Encounter with soccer legend gets Offaly students' trip off to dream start!

A school trip for transition years from Coláiste Choilm in Tullamore got off to the perfect start this week when they ran into soccer legend Ronaldinho at the airport!

Almost 70 students and seven teachers from Coláiste Choilm left Dublin early yesterday (Tuesday) for a border-hopping tour that will take in parts of Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands.

As they made their way through the airport, the Tullamore contingent was thrilled to spot the soccer star.

Ronaldinho excelled for Barcelona during the 2000s, earning the Ballon d'Or award for the world's best player in 2005.

School principal Tadhg O'Sullivan said the 42-year-old Brazilian was very friendly towards the students, and was happy to pose for pictures.

It appears that Ronaldinho was in transit at Dublin airport as he made his way from Canada to Barcelona for media events around the launch of a new blockchain-based football game.

The Coláiste Choilm students will be seeing Bruges, Brussels and Cologne during their school trip, which will include visits to a football stadium, a theme park, and a former concentration camp.