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Croke Park Classic is coming to GAA HQ

1,364 views · Published 17 July 2013 · 2:34 · Indexed 21 October 2026

Channel: GAA - officialgaa · 2013 · Sports

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The Croke Park Classic will be the first time that UCF and Penn State have played outside the United States. The last American Football game hosted in Croke Park was in 1996 when Notre Dame defeated Navy. Both of these colleges were back in Dublin last year when they attracted a capacity attendance of almost 50,000 to their fixture.

"This is a hugely significant event for Croke Park and Ireland. We in the GAA are looking forward to hosting a competitive sporting occasion," said Páraic Duffy GAA Director General.

"Irish people are renowned for their love of sport as evidenced by the thousands who attend our games throughout the year. I have no doubt that this game will be every bit as attractive."

Organisers of last year's game in Dublin estimated that the game added €100m to the Irish economy as well as contributing to the nearly 15% growth in American visitors in the period August-October 2012 compared to the same three months in 2011.

Speaking at the announcement, Minister for Transport Tourism and Sport Leo Varadkar said: "This will be a fantastic event for Croke Park and for Ireland. The Navy vs Notre Dame game in 2012 welcomed 35,000 US visitors to Dublin. The "Croke Park Classic" will be every bit as important, and just as exciting, and both teams are guaranteed a warm welcome. It's great news for sports fans, for the GAA and the wider economy. I congratulate everyone involved on making this possible."

Veteran UCF Knights Coach George O'Leary was a mentor of Penn State Nittany Lions coach Bill O'Brien at Georgia Tech (1995-2001). "We are very excited about the prospect of playing our 2014 season opener in Dublin," said Knights Coach O'Leary, in Croke Park for today's announcement. "It's a great opportunity for UCF, and a chance for us to grow the exposure of our football programme."

"On a personal level, Coach O'Brien (Penn State) and myself are both of Irish heritage, so obviously it means a great deal to both of us to be in a position to bring our teams here. We are confident that Croke Park will be an excellent venue for us to play in, we have been hugely impressed to date with the facilities and we are looking forward to a huge crowd to get our 2014 season off to a flying start."

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