The Pittsburgh Steelers will play just their second regular-season international game on Sunday when they take on the Minnesota Vikings in Dublin, Ireland in a Week 4 clash. While the Steelers haven’t been a featured player in the NFL’s International Series, it doesn’t mean the team doesn’t have a long history of playing outside the United States, although largely in preseason/exhibition games. Today, we’re taking a look at each international game the Steelers have played throughout their history.
August 3, 1960: Steelers beat Toronto Argonauts 43-16 at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto, Canada
Most of the NFL’s first international games were exhibitions between the CFL and NFL. The Steelers’ first foray came in 1960, when they became the third NFL team to play an exhibition against a CFL team since 1950 (and the third NFL team to win).
The game was played with Canadian rules, but that didn’t deter the Steelers. Despite finishing below .500 during the NFL season at 5-6-1, the Steelers blew out the Argonauts, with QB Bobby Layne throwing for 421 yards and leading the Steelers to a 33-6 halftime lead. However, the Steelers did turn the ball over six times, while forcing five turnovers of their own. Steelers’ historian Bob Labriola recounted the details of the game in an Asked and Answered segment for Steelers.com.
September 11, 1969: Steelers beat New York Giants 17-13 at Jarry Park in Montreal, Canada
The Steelers once again went north of the border for a preseason exhibition game against the New York Giants. While the Steelers picked up the exhibition win over the Giants, the two met twice during the regular season, with New York winning both matchups. Of course, the Steelers didn’t do much winning in Chuck Noll’s first season as head coach, as the Steelers finished the year 1-13.
This matchup was Pittsburgh’s fifth and final preseason game. The team carried the momentum of the win in Canada to a Week 1 win over the Detroit Lions. They then dropped 13 straight.
Not much information is available about the specifics of the matchup, but Canadian fans were greeted with a game that featured all-time greats on both sides, including QB Fran Tarkenton and DL Joe Greene.
August 9, 1990: Steelers beat New England Patriots 30-14 at Olympic Stadium in Montreal, Canada
The Steelers’ third international game also occurred in Canada, nearly 21 years after the team’s last trip to a foreign country. Gary Anderson hit three field goals for the Steelers and had another blocked in the win, which saw the Patriots lose starting QB Steve Grogan to an injury mid-game. Per UPI, the Steelers held a 16-0 halftime lead, and the game featured defensive touchdowns from both sides. CB D.J. Johnson had a 35-yard pick-six for the Steelers, picking off New England backup Tom Hodson in the third quarter.
New England CB Maurice Hurst, the father of former Raiders, 49ers and Browns DT Maurice Hurst, who was with the Browns last season, took an interception from Steelers’ QB Rick Strom back 26 yards for a touchdown. Bubby Brister started as quarterback for the Steelers but went just 3-10 for 35 yards in the game.
August 1, 1993: Steelers lose to San Francisco 49ers 21-14 at Estadi OlÃmpic in Barcelona, Spain
The Steelers’ first international loss also came in a preseason game. The first overseas game in team history, the Steelers faced off against a 49ers team that made a run to the NFC Championship Game. Steve Young went 5-6 on the first drive, finishing it off with a touchdown pass to Brent Jones. Young also connected with Jerry Rice on the drive in the NFL’s first-ever game in Spain, per the Los Angeles Times.
The two would meet up just over a month later in Week 1, with San Francisco again coming out on top with a 24-13 win to open the regular season. Neil O’Donnell got the start for the Steelers, who also played Rick Strom and Mike Tomczak as quarterbacks in the matchup. With Barry Foster holding out, backup RB Tim Worley ran five times for 64 yards in the first half for Pittsburgh, but it wasn’t enough.
July 28, 1996: Steelers lose to San Diego Chargers 20-10 at Tokyo Dome in Tokyo, Japan
The third country the Steelers played in was Japan, and like their trip to Spain, the Steelers couldn’t pull out a win in a preseason exhibition. Despite getting off to a 3-0 lead and out-gaining San Diego 262-221, the Steelers’ offense was stagnant for most of the game. They fell behind 20-3 until TE John Farquhar caught a five-yard touchdown pass from QB Kordell Stewart with 8:51 left in the fourth quarter.
The game was the fourth annual American Bowl, a series of preseason games played in Tokyo. Stewart replaced starter Mike Tomczak, but Tomczak wound up being Pittsburgh’s starter for most of the season. The Steelers went 10-6 in 1996 and lost 28-3 to the New England Patriots in the AFC Divisional Round.
July 27, 1997: Steelers beat Chicago Bears 30-17 at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland
The Steelers’ first preseason game in Ireland was played at the same venue they’ll play Minnesota on Sunday in the country’s first regular-season game. The Steelers will be hoping for the same result. Like the game in Tokyo, it was part of the American Bowl series. It was broadcast on FOX Sports, per Steelers.com, and Kordell Stewart had a solid performance for the Steelers, going 7-11 for 131 yards in the win.
Given the Rooney family’s connection to Ireland, it’s fitting that the Steelers took part in not only the first-ever game in Ireland, but also are taking part in the first-ever regular season in the country tomorrow.
You can watch the highlights of their win over the Bears on Steelers.com.
The 1997 Steelers went 11-5 with Stewart succeeding Mike Tomczak as their starting quarterback. Pittsburgh would lose in the AFC Championship Game to the Denver Broncos.
August 19, 2000: Steelers lose to Indianapolis Colts 24-23 at Estadio Azteca in Mexico City, Mexico
A young Peyton Manning threw a 77-yard touchdown pass to Marvin Harrison as the Colts edged out the Steelers in the team’s first trip to Mexico. The loss was Pittsburgh’s only one of the preseason, as Manning went 9-14 for 174 yards per ESPN’s game recap. ESPN estimated that 90% of the 87,145 fans in Mexico were cheering for the Steelers, a testament to the team’s fanbase spreading far and wide, not only in the United States but all over the country.
Kordell Stewart went 8-18 for 82 yards in the loss, his best performance of the preseason after starting with 1-13 and 6-22 performances. Jerome Bettis missed the game with an injury, and Amos Zereoue started in his place for the preseason tilt.
Despite the 3-1 preseason, the Steelers failed to make the playoffs in the 2000 season, finishing 9-7.
August 14, 2008: Steelers lose to Buffalo Bills 24-21 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Canada
After a win to open the preseason, the Steelers headed to Canada to drop their second matchup to the Bills. It was the first game of an eight-game series that Buffalo played in Canada, marking the first game in the country since 1998. Of course, the Steelers had been no strangers to playing in Canada, but the matchup with the Bills was their first north of the border since 1990.
QB Ben Roethlisberger went 9-11 for 142 yards with a touchdown and an interception in three series. He was replaced by QB Byron Leftwich. The game marked the Steelers’ first international game under head coach Mike Tomlin.
The 2008 Steelers finished 12-4 and beat the Arizona Cardinals in the Super Bowl.
September 29, 2013: Steelers lose to Minnesota Vikings 34-27 at Wembley Stadium in London, England
The Steelers’ first regular-season international game is also the team’s most recent overseas game. After getting to London later than the Vikings, the Steelers blamed their travel schedule for their poor performance. Pittsburgh went down 20-10 in the first half, a game that also marked Le’Veon Bell’s Steelers debut. After trailing 34-17, the Steelers mounted a late comeback, outscoring the Vikings 10-0 in the fourth quarter, but they couldn’t pull it off.
Ben Roethlisberger threw for 383 yards, but a clinical performance by Matt Cassel (16-25, 248 yards, two touchdowns) led the Vikings to victory. The Steelers will look for a different result tomorrow in Dublin.
