So, Martin O’Neill’s men have done it. The Republic of Ireland WILL compete in next summer’s European Championship in France after they beat Bosnia-Herzegovina in the play-offs. Jon Walters was the star of the second leg as his two goals proved crucial for the Republic and many Irish fans will now be booking their tickets.
However, not every student will have the luxury of travelling out to the tournament and supporting Ireland in person. In fact, the majority will have burnt through their student loans already! Thousands of young fans will travel to Dublin to watch their heroes compete against Europe’s best nations. Here are just a few of the best places for students to go and watch the football next summer.
Murray’s Bar
One of Dublin’s most popular establishments, Murray’s Bar will be incredibly popular throughout the tournament and will be a hot spot for students due to its location and reasonably priced drinks. Murray’s is renowned for being an exceptional sports bar and you can watch some form of sport almost every single day in the establishment.
With a traditionally friendly vibe, Murray’s is welcoming to both regulars and newbies, locals and tourists, and older and younger members of the general public. While they may not show every single match throughout the competition, they will definitely show the Republic’s matches and should be one of the first places you consider visiting to watch the football in the capital. It is ideally located close to a number of the city’s main bars and pubs so this is the perfect place for students to relax and enjoy a few drinks before moving on to the larger establishments.
Trinity Bar & Venue
Trinity Bar & Venue pride themselves as being “Dublin’s Premiere Sports Bar” and they are certainly one of the most popular amongst the capital’s younger members of the public. There is always some form of sport on and Trinity even shows plenty of football from Europe’s lesser known leagues, including Ligue 2 and Bundesliga 2. If you’re a football fan, this really is the place to be.
During the European Championship, Trinity may well put up more colossal screens around the venue and have been known to place a projector screen up for viewers in outside areas. The seats are positioned perfectly to ensure that all customers have an ideal view of the screens and students will love the various drinks offers at various times of the week. One of the main reasons why Trinity appeals to students is the food. You can get decent, gastro pub grub for a reasonable price as well as enjoying the football – what could be better?!
Dtwo
For the 2014 FIFA World Cup, Dtwo showed all 64 live matches – an impressive feat. Because of that, many will be expecting the owners to follow suit and do the same for next summer’s European Championship, especially now that Ireland are involved in the competition. At the time of writing, the Republic are valued at 100/1 with betfair to win Euro 2016 and although they probably won’t achieve that aim, they are certainly capable of producing a few shock results with the incredible support of the Irish fans.
Back home, however, their support will be equally as important and those who join together at Dtwo will be able to stand united throughout the tournament. Whether it’s simply by sending a good luck tweet or proudly singing the national anthem, Ireland need the support of young students and O’Neill’s men will be grateful for all of the backing they receive from the general public. At Dtwo, they will do their best to ensure that students and other visitors fuel the atmosphere and enjoy what could be a very successful tournament.
The River Bar
Located outside O’Connell’s bridge, the River Bar is the perfect location for those students who prefer to watch their sport and soak up the general atmosphere of the city rather than go out and get bladdered. The venue generally has live music on and, although that may change during next summer’s European Championship, the River Bar will still try to ensure that everybody is entertained throughout their visit to one of Dublin’s prettiest pubs.
There is a nightclub attached to the venue which will appeal to some but others may simply prefer to watch the sport and then listen to some of Dublin’s finest local talents on the open mic. For a more relaxed evening, this is definitely the place to be and plenty of students will mix in well with the older regulars to provide an eclectic mix and a thrilling vibe. They even do special dance evenings!