For the first time a college league American football game is played outside of the US.
At Lansdowne Road in Dublin, a stadium that normally hosts rugby and soccer games Boston College Eagles take on West Point Army Cadets in an American football game.
In true American style, the football for the game is delivered from the air by a parachutist who lands in the middle of the pitch.
Ball delivered by parachute at Lansdowne Road (1988)
Majorettes warming up before the game between Boston College and West Point (1988)
During the pre-match warm up the crowd is entertained by majorettes. As crowd the do the Mexican wave Tánaiste Brian Lenihan and Minister for Tourism and Transport John Wilson take part. Against all the pre-match odds, Boston College dominated the game from the outset. Player performance was helped by instant communication from the sideline with coaches in the stand via telephone.
The home of Irish rugby had never seen anything like it. It was American razzmatazz in all its glory.
The £2 million spectacular is watched by over 40,000 people packed into Lansdowne Road and on television live across America. The first ever college league American football game to be played in Europe went on for over four hours. With over 10,000 American visitors in Dublin for an event expected to generate around £20 million for the economy.
Spectators including Cardinal Tomas O Fiach, Tánaiste Brian Lenihan and Mayor of Boston Raymond Flynn to give reaction to the game.
Boston College won the game 38 points to 24.
An RTÉ News report broadcast on 19 November 1988. The reporter is Charlie Bird.
Margaret Heckler and Brian Lenihan (1988)
Cheerleaders and a brass band at Lansdowne Road (1988)
All photos by Thomas Holton.
