I WAS UNAWARE OF THE LARGER STORY
I WAS UNAWARE OF THE LARGER STORY [DUBLIN NFL DEBUT - ART - PR AND CONFLICTING NARRATIVES]
Two Games: The NFL's Dublin Debut and the Battle for the City's Narrative
This post has been a little while in the making, as I needed to confirm all the details.
When the National Football League (NFL) arrived in Dublin for the landmark game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings on 28 September 2025, it brought more than just American football. It unleashed a major marketing campaign that collided, in fascinating and contradictory ways, with the city's own complex stories.
What unfolded was a tale of two games: the official, polished event publicised to the world, and the messy, complex local reality. This friction played out through public art, the story of a landmark building, and a curious incident involving a player.
Art, Advertising, and Erasure
The NFL's arrival was heralded by large-scale public art, which became a focal point for this collision of narratives.
The Official 'Spirit'
The primary, officially-sanctioned mural celebrating Pennsylvania (rather than the game itself) was located in the high-traffic hub of Temple Bar. Created by the acclaimed Irish artist Jacky Sheridan, this vibrant work spanned Curved Street, Temple Lane, and Essex Street. Commissioned by Visit Pennsylvania, it was a colourful act of cultural diplomacy. This was the celebratory, positive face of the NFL's visit.
The Ormond Quay Controversy
Simultaneously, a different "temporary NFL-themed street art" installation on Ormond Quay sparked significant public controversy. To make way for this new piece, one of Dublin's "best-known street murals" – a 2022 collaboration by Neto Vettorello and Asbestos titled 'Do Not Remove' – was painted over.
Commissioned to mark 200 years of Brazilian independence, the 'Do Not Remove' mural depicted a figure with its head covered by bricks and was widely seen as a powerful commentary on Dublin's severe housing and homelessness crisis.
The decision to erase this potent social commentary to make way for what critics called a "gaudy-looking" piece of commercial advertising was met with immediate backlash. As one commentator noted, it was deeply ironic that "one of the few murals that wasn't just an ad" was replaced by what was, in effect, a "handpainted ad for the NFL."
The Centrepiece: The Tara Street Station Mural
This brings us to the most prominent piece of all: the mural beside Tara Street station.
As my photographs clearly show, the famous, large gable end of The Workshop pub – the wall that greets everyone exiting the DART station – was indeed painted with a massive mural for the game. This spectacular artwork, featuring the helmets and logos of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings, was a primary centrepiece for the event.
The real story here is one of memory and layering. This is, of course, the very same wall that was home to one of Dublin's most beloved art installations: the "Dublin Red Squirrel" by Portuguese environmental artist Bordalo II.
Created in 2017 as part of his 'Trash Animals' series, that massive 3D squirrel was built from rubbish and became an instant city icon. When it was removed in 2019, the wall was left blank, becoming a 'ghost' mural in the city's memory.
The 2025 NFL artwork was painted directly onto this famous canvas. This act of layering – placing a new, commercial piece for a global sporting event directly on the site of a famous, lamented piece of environmental art – is perhaps the most potent example of the weekend's narrative battle.
The Demolition Paradox: A Pub's Survival
The story of that famous wall also solves another local puzzle: the building that was "supposed to have been demolished years ago but is still intact."
The building is The Workshop Gastro Pub (formerly the long-standing Kennedy's) at 10 Georges Quay, adjacent to Tara Street station.
The "Dublin Red Squirrel" mural was indeed removed in June 2019, widely reported as being "ahead of the building's demolition." This is the source of the confusion.
However, the demolition order applied only to the adjoining site, "Tara House." The pub itself was explicitly excluded from these plans. The reason is simple: The Workshop / Kennedy's is a Protected Structure.
So, the paradox is solved. The mural was removed because of the massive demolition and construction on the site next door, but the pub itself was never in danger. It remains "still intact" today, its famous wall serving as a canvas for the city's changing stories.
PR vs. Reality: The Skylar Thompson Incident
The "oddness" of the weekend wasn't limited to art and architecture. An incident involving Pittsburgh Steelers reserve quarterback Skylar Thompson became a fascinating case study in corporate public relations.
