Exhibition celebrating Ireland and Italy at past World Cups opens this month

An exhibition celebrating the close ties between Ireland and Italy in the finals of past World Cup tournaments is opening this month. 

The Italian Institute of Culture in Dublin, with the support of the Embassy of Italy in Ireland will showcase original material including football stickers, albums and drawings covering the 1990, 1994 and 2002 World Cups, with a focus on Ireland and Italy's teams, players, opponents and matches played.  

The opening ceremony of the 'Chasing the Ball' exhibition will be launched at Printworks Building Dublin Castle on January 5 by the legendary Italian striker, Salvatore ‘Toto’ Schillaci, the man who ended the odyssey of Italia 90 for Jack Charlton’s men at their first ever World Cup. 

The items on display have been loaned from the Gianni Bellini collection, with Bellini widely considered to be the world's leading collector of football trading cards and stickers. 

The Ambassador of Italy to Ireland, Ruggero Corrias, said, "The aim of the exhibition is to give visitors the chance to feel as if they actually attended the matches themselves and get to know the great World Cup players, most especially the tournament played in Italy, the first in which Ireland reached the knockout stages.

"In the 1990 tournament, as well as the following one held in 1994 in the United States of America, the two national teams faced each other in matches that resulted in moments of great football and passion that delighted the supporters of both nations.

"These three tournaments are firmly imprinted in the minds of Irish and Italian fans alike for similar and sometimes contrasting reasons. Bitter disappointments, albeit with remarkable results, were met by the Italian national team; whilst the Irish team saw great results and a new-found soaring public affection.”

The free Exhibition will remain open at Dublin Castle until January 22 (Opening Times: Mon-Sat 10am-5.30pm).