stadium in Dublin for the 94th playing of the Navy-Notre Dame game,” said Gladchuk. “In 2012, it was one of the greatest airlifts in all of sports with more than 35,000 people coming from the United States to witness the beauty of Ireland and the extravaganza that is Navy-Notre Dame and we expect just as many people to return in 2020.
“We are looking forward to a great matchup in a country that knows no bounds for hospitality.”
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