When the Pittsburgh Steelers played the Chicago Bears at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland for a preseason tilt in 1997, it wasn’t just a typical preseason game. Not only was it the first NFL game played in Ireland, but it was part of the American Bowl, and the two teams were playing for the Waterford Crystal Trophy. With the Rooney family’s ties to Ireland, the trophy had a little extra meaning, and Patricia Rooney, the wife of the late Dan Rooney, wanted the trophy. Jerome Bettis said that’s why he suited up for the game, despite multiple Steelers’ starters not playing.
“When the game was announced, obviously, the heritage and the Rooney family with Ireland, Patricia Rooney, Dan Rooney’s wife, she gave a mandate to her husband. She said, “I want the trophy,” Bettis said at an event in Ireland today ahead of the Steelers’ Week 4 game in Dublin via the NFL UK & Ireland YouTube channel. “She wanted the trophy. So at that point, all bets are off, so we played in that game to make sure we won that game, because he could not go home without the trophy.”
With a 30-17 win over the Bears, that trophy is now displayed at the Steelers’ UPMC Rooney Sports Complex in the team’s trophy case, which also holds six Lombardi trophies.
Bettis ran the ball just three times in the game, but one of his three carries for 16 yards went for a three-yard touchdown to open up the scoring. It was one of three Steelers’ touchdowns on the day, all of them coming on the ground, as RB George Jones had two fourth-quarter scores as part of an 84-yard day to help the Steelers get the win.
The Rooney family and the Steelers have a lot of trophies. A trophy for winning a preseason game doesn’t seem as meaningful on the surface. But given the familial ties to Ireland, it’s a game and trophy that mattered to them. Despite being a preseason game, the Steelers had extra motivation to win.
That motivation to win in a country that’s so meaningful to its owners remains today. Cam Heyward said earlier this week that the Rooneys’ ties to Ireland are providing some extra fire for the team to beat the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday. They’ll look to follow in the footsteps of Bettis and the ’97 team to go 2-0 in Ireland and Croke Park.
