ONE OF AMERICAN FOOTBALL’S most famous sides, the Pittsburgh Steelers, could be on their way to Ireland for what would be an historic game at Croke Park.

A spokesperson for the department of sport confirmed to TheScore.ie that ‘preliminerary talks’ have taken place in a bid to bring an NFL regular season game to GAA HQ in the 2011-2012 season.

The Steelers are owned by the family of Dan Rooney, the current US Ambassador in Ireland.

A spokesperson for sports minster Mary Hanifan said the department are keen to secure the lucrative event in Drumcondra.

“Obviously from a tourism and culture point of view it would be of great interest. There has been nothing agreed as of yet but it’s something that’s been looked at. There has been official talks,” the spokesperson said.

The game would be held this autumn if a deal was brokered.  Both the GAA and the Pittsburgh Steelers are yet to respond to queries.

Tourism

The Irish Echo earlier  carried quotes from a source in the department, which also confirmed that discussions has occurred. “Minister Mary Hanafin would very much welcome such a move to hold a future NFL game in Ireland, which has such a proud sporting tradition.”

“There would be a great welcome for visiting fans traveling with the teams to Ireland as well as huge interest locally,  and a knock on boost for Ireland from a tourism perspective,” the spokeswoman said.

The Steelers face the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl on Sunday week. Despite the prospective opposition, as one of the game’s most successful sides, Pittsburgh would be major draw for NFL fans throughout Europe.

Controversial quarterback ‘Big’ Ben Roethlisberger recently said he would like to bring a regular NFL game to Ireland, when asked about another fixture in London.

The QB was accused of rape last pre-season; the charges were ultimately dropped.

Croke Park has previously hosted college games while Notre Dame and Navy are scheduled to meet next year in Lansdowne Rd.