LSU is working toward playing its 1st game outside the U.S. in over a century, Brian Kelly says (2024)

An LSU football game in Ireland is something that Tigers coach Brian Kelly would like to make happen.

In an interview Thursday, Kelly said the school is preparing to work with a new sports travel management company to arrange LSU’s first game out of the country in more than 100 years.

Two important questions— when the game would be played and who would be LSU’s opponent— don’t have answers at this time. But the impetus is there, Kelly said.

“We’re bringing in a new travel company in July, Anthony Travel,” he said. “They’ve been part of putting together those arrangements in Ireland. They’ve got Georgia Tech (and Florida State) this year.

“They’ve approached us about it. We’re in the early stages of it, but it’s something that we would like to do.”

Georgia Tech and Florida State will play at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium, a 51,700-seat rugby and soccer facility, on Aug. 24 in a game dubbed the Aer Lingus College Football Classic.

A website for the classic also lists two more games there in the coming years: Aug. 23, 2025, between Kansas State and Iowa State and Aug. 28, 2027, between Pittsburgh and Wisconsin.

LSU has played football outside the United States only once, way back in 1907 in Cuba. The Tigers beat Havana University 56-0 on Christmas Day in a game that became known as the Bacardi Bowl.

When Kelly coached at Notre Dame, he led the Fighting Irish to a 50-10 victory over Navy in Dublin to open the 2012 season. He also had a hand in scheduling Notre Dame’s 2023 season opener against Navy in Dublin, a game the Irish won 42-3.

“It’s a great experience,” Kelly said.

LSU has played a number of neutral site season openers in recent years, including games in 2022 and 2023 against Florida State in the Caesars Superdome and in Orlando, Florida.

The Tigers open the 2024 campaign Sept. 1 in Las Vegas against Southern California. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. on ABC at the Las Vegas Raiders’ Allegiant Stadium, which hosted Super Bowl LVIII in February.

LSU is set to open the season in 2025 and 2026 with a home-and-home series against Clemson. The teams play Aug. 30, 2025, at Clemson and Sept. 5, 2026, in Tiger Stadium.

One complication for LSU’s plans to play a season-opener in Ireland could be the Southeastern Conference’s scheduling format.

The SEC is sticking with an eight-game conference schedule in 2024 and 2025 despite growing to 16 teams with the arrival of Texas and Oklahoma. Beyond that is uncertain, although Kelly on Thursday reiterated his support for and belief in an eventual shift to a nine-game SEC format.