Dublin rolls out the green carpet for Cyclone Nation ahead of Aer Lingus College Football Classic
POWERED BY CARLāS AUTO GROUP. ANY OF YOU OUT THERE IRISH OR EVER BEEN TO IRELAND? IāM ONE FOR TWO ON THAT, BUT NO WORRIES IF YOUāVE STRUCK OUT. SCOTT REISTER IS IN DUBLIN AND IS ABOUT TO SHOW YOU ENOUGH TO MAKE YOU FEEL LIKE YOU ARE RIGHT THERE WITH HIM. HELLO AGAIN EVERYONE! SCOTT REISTER COMING AT YOU FROM THE GUINNESS STOREHOUSE IN DUBLIN, IRELAND. THE PINT IS EMPTY, BUT IāM GOING TO SHOW YOU SOMETHING AMAZING THAT WAS ON TOP OF IT IN JUST A MINUTE. BUT FIRST WE GOT TO TALK ABOUT THE FOOTBALL TEAM. THEREāS A HUGE GAME COMING UP FOR THOSE IOWA STATE CYCLONES EARLY ON THURSDAY, ĢĒŠÄvlog WAS THE ONLY STATION THERE AS MATT CAMPBELL AND HIS CYCLONES TOUCHED DOWN AND ARRIVED AT THE HOTEL IN DOWNTOWN DUBLIN. THIS TEAM IS ON A MISSION TO START THE YEAR ONE ZERO WITH A WIN OVER THE KANSAS STATE WILDCATS, AND YOUāLL SEE THAT SOME OF THE PLAYERS STILL WEARING THOSE SUNGLASSES. THAT WAS A RECOMMENDATION FROM A SLEEP SPECIALIST THAT CAME ON AND TALKED TO THE TEAM LAST WEEK ABOUT HOW TO DEFEAT JET LAG FOR THIS SQUAD. IT WAS A 7.5 HOUR FLIGHT DIRECT FROM DES MOINES, SO THAT CERTAINLY HELPS. THEY TOOK SIX BUSSES TO UNLOAD AND GET SETTLED IN TO THEIR HOTEL IN DOWNTOWN DUBLIN, AND IT WAS PRETTY NEAT TO SEE ALL THE ORGANIZATION. IT TAKES PLACE. LATER IN THAT DAY THEY WENT OFF TO PRACTICE AND THEN WE WERE ON TO AVIVA STADIUM TO CHECK OUT SOME OF THE SIGHTS. AND THIS IS AN INCREDIBLE STADIUM HERE. SEATS 55,000 AND ON THIS DAY SATURDAY COMING UP, IT WILL BE 47,000. THEY HAD TO RECONFIGURE THE SEATS A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE ITāS AN AMERICAN FOOTBALL GAME, NOT A SOCCER MATCH AS THEY PLAY, ALTHOUGH A LOT OF THE LOCALS HERE ARE REFERRING TO THE MATCH COMING UP ON SATURDAY. ITāS GOING TO BE CLOSE TO A SELLOUT. ITāS ALMOST THERE IN TERMS OF BEING SOLD OUT. THE HYPE IS THERE, AND AS FAR AS THE CYCLONES, THEY HAVE HAD A GREAT TIME. THEY WENT TO SAINT PATRICKāS CATHEDRAL. THIS IS DEFINITELY A TRIP THEYāLL REMEMBER FOREVER. IT WAS GOOD. YOU KNOW, WE TOOK A LITTLE WALK, YOU KNOW, I AINāT GONNA LIE. WE LOW KEY JAYWALKED AS A TEAM. BUT, YOU KNOW, IT WAS STILL KIND OF COOL, YOU KNOW? SEE, YOU KNOW, JUST THE PEOPLE AROUND THE COMMUNITY, LIKE, THEYāRE THEYāRE WELCOME TO US. YOU KNOW, THEY BROUGHT US IN WITH OPEN ARMS. AND FEEL LIKE JUST LIKE ANY OTHER HUMAN BEINGS, THEYāRE ALL EXCITED JUST TO SEE US, YOU KNOW, NOT KNOWING, HAVE A CLUE WHO WE ARE. YOU WALK OUT IN THE STADIUM AND ITāS ITāS PRETTY SPECIAL, YOU KNOW, ITāS GOT JUST AN ICONIC VIBE TO IT. AND OBVIOUSLY WE KNOW AND RESPECT HOW SPECIAL THIS RIVALRY IS. SO YOU THROW THOSE TWO THINGS AT IT AND JUST MAKES IT FOR A REALLY SPECIAL OCCASION. AND THEN IT WAS ON TO THE GUINNESS STOREHOUSE, AN ABSOLUTE MEGA PARTY FOR THE CYCLONES THAT CAME HERE. 1600 OF THEM. AND THIS HAS TO BE THE COOLEST THING IN A DEFINITE SEE OF HISTORY HERE. YOU COULD GET YOUR PICTURE IMPRINTED ON THE FOAM ON TOP OF YOUR GLASS OF GUINNESS. ARE YOU KIDDING ME? THATāS OUR MAN, TONY. ONE OF MANY THAT GOT THAT INCREDIBLE SOUVENIR THAT LASTED JUST UNTIL HE TOOK A DRINK. THANK YOU FOR WATCHING AND FOLLOWING ALONG AT HOME. AND ITāS BEEN A GREAT TIME WITH ALL THESE CYCLONE FANS HERE IN DUBLIN UNTIL WE GOT MORE FOR YOU.
