Croke Park stadium director Peter McKenna has said he is “really confident” that the NFL will return to Ireland in 2027 after missing out on a game this year.<\/p>\n
Minnesota Vikings took on the Pittsburgh Steelers at the stadium last September with enormous interest in game from the Irish public.<\/p>\n
Thousands of American fans flew in for the match, with the Irish government investing \u20ac9.95m, before VAT, into the event.<\/p>\n
NFL commissioner Roger Goodell poured cold water on hopes of an imminent return for the sport this year last week.<\/p>\n
“We did have a wonderful time and I think both clubs had a great time and our fans had a spectacular time,” said Goodell.<\/p>\n
“One of the things about that game that stands out to me is that it felt like the entire island was in support of this.<\/p>\n
“That game had more people come from the States for an international game than any game in our history of the international series, and I think that’s a tribute to Ireland.<\/p>\n
“We will be back, I would guess that will we be back in a few years. We’ve got to work with the officials on that and when that happens but I would expect that to happen and that\u2019s our intention.”<\/p>\n
However Croke Park boss McKenna said today that he has high hopes NFL will be back at the venue within the next two years for the 2027 regular season.<\/p>\n
Speaking to RT\u00c9 Sport at the event to mark the GAA\u2019s annual report, McKenna said: “The [NFL game] was a huge fillip to the Irish economy.<\/p>\n
“And to be fair, we got massive support from the government on that as well.<\/p>\n
“The game that we were hoping for [this year] is going to go to Paris, but [we\u2019re] really confident about getting games in 2027 and hopefully a few more before the decade runs out.”<\/p>\n
McKenna said he couldn’t add any more on the subject as the NFL keep the information “guarded” and they haven’t been allocated anything yet.<\/p>\n