The Initial Report
The story first broke in the US: Thompson was "jumped and robbed" on Dame Street, near Temple Bar, in the early hours of Saturday morning. Reports stated his phone was stolen and he sustained minor injuries, but did not require hospitalisation.
The Official (Gardaí) Version
Then came the curious official statement from An Garda Síochána (the Irish national police). It was a masterpiece of legal precision. Gardaí confirmed they "on patrol... encountered a male who required medical assistance." This male "was treated and assessed at the scene."
The crucial distinction was what wasn't said. The Gardaí repeatedly emphasised: "No formal complaint has been made by any person at this time." Therefore, they had "no further information to substantiate, or not, any report this incident involved a robbery."
This was not a denial, but a factual statement: without a formal complaint, no official investigation could take place.
The Corporate Containment
The gap between "robbery" and "medical assistance" is explained by the corporate response. The Steelers confirmed they were "aware of a situation" – note the careful use of "situation" instead of "assault" or "robbery."
The most telling detail was their action plan: "we... are working with NFL security to gather more information." This signals a clear strategic decision to handle the matter internally, using the league's own security apparatus rather than engaging with local Irish law enforcement.
A formal police report would have triggered a public, and potentially uncontrollable, Garda investigation, generating days of negative headlines. This would have overshadowed the NFL's historic first-ever regular-season game in Ireland – an event of particular significance to the Steelers' owners, the Rooney family, given their deep Irish heritage.
By handling the "situation" internally, the organisation successfully contained the narrative and prioritised the brand integrity of the international event. Teammate Troy Fautanu later confirmed the seriousness of the event, revealing that as a direct consequence, players "were not allowed to leave their hotel the following night."
Two Games, One City
Looking back, the NFL's Dublin debut operated on two parallel tracks. There was the meticulously branded, globally broadcasted event. And then there was the complex local reality it collided with.
The "odd" feeling was, in fact, the correct identification of this very gap—the friction point where a global entertainment brand met a local reality it could not fully control, and therefore chose to manage, contain, or, in the case of the Ormond Quay and Tara Street murals, simply paint over.
Two Games: The NFL's Dublin Debut and the Battle for the City's Narrative
This post has been a little while in the making, as I needed to confirm all the details.
When the National Football League (NFL) arrived in Dublin for the landmark game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings on 28 September 2025, it brought more than just American football. It unleashed a major marketing campaign that collided, in fascinating and contradictory ways, with the city's own complex stories.
What unfolded was a tale of two games: the official, polished event publicised to the world, and the messy, complex local reality. This friction played out through public art, the story of a landmark building, and a curious incident involving a player.
Art, Advertising, and Erasure
The NFL's arrival was heralded by large-scale public art, which became a focal point for this collision of narratives.
The Official 'Spirit'
The primary, officially-sanctioned mural celebrating Pennsylvania (rather than the game itself) was located in the high-traffic hub of Temple Bar. Created by the acclaimed Irish artist Jacky Sheridan, this vibrant work spanned Curved Street, Temple Lane, and Essex Street. Commissioned by Visit Pennsylvania, it was a colourful act of cultural diplomacy. This was the celebratory, positive face of the NFL's visit.
The Ormond Quay Controversy
Simultaneously, a different "temporary NFL-themed street art" installation on Ormond Quay sparked significant public controversy. To make way for this new piece, one of Dublin's "best-known street murals" – a 2022 collaboration by Neto Vettorello and Asbestos titled 'Do Not Remove' – was painted over.
Commissioned to mark 200 years of Brazilian independence, the 'Do Not Remove' mural depicted a figure with its head covered by bricks and was widely seen as a powerful commentary on Dublin's severe housing and homelessness crisis.
The decision to erase this potent social commentary to make way for what critics called a "gaudy-looking" piece of commercial advertising was met with immediate backlash. As one commentator noted, it was deeply ironic that "one of the few murals that wasn't just an ad" was replaced by what was, in effect, a "handpainted ad for the NFL."
The Centrepiece: The Tara Street Station Mural
This brings us to the most prominent piece of all: the mural beside Tara Street station.