Dublin rolls out the green carpet for Cyclone Nation ahead of Aer Lingus College Football Classic
Updated: 12:34 AM CDT Aug 22, 2025
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Iowa Stateās Cardinal and Gold received a grand Irish welcome this week as university leaders and hundreds of fans converged on the capital ahead of Saturdayās Aer Lingus College Football Classic against Kansas State ā the 109th edition of āFarmageddonā and Iowa Stateās first-ever international football game.The festivities began at Dublin City Hall, where Iowa State leaders, including University President Wendy Wintersteen, were formally welcomed. By nightfall, a marquee celebration unfolded at the Guinness Storehouse, where an estimated 1,600 fans filled all seven floors of the historic attraction and packed the Gravity Bar, with sweeping views of the city.Across the city, Cyclone spirit was unmistakable. The Iowa State band climbed atop doubleādecker buses to serenade Dublin with the fight song ā this time with a whimsical twist of kazoos and tambourines ā drawing smiles and cheers along the route.The trip wasnāt just about football. Three Iowa rugby teams ā the Southeast Polk girls, the Bondurant boys, and the Iowa State rugby team ā competed in Dublin against Terenure College, a finishing program for athletes seeking the next level of play. It marked the first time any Iowa high school teams, girls or boys, played the traditional 15āaāside format in an international setting. Roughly 82 Iowa high school athletes made the journey. With the celebrations winding down and kickoff drawing near, Cyclone Nationās enthusiasm continues to build for a historic weekend abroad. For fans back home, ĢĒŠÄvlog will air a halfāhour special Friday at 6:30 p.m., offering a frontārow seat to the sights, sounds, and stories from Dublin as Iowa State readies for its international debut.WATCH: The Irish experience: Seeing and hearing the Cardinal and Gold across Dublin
DUBLIN — Iowa Stateās Cardinal and Gold received a grand Irish welcome this week as university leaders and hundreds of fans converged on the capital ahead of Saturdayās Aer Lingus College Football Classic against Kansas State ā the 109th edition of āFarmageddonā and Iowa Stateās first-ever international football game.
The festivities began at Dublin City Hall, where Iowa State leaders, including University President Wendy Wintersteen, were formally welcomed. By nightfall, a marquee celebration unfolded at the Guinness Storehouse, where an estimated 1,600 fans filled all seven floors of the historic attraction and packed the Gravity Bar, with sweeping views of the city.
Across the city, Cyclone spirit was unmistakable. The Iowa State band climbed atop doubleādecker buses to serenade Dublin with the fight song ā this time with a whimsical twist of kazoos and tambourines ā drawing smiles and cheers along the route.
The trip wasnāt just about football. Three Iowa rugby teams ā the Southeast Polk girls, the Bondurant boys, and the Iowa State rugby team ā competed in Dublin against Terenure College, a finishing program for athletes seeking the next level of play. It marked the first time any Iowa high school teams, girls or boys, played the traditional 15āaāside format in an international setting. Roughly 82 Iowa high school athletes made the journey.
With the celebrations winding down and kickoff drawing near, Cyclone Nationās enthusiasm continues to build for a historic weekend abroad.
For fans back home, ĢĒŠÄvlog will air a halfāhour special Friday at 6:30 p.m., offering a frontārow seat to the sights, sounds, and stories from Dublin as Iowa State readies for its international debut.
WATCH: The Irish experience: Seeing and hearing the Cardinal and Gold across Dublin