Diego Maradona’s Argentina will take on the Republic of Ireland in the first soccer international at the new Lansdowne Road.

The South Americans have agreed to be the high-profile guests on August 18, 2010 when the refurbished venue returns.

FAI chief executive John Delaney stated earlier this week that a game had been booked but the association would not be revealing the identity of the opposition until the New Year.

However, it can be confirmed that the two-time World Cup winners will be the Republic’s guests on the historic night.

They last visited 10 years ago, when they had a comfortable 2-0 win at the old Lansdowne.

This week, they played Scotland in a friendly with the SFA forking out £800,000 to bring them to Hampden Park.

The FAI will be hoping that Maradona is still at the helm by the time the Lansdowne unveiling comes around as his presence gave the Scots a publicity boost as they struggled to fill seats for their encounter; they still only managed to muster up a turnout of 32,492 and deny they made a loss.

The FAI is battling the current economic climate as it bids to sell 10-year premium tickets in the new ground.

The Argentina match will take place in the first international window after the conclusion of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.