Divito promises an Irish welcome in Prague
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Carlo Divito outside the famous Rocky O’Reilly’s Pub in Prague.Image 2 of 3
The special menu of drinks on offer for the Republic of Ireland World Cup play-off against Czechia in Rocky O’Reilly’s Pub in Prague.Image 3 of 3
Former Meath Chronicle sports reporter Carlo Divito has swapped the pen for pulling pints.Former Meath Chronicle sports reporter Carlo Divito is causing a bit of a stir after creating a special drinks menu for Irish fans travelling to Prague for the World Cup play-off between the Republic of Ireland and Czechia on 26th March.
Divito, who has lived in Prague for the last 14 years, became General Manager of the famous Rocky O'Reilly's Irish Pub in the city centre shortly after the pandemic six years ago.
Bars in the Czech capital are bracing themselves for an Irish invasion, with thousands expected to travel for the qualifier and Rocky O'Reilly's will no doubt be very popular, as the bar will offer a special Irish football-themed drinks menu.
It's the latest of several special menus that Divito has created for travelling football fans."The first special drinks menu was actually created for the World Ice Hockey Championships which were held in Prague in 2024," recalls Divito."This menu included the now famous Irish Slap Shot which is still one of our most popular shots today. It consists of Jameson and Baileys followed by a firm slap on the face from the waitress.
"After that, I made special menus for visiting fans from Arsenal, Liverpool, West Ham, Shamrock Rovers, Bodo Glimt and Copenhagen among others. However, the excitement surrounding Ireland's visit makes this menu by far the most special for me.
"Four or five of us in the bar were huddled around a TV screen when the draw took place, and it was pure adulation when Ireland were picked to face Czech Republic.
"Almost immediately, I started to create the special drinks menu. No help at all from AI. The ideas all came from my head. Hopefully the travelling Irish fans will enjoy them, because we really are looking forward to welcoming them to Rocky's.
"The bar celebrates it's 25th anniversary this year, so it makes it even more special that the Irish will be visiting.
"The joint owners hail from Cork and together with them and my management team we have come up with a great entertainment programme for visiting fans including live music from our legendary in-house singer Matty O'Riley. "We will be open from 9am until 4am from Wednesday and Saturday, and we will be broadcasting the match on 21 screens," concluded Divito who guarantees a warm Irish welcome for all Republic of Ireland fans to Prague.