TALLAGHT Stadium is to be transformed into an American Football style gridiron this week as the Gathering Bowl arrives on August 31.
Teams from Canada and Bristol are set to clash for the first time on Irish soil in a blitz of American Football at the Southside venue.
The evening’s free entertainment was launched by South Dublin Deputy Mayor, Cllr Mick Duff and Jason Sherlock.
The Irish American Football Association (IAFA), The Gathering Dublin, Tallaght Stadium and South Dublin County Council have all come together for the event that is billed as The Gathering Bowl 2013.
It starts at 7pm and offers a great evening of American sports that all the family can enjoy.
The game will feature two top class teams that are among the best in their category of the sport.
The Canadian Greendell Falcons will play the Bristol Academy Pride from the European US High School league.
Both teams will be bringing full squads of players to this transatlantic battle that will be played out on neutral territory in Dublin.
The Falcons are a community based team from Manitoba, Canada. They recruit players from the Winnepeg area and field a number of teams at various ages.
The Falcons squad for The Gathering Bowl – their Euroteam – will feature players from both their high school and college aged squads.
A number of players from the Falcons have progressed onto Canada’s top level professional league, the CFL.
Although they are based in the UK, the Bristol Academy Pride play in the US High School system. This league features teams based in Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Belgium who regularly attract up to 2,000 spectators.
A number of Bristol players have won scholarships to NCAA college football teams in the United States in recent years.
For Irish fans, this will be the only opportunity to watch this level of American Football in Ireland in 2013.
Deputy Mayor of South Dublin Cllr Mick Duff said he was delighted to invite international teams and visitors to the area to compete in the Gathering Bowl at Tallaght Stadium.
“South Dublin is Ireland’s premier business, sport and leisure destination,
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“Don’t forget to tag MeetToCompete if you are attending the event.
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Alan Orr, Irish American Football Association Communications Office, expressed the excitement within the IAFA for this upcoming game.
“We are so delighted to host two international teams from two different backgrounds as part of the Gathering Bowl,
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“We look forward to seeing local people attend the game and embrace the sport of American Football.
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Admission is free but tickets are required so log on to www.americanfootball.ie