THE INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER SERVING NOTRE DAME, SAINT MARY’S AND HOLY CROSS ESTABLISHED 1966
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 5, 2025 | VOL. LX, NO. 27
AC/DC to headline Notre Dame Stadium in 2026 Observer Staff Report On Monday morning, Experience Notre Dame, a branch of University Operations, Events and Safety, announced in a press release that “legendary” rock band AC/DC will headline Notre Dame Stadium for a concert on Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. The band is in the midst of their Power Up tour, with stops in Australia, South America and North America still to come. AC/DC will perform alongside rock band The Pretty Reckless, who will accompany the Australian group throughout the United States leg of the tour. The Pretty Reckless was also the supporting act for the European leg of the tour in 2024. “These large-scale events are the perfect chance to showcase the exceptional experience Notre Dame provides to our guests. It’s all about bringing people together, the University and the community, to celebrate the partnerships that make
the South Bend-Elkhart region feel like such a remarkable home. We’re looking forward to another exceptional night at Notre Dame Stadium,” Mike Seamon, the vice president for University Operations, Events and Safety at Notre Dame, said in the press release. Experience Notre Dame’s press release stated, “They are one of the most influential rock bands in history, with over 200 million albums sold worldwide. The band’s ‘Back In Black’ LP is the ‘bestselling album by any band ever’ and the ‘third bestselling album by any artist’ with global sales of 50 million and counting.” AC/DC is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, having been inducted in 2003. According to the press release, their first ever performance was on Dec. 31, 1973. Their most recent album, “Power Up,” was released in 2020. The announcement comes nearly one month after Experience Notre Dame announced a Luke Combs
concert on April 18, 2025. AC/DC’s performance will be the sixth at Notre Dame Stadium, following concerts by Garth Brooks (twice), Billy Joel and Zach Bryan. Experience Notre Dame announced in an email to the tricampus community that tickets will go on sale Friday, Nov. 7 at 10 a.m. EST on Ticketmaster. Unlike the Zach Bryan and Luke Combs concerts, there is no presale for students. According to the Experience Notre Dame website, “nearly 60,000” attendees will be present for the concert. In comparison, Notre Dame Stadium’s capacity for the Zach Bryan concert on Sept. 6 was 88,000. The website also features a photo from the Billy Joel concert on June 25, 2022, which was the only concert at Notre Dame Stadium not to use a circular stage in the center of the field. For that concert, the stage was oriented facing north with only part of the bowl open for seating.
NDSMCOBSERVER.COM
H-1B restrictions spark concerns By Megan Cornell and Claire Lee
Associate News Editor and News Writer
The United States has long been a global leader in science, technology and education. American tech companies continue to drive global growth and innovation, and American universities, including Notre Dame, are consistently ranked among the world’s best. In achieving this success, both technology companies such as Google, Apple and Open AI and universities have relied on H-1B visas to recruit foreign talent. The H-1B visa is a nonimmigrant U.S. work visa that allows U.S. employers to hire foreign professionals to work in specialty occupations, jobs that typically require at least a bachelor’s degree or equivalent higher education. Those who plan to obtain an H-1B visa cannot apply on their own; a U.S.
employer must agree to sponsor the individual and file a petition with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services on their behalf. Obtaining these visas became more difficult when, on Sept. 19, President Donald Trump signed the “Restriction on Entry of Certain Nonimmigrant Workers” proclamation. According to the USCIS, the proclamation aims to reform the H-1B visa program to “curb abuses and protect American workers.” The proclamation introduces new restrictions and requirements such as a $100,000 payment to accompany any new H-1B visa petitions submitted after Sept. 21, 2025. This is a dramatic increase from the previous $2,000 to $5,000 fee, raising the financial burden on companies hiring foreign workers. see “Visas” on page 3
International Security Center recieves endowment By Matthew Morin News Writer
On Oct. 21, the University announced an endowment to the Notre Dame International Security Center, gifted by Kevin and Cynthia O’Brien. In addition to allowing for greater scholarship opportunities, the Center will be named in honor of the O’Briens. “For nearly two decades, the Notre Dame International Security Center has been an exemplary force both in impactful research and in shaping the lives and careers of future leaders,” Kenneth Scheve, the I.A. O’Shaughnessy Dean of the College of Arts & Letters said in the University’s press release. “This incredibly generous support from the O’Briens empowers us to expand our commitment to fostering critical conversations and forming inf luential voices on national security policy for generations to come.” ONDISC was founded in 2008 and has evolved over the past 17 years from a small program to a much
Courtesy of Jennifer Mayo
Kevin and Cynthia O’Brien endowed the newly named O’Brien Notre Dame International Security Center, enabling the creation of an executive director position and a new graduate and post-graduate fellowship.
September by former CIA director and Notre Dame alumnus, John Ratcliffe, and will be hosting a similar event Friday afternoon with former CIA director and ambassador William Burns. Explaining the Center’s work, political science professor and affiliate of the Center Eugene Gholz said, “There’s really almost nowhere else in the country that has this, an equivalent group of active, dynamic researchers doing a lot of work on international security or related work. It’s a community where we can talk to each other and riff off each other and kick around ideas. It’s a very exciting research place to be.” The O’Briens first became involved with ONDISC in 2017, when they made a gift to the program which helped it to grow during its formative years. Kevin O’Brien is a 1988 graduate of the University who participated in the Naval ROTC program during his years here. Following his time at Notre
larger one including the international security studies minor, an undergraduate fellows program and graduate education programs. In addition to teaching
civilian graduate students, the Center frequently enrolls senior military officials in its three-year Ph.D. program through a partnership with the Department of Political
Science and welcomes fellows from the National War College, the Army, the Marine Corps and the General Staff. ONDISC has hosted marquee events, such as a lecture in
Hope for climate
OPINION | PAGE 5
Politics at the table
SCENE | PAGE 7
SPORTS | PAGE 8
SPORTS | PAGE 12
The former Irish Green Party leader, Eamon Ryan, spoke on climate action at a forum lecture.
Noirin Dempsey discusses the inevitable combination of politics and Thanksgiving.
Emma Stone and director Vurgos Lanthimes deliver a brilliant and weird film.
Payton Dymek hands out the report card for Notre Dame’s offense after Boston College.
Notre Dame opened its season with a big win over LIU thanks to Towt and Burton.
NEWS | PAGE 2
‘Bugonia’
Offense grades
see “Security” on page 4
Men’s basketball