As the Six Nations Grand Slam game between England and Ireland draws closer, support for the Irish rugby union team is pouring in from unexpected sources. Former Vice President of the United States, Joe Biden, has publicly backed the team and called for an Irish victory. With the game set to be one of the most hotly contested matches of the tournament, Biden’s endorsement is sure to give the Irish team a boost as they prepare to take on their rivals from across the Irish Sea. In this article, we take a closer look at Biden’s support for the Irish rugby union team, and examine the chances of a Grand Slam victory for the men in green.
The President of the United States, Joe Biden, has publicly shown his support for the Ireland rugby union team ahead of their Grand Slam game against England in Dublin on Saturday. Speaking at a St Patrick’s Day event in the White House, Biden wished the team good luck and introduced former Ireland full-back Rob Kearney, who is also a relative of the President.
At the event, with Leo Varadkar, the Taoiseach of Ireland, in attendance, Biden singled out Kearney among a group of Biden’s distant relatives. He asked Kearney to stand up and said, “I want to see you after this, pal.” The President added, “No offense to anyone, but we know who we’re rooting for in the Grand Slam match between Ireland and England.”
Biden’s support for Ireland’s rugby team is not surprising since the President is a big rugby fan. In fact, he has made no secret of the fact that he played rugby for a year at law school in Syracuse, New York, in the late 1960s. Biden has also welcomed Kearney to the White House before and displayed an Irish rugby ball in the Oval Office.
Ireland’s rugby team is now ranked number one in the world, and they are prohibitive favorites to beat England and win the Six Nations championship with a clean sweep of five wins from five games. Furthermore, Ireland beat their nearest challengers, France, in a pulsating game at home last month, while France beat a struggling England team 53-10 at Twickenham last week.
Despite the President’s English ancestry, he seems unlikely to be disappointed in his support for Ireland on Saturday. In 2016, when he was vice-president to Barack Obama, Biden met with two All Blacks forwards in Auckland, New Zealand, and revealed that he had followed an All Blacks tour in Ireland when he was a young US senator. Biden is also no stranger to extending his support for Irish rugby publicly. In November 2021, the President wished Ireland luck against the mighty New Zealand All Blacks and called to congratulate them when they won.
Saturday’s Six Nations game between Ireland and England should be a thrilling and closely contested affair. However, with the support of Joe Biden, the luck of the Irish might just be enough to help the team secure a Grand Slam victory.
