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While Sunday will mark the first-ever regular season game played in Ireland, it won't be the first time an NFL game has been played at Croke Park, the site of Sunday's showdown between the Steelers and Vikings. 

In fact, Pittsburgh was part of the NFL's first-ever game played in Ireland, a preseason matchup against the Bears on July 27, 1997. It was part of the American Bowl, a series of preseason exhibitions played outside the United States between 1986 and 2005.

The game, played in front of 30,269 fans in Dublin, was a foreshadowing of things to come for the 1997 Steelers, who played in a string of close games en route to an AFC Championship Game appearance. 

Pittsburgh, 10-6 the previous season and winners of the AFC Central for the third straight year, outplayed the Bears from the outset. New Steelers starting quarterback Kordell Stewart wasted no time, hitting wideout Charles Johnson for a 44-yard completion on their first drive that set up a three-yard touchdown run by running back Jerome Bettis. 

Stewart and the Steelers' offense moved with almost as much ease on their following possession. An 18-yard catch by Johnson sandwiched between two 21-yard catches by wideout Yancey Thigpen set up a 43-yard field goal that extended the lead to 10-0. 

Anchored by the starters, the Steelers' offense finished with 445 yards, including 172 on the ground.

"I felt very good; everything worked like I expected," Stewart said after the game. "When you have a game with only a short amount of time to play like one quarter and you score 10 points, you have to feel confident. That says a lot about our offense.

"It was a great experience to be out there as the No. 1 running things and to be in charge."

The Steelers' starting defense feasted on Bears quarterback Rich Mirer and the rest of Chicago's starting offense. Anchored by Pro Bowlers Levon Kirkland, Joel Steed and Carnell Lake, Pittsburgh's defense permitted a mere 252 yards and 10 first downs for the game as Pittsburgh led 13-3 at the half.

"Well, it was a start," Mirer said of his first start with the Bears. "Not a good start, but a start."

With both reserve units in for the second half, the Steelers stretched their lead to 16-3 before two Bears touchdowns -- including a 46-yard run by former Northwestern standout Darnell Autry -- made it a 23-17 game with 2:23 to play.

In a season that would later see the Steelers play (and win) three games in overtime, Pittsburgh showed some of that resolve late in the American Bowl. 

With just over a minute left, rookie George Jones busted through the line and scampered 35 yards for the game-winning touchdown. Jones, who gained 84 yards on 17 carries and two touchdowns, was one of the Steelers who stuck around on the "pitch" after the game to receive his game MVP award.

As the 30-17 winner of the American Bowl, the Steelers received the Waterford Crystal Trophy. While Pittsburgh came up just short of hoisting another trophy that season, its victory in the American Bowl nonetheless held a special significance to the Rooney family, who on Sunday will once again have the honor of playing a game in their native land.