The "full Irish" will take on a whole new meaning early tomorrow morning as a nation rises for cooked breakfasts and cornflakes before the clash between Ireland and Cameroon, scheduled to kick off at 7.30 a.m.
The Keane saga may have been slightly harder to swallow, but it seems World Cup fever has officially broken out around the country.
There are houses painted in the national colours, off-licences being besieged and bunting fluttering everywhere. RTÉ expects up to 1.5 million viewers to tune in from pubs, the sofa or the comfort of their beds.
Dolan's pub in Limerick is anticipating a truly international celebration. Early-morning revellers will include foreign-national staff of Dell and some of the 100 Italians currently laying a new sewage system.
The pub, which has an early licence, is offering a World Cup deal of breakfast and a pint for €7. The match will be shown on a cinema-size screen.
"We expect to be providing around 600 cooked breakfasts, served by our staff in the World Cup jerseys of different nations," said Mary Fitzgerald of Dolan's. "The excitement is phenomenal around here, people say they will stay up all night and be knocking on our doors at 6 a.m."
The Submarine Bar in Crumlin, Dublin, the unofficial home of soccer in the capital, is laying on breakfast and alcohol-free champagne at a cost of €15.
"People are getting really wound up," said Philip Power. "The Keane thing has been put to bed and now everyone is just looking forward to getting behind the team."
The off-licence beside the pub has been serving beer at cost since Wednesday. Mr Power said gangs of friends who won't be watching in the pub plan to go clubbing, stay up all night, have breakfast at home at around 5 a.m. and resume their beerfest at 7 a.m.
Business consultant Seán McGarry has invited friends round to his house in Ranelagh, Dublin, for "coffee and croissants" while they watch the match. "I think I am also under pressure to get some champagne and orange juice in," he said.
Even residents of Áras an Uachtaráin will be joining in the early-morning fun.
Wishing the team good luck yesterday, the President, Mrs McAleese, spoke to the Republic's manager, Mick McCarthy, by phone, telling him that she and her family would be getting up early tomorrow morning to "watch with excitement and anticipation".
She said that "win, lose or draw", the country could be rightly proud of the achievement, and, after a traumatic week, soccer supporters at home would get behind the squad.
The President - a keen Manchester United supporter - asked McCarthy to pass on to the team her best wishes and good luck for the weeks ahead.