As my photographs clearly show, the famous, large gable end of The Workshop pub – the wall that greets everyone exiting the DART station – was indeed painted with a massive mural for the game. This spectacular artwork, featuring the helmets and logos of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Minnesota Vikings, was a primary centrepiece for the event.
The real story here is one of memory and layering. This is, of course, the very same wall that was home to one of Dublin's most beloved art installations: the "Dublin Red Squirrel" by Portuguese environmental artist Bordalo II.
Created in 2017 as part of his 'Trash Animals' series, that massive 3D squirrel was built from rubbish and became an instant city icon. When it was removed in 2019, the wall was left blank, becoming a 'ghost' mural in the city's memory.
The 2025 NFL artwork was painted directly onto this famous canvas. This act of layering – placing a new, commercial piece for a global sporting event directly on the site of a famous, lamented piece of environmental art – is perhaps the most potent example of the weekend's narrative battle.
The Demolition Paradox: A Pub's Survival
The story of that famous wall also solves another local puzzle: the building that was "supposed to have been demolished years ago but is still intact."
The building is The Workshop Gastro Pub (formerly the long-standing Kennedy's) at 10 Georges Quay, adjacent to Tara Street station.
The "Dublin Red Squirrel" mural was indeed removed in June 2019, widely reported as being "ahead of the building's demolition." This is the source of the confusion.
However, the demolition order applied only to the adjoining site, "Tara House." The pub itself was explicitly excluded from these plans. The reason is simple: The Workshop / Kennedy's is a Protected Structure.
So, the paradox is solved. The mural was removed because of the massive demolition and construction on the site next door, but the pub itself was never in danger. It remains "still intact" today, its famous wall serving as a canvas for the city's changing stories.
PR vs. Reality: The Skylar Thompson Incident
The "oddness" of the weekend wasn't limited to art and architecture. An incident involving Pittsburgh Steelers reserve quarterback Skylar Thompson became a fascinating case study in corporate public relations.
The Initial Report
The story first broke in the US: Thompson was "jumped and robbed" on Dame Street, near Temple Bar, in the early hours of Saturday morning. Reports stated his phone was stolen and he sustained minor injuries, but did not require hospitalisation.
The Official (Gardaí) Version
Then came the curious official statement from An Garda Síochána (the Irish national police). It was a masterpiece of legal precision. Gardaí confirmed they "on patrol... encountered a male who required medical assistance." This male "was treated and assessed at the scene."
The crucial distinction was what wasn't said. The Gardaí repeatedly emphasised: "No formal complaint has been made by any person at this time." Therefore, they had "no further information to substantiate, or not, any report this incident involved a robbery."
This was not a denial, but a factual statement: without a formal complaint, no official investigation could take place.
The Corporate Containment
The gap between "robbery" and "medical assistance" is explained by the corporate response. The Steelers confirmed they were "aware of a situation" – note the careful use of "situation" instead of "assault" or "robbery."
The most telling detail was their action plan: "we... are working with NFL security to gather more information." This signals a clear strategic decision to handle the matter internally, using the league's own security apparatus rather than engaging with local Irish law enforcement.
A formal police report would have triggered a public, and potentially uncontrollable, Garda investigation, generating days of negative headlines. This would have overshadowed the NFL's historic first-ever regular-season game in Ireland – an event of particular significance to the Steelers' owners, the Rooney family, given their deep Irish heritage.
By handling the "situation" internally, the organisation successfully contained the narrative and prioritised the brand integrity of the international event. Teammate Troy Fautanu later confirmed the seriousness of the event, revealing that as a direct consequence, players "were not allowed to leave their hotel the following night."
Two Games, One City
Looking back, the NFL's Dublin debut operated on two parallel tracks. There was the meticulously branded, globally broadcasted event. And then there was the complex local reality it collided with.
The "odd" feeling was, in fact, the correct identification of this very gap—the friction point where a global entertainment brand met a local reality it could not fully control, and therefore chose to manage, contain, or, in the case of the Ormond Quay and Tara Street murals, simply paint over.