BOHEMIANS AND SHAMROCK Rovers will meet in the Aviva Stadium on the opening weekend of the League of Ireland season — the first time that a league fixture will be played at the stadium.

The cross-city rivals will meet on Lansdowne Road on Sunday 16 February at 2pm, celebrating the 110th anniversary of their first Dublin derby.

The fixture will technically be a home game for Bohemians, who have opted to move it from Dalymount Park in agreement with Rovers and league officials.

“Football in the League of Ireland is in its strongest place in decades and this game will showcase our most famous game, in our county’s best stadium,” Bohs chief operating officer Daniel Lambert said, targeting the biggest-ever attendance at a Dublin derby.

Rovers chief executive John Martin said the move is “another positive step in the growth of the League of Ireland and showcases the clubs’ abilities to work together.

“We look forward to being part of such a historic occasion.”

The full fixture list for the new League of Ireland season will be confirmed on 17 December.

Written by Niall Kelly and originally published on The 42 whose award-winning team produces original content that you won’t find anywhere else: on GAA, League of Ireland, women’s sport and boxing, as well as our game-changing rugby coverage, all with an Irish eye. Subscribe here.