The announcers for the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Week Four game against the Minnesota Vikings in Ireland have been announced. Joe Davis will serve as play-by-play announcer, Greg Olsen will be the color analyst, and Pam Oliver and Jamie Erdahl will work on the sidelines. The National Football League made this announcement in a press release.
The game is scheduled to take place at Croke Park in Dublin on Sept. 28 and will be broadcast on NFL Network, with streaming also available through NFL+. Kickoff is set for 9:30 a.m. Eastern time.
This matchup marks the first National Football League regular season game ever played in Ireland. It is also notable as the first time a game between these two teams has taken place across three different countries. The last international meeting between the Steelers and Vikings occurred on Sept. 29, 2013, in London.
The Minnesota Vikings’ schedule includes their game against the Steelers in Dublin during Week Four, followed by a return to London to play against the Cleveland Browns on Oct. 5. They will become the first team to play games in two different countries outside of the United States in consecutive weeks. The Vikings are currently undefeated (4-0) in international regular season games.
Pittsburgh Steelers president Art Rooney II expressed enthusiasm about playing a game in Ireland: “The opportunity for the Pittsburgh Steelers to play in Ireland is truly special, not only because of the Rooney family history there but because it allows us to connect with Irish fans while also giving fans who travel from Pittsburgh and beyond a unique football experience (…) We are thrilled to be part of this historic event and to represent Pittsburgh on a global stage.” Rooney reiterated that next month’s travel plans for Dublin would mirror those from their London trip in 2013: “I think the team is planning to leave on Thursday, arriving In Dublin on Friday morning (…) So we’ll have two practices Friday and Saturday. And the game on Sunday. And leave right after the game,” Rooney told Andrew Stockey of WTAE.
Steelers All-Pro defensive tackle Cam Heyward reflected recently on his podcast about challenges faced during their previous overseas trip when they lost to Minnesota: “We left Thursday night and arrived Friday morning (…) Everybody was asleep during practice. Everybody was falling asleep during the stretch. Then we had meetings after, everybody fell asleep there. Then, during the game, everybody was asleep in the first half. It’s rough because you’re going, what? It’ll be five hours ahead? So you’re trying to get sleep on a plane going over there. It’s not ideal.”
Rooney indicated that despite previous difficulties related to travel fatigue experienced by players such as Heyward and former quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, no changes would be made to this year’s travel itinerary.
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