Rio Ferdinand was a guest speaker at the BT Young Scientist Exhibition in the RDS on Thursday, as he gave a talk to those in attendance about the Rio Ferdinand Foundation which aims to get more young people exposed to more pathways to employment and reach their full potential.
The former Manchester United defender also sat down for a chat with RTÉ, where it didn't take long for him to reveal that the FAI had contacted him about the possibility of playing for the Republic of Ireland, but were too late, although timing wasn't really the issue, rather than Ferdinand being very much English.
They were too late! You guys were too late.
They sent us a letter and stuff but I was born and bred in England, I'm English so there was no chance... I love a pint of Guinness, but it wasn't going to happen.
We had heard that the FAI were exploring the possibility of Anton Ferdinand representing Ireland in the past, but we did not know that there was interest in Rio too.
As a follow-up question, Rio was asked about the Irish influences in his life and his mother Janice, through who he was eligible to play for the boys in green. His response was hilarious, and further evidence that he was very much an Englishman.
One of my best mates growing up on my estate was from an Irish family, so he used to talk about the World Cup, Ray Houghton and people like that, I used to like the Irish guys and stuff, a few stews here and there.
So there you have it, he could technically have played for Ireland, but a few stews here and there could not convince him to take his focus off playing for Ireland.
You can watch the RTÉ interview in full, featuring a kid going absolutely ballistic with the dabs from about 8 seconds in, below:
