The Republic of Ireland national football team is the football team of the Republic of Ireland and is governed by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI). It is a member of both UEFA and FIFA, and although they had been involved in international competition since the 1930s, the team did not qualify for any international tournaments until Euro 88 in Germany. That acheivement was followed by reaching the quarter-finals of the 1990 World Cup. The Irish also reached the second round in the 1994 and 2002 World Cups.
| Shirt badge/Association crest | |||
| Nickname(s) | The Boys in Green | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Football Association of Ireland | ||
| Confederation | UEFA (Europe) | ||
| Head coach |  Steve Staunton (2006-)mentored by  Sir Bobby Robson (2006-) | ||
| Captain | Kevin Kilbane | ||
| Most caps | Steve Staunton (102) | ||
| Top scorer | Robbie Keane (29) | ||
| Home stadium | Croke Park (while Lansdowne Road is being redeveloped) | ||
| FIFA code | IRL | ||
| |||
| FIFA ranking | |||
| Current | 32 | ||
| Highest | 6 (August 1993) | ||
| Lowest | 57 (November 1998) | ||
| First international | |||
 Italy 3 - 0 Ireland (FAI) (Turin, Italy; 21 March 1926) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
Republic of Ireland 8 - 0 Malta  (Dublin, Republic of Ireland; 16 November 1983) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Brazil 7 - 0 Republic of Ireland (Uberlândia, Brazil; 27 May 1982) | |||
| World Cup | |||
| Appearances | 3 (first in 1990) | ||
| Best result | Quarterfinals, 1990 | ||
| European Championship | |||
| Appearances | 1 (first in 1988) | ||
| Best result | Round 1, 1988 | ||
History and emergence as an independent team
The FAI were founded on June 1 1921 and were permitted to join FIFA in 1923 as the Football Association of the Irish Free State (FAIFS). Prior to this, the Irish Football Association (IFA) governed all football on the island with the all-Ireland international team playing under the name, 'Ireland'. The first international game involving the new Irish association team took place in Turin, Italy in March 1926. The FAIFS also used the name, 'Ireland', for its team even though the IFA still remained in existence and fielded a team under the same name. In 1936, the FAIFS re-adopted its original name, the FAI, in order to conform with the approaching enactment of the 1937 Constitution of Ireland and the impending official name-change of the state from the Irish Free State to Ireland. It was not until 1953 that the FAI team became known as the 'Republic of Ireland', when a FIFA intervention directed that this be so, in order to distinguish the team from the IFA's 'Ireland', who were from then on to be known as 'Northern Ireland'. Three years previously FIFA had also directed that the two associations were to discontinue the practice of choosing players from all over the island and limited them to fielding players from their own respective jurisdictions.
Stadium
Since the 1980s, most home matches have been played at Lansdowne Road, Dublin, the national rugby stadium owned by the Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU). This ground is to be closed for redevelopment in the period 2007-2009. The first football international played there was a friendly against Italy in 1971; a 5-0 victory over San Marino in a Euro 2008 qualifying match on 15 November 2006 was the last game there before the reconstruction. The all-seater capacity of Lansdowne Road prior to the renovation was 36,000, although higher attendances, using the standing only areas, were permitted for friendly matches. The all seater new stadium will increase capacity for competitive games to 50,000.
Prior to the 1980s, the Republic of Ireland played most home games at Dalymount Park, home of Bohemian FC, but progressively more games were played at Lansdowne following a safety review which reduced Dalymount's capacity and the last international match played there was against Morocco in 1990. The Republic of Ireland has also played home matches in Tolka Park (twice) and the Royal Dublin Society in Dublin as well in Cork venues Mardyke and Flower Lodge.
Croke Park
With the announcement of the rebuilding of Lansdowne Road, a new venue was required to stage Ireland's home internationals. The only stadium in Ireland capable of holding international football was Croke Park, home of the Gaelic Athletic Association. To accommodate this, the GAA temporarily relaxed its rule governing the playing of "foreign" games on its property. Initially, four Euro 2008 qualifiers will be played at Croke Park during 2007.
| Date | Teams | Score |
|---|---|---|
| 24 March 2007 | Template:IRLf v Template:WALf2 | 1 - 0 |
| 28 March 2007 | Template:IRLf v Template:SVKf2 | 1 - 0 |
| 13 October 2007 | Template:IRLf v Template:GERf2 | - |
| 17 October 2007 | Template:IRLf v Template:CYPf2 | - |
History in major tournaments
- See comprehensive article: Republic of Ireland national football team - record in major tournaments
World Cup record
- 1930 Did not enter
- 1934-1986 Did not qualify
- 1990 - Quarter-finals
- 1994 - Round of 16
- 1998 - Did not qualify
- 2002 - Round of 16
- 2006 - Did not qualify
European Championships record
- 1960-1984 - Did not qualify
- 1988 - Round 1
- 1992-2004 - Did not qualify
Notable Former Players
see also Category:Republic of Ireland international footballers
Current squad
- Goalkeepers
| Name | Age | Club | Caps (goals) | Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nick Colgan | 33 | Barnsley |
8 (0) | v Denmark, 27 March 2002 |
| Wayne Henderson | 23 | Preston North End |
4 (0) | v Sweden, 1 March 2006 |
| Colin Doyle | 21 | Birmingham City |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
- Defenders
| Name | Age | Club | Caps (goals) | Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John O'Shea (captain) | 26 | Manchester United |
38 (1) | v Croatia, 15 August 2001 |
| Stephen Kelly | 23 | Birmingham City |
3 (0) | v Czech Republic, 11 October 2006 |
| Alan Bennett | 25 | Reading |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Alex Bruce | 22 | Ipswich Town |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Peter Murphy | 26 | Unattached | 0 (0) | |
| Joe O'Cearuill | 20 | Arsenal |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Stephen O'Halloran | 19 | Aston Villa |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
- Midfielders
| Name | Age | Club | Caps (goals) | Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Kilbane | 30 | Wigan Athletic |
78 (7) | v Iceland, 6 September 1997 |
| Alan O'Brien | 22 | Newcastle United |
4 (0) | v Netherlands, 16 August 2006 |
| Stephen Hunt | 25 | Reading |
3 (0) | v San Marino, 7 February 2007 |
| Joe Gamble | 25 | Cork City |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Stephen Gleeson | 18 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Darren Potter | 22 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
- Strikers
| Name | Age | Club | Caps (goals) | Debut |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kevin Doyle | 23 | Reading |
8 (3) | v Sweden, 1 March 2006 |
| Shane Long | 20 | Reading |
2 (0) | v San Marino, 7 February 2007 |
| Anthony Stokes | 18 | Sunderland |
1 (0) | v San Marino, 7 February 2007 |
| Daryl Murphy | 24 | Sunderland |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Andy Keogh | 20 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
| Joseph Lapira | 20 |  Notre Dame |
1 (0) | v Ecuador, 23 May 2007 |
Fixtures
Forthcoming fixtures
| Date | City | Opponent | Type of game |
| May 26, 2007 | Foxborough |  Bolivia
|
Friendly game |
| August 22, 2007 | Arhus |  Denmark
|
Friendly game |
| September 9, 2007 | Bratislava |  Slovakia
|
Euro 2008 qualifier |
| September 12, 2007 | Prague |  Czech Republic
|
Euro 2008 qualifier |
| October 13, 2007 | Dublin |  Germany
|
Euro 2008 qualifier |
| October 17, 2007 | Dublin |  Cyprus
|
Euro 2008 qualifier |
| November 17, 2007 | Cardiff |  Wales
|
Euro 2008 qualifier |
Key historical games
Template:ENGf 0 - 2 
Ireland
September 21, 1949. Goodison Park; Friendly;
England's first defeat at home to a non-Home Nation side
Republic of Ireland 1 - 2 Template:ITAf
May 11, 1971:Lansdowne Road; European Championship qualifier;
Republic of Ireland's first game at Lansdowne Road
Republic of Ireland 2 - 0 Template:BULf
October 14, 1987: Lansdowne Road; European Championship qualifier;
Enabled qualification to first ever major tournament (Euro 88) when on November 11, 1987, Bulgaria lost their last home qualifying game to Scotland 0-1.
Republic of Ireland 1 - 0 Template:ENGf
June 12, 1988: Neckarstadion, Stuttgart; European Championship first round
Upset victory in Ireland's first ever match in a major tournament
Republic of Ireland 1 - 1 Template:ENGf
June 11, 1990: Stadio Sant'Elia, Cagliari; World Cup first round
Ireland's first ever match in a World Cup Finals tournament
Republic of Ireland 0 - 0 Template:ROMf; 5 - 4 penalties
June 25, 1990:Stadio Luigi FerrarisGenoa; World Cup second round;
David O'Leary's famous penalty brought Ireland into last eight
Republic of Ireland 1 - 0 Template:ITAf
June 18, 1994: Giants Stadium, East Rutherford; World Cup first round;
Unexpected victory over the side who later lost the final on penalties, it was also Ireland's first World Cup win
Republic of Ireland 1 - 0 Template:ENGf
February 15, 1995: Lansdowne Road; Friendly;
Stadium rioting by English hooligans causes match to be abandoned.
Republic of Ireland 5 - 0 Template:SMRf
November 15, 2006: Lansdowne Road; European Championship qualifier;
The last Ireland match at Lansdowne Road before redevelopment.
Republic of Ireland 1 - 0 Template:WALf
March 24, 2007: Croke Park; European Championship qualifier;
Ireland play in Croke Park in a competitive fixture for the first time.
Managers
- Between 1921 and 1969 a committee of selectors chose the team. However on occasions a coach and / or team manager was appointed. Mick Meagan was the first manager to actually select the team.
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Record Caps
| Rank | Name | Caps |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Steve Staunton | 102 |
| 2 | Niall Quinn | 92 |
| 3 | Tony Cascarino | 88 |
| 4 | Paul McGrath | 83 |
| 5 | Shay Given | 80 |
| Patrick Bonner | 80 | |
| 7 | Kevin Kilbane | 79 |
| 8 | Ray Houghton | 73 |
| 9 | Robbie Keane | 72 |
| Liam Brady | 72 | |
| 11 | Frank Stapleton | 71 |
| Kevin Moran | 71 | |
| 13 | Andy Townsend | 70 |
| Kenny Cunningham | 70 | |
| 15 | John Aldridge | 69 |
| 16 | David O'Leary | 68 |
| 17 | Damien Duff | 66 |
| Roy Keane | 66 | |
| 19 | Ian Harte | 64 |
| 20 | Gary Breen | 63 |
Record Goal scorers
| Rank | Name | Goals |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robbie Keane | 29 |
| 2 | Niall Quinn | 21 |
| 3 | Frank Stapleton | 20 |
| 4 | Don Givens | 19 |
| Tony Cascarino | 19 | |
| John Aldridge | 19 | |
| 7 | Noel Cantwell | 14 |
| 8 | Gerry Daly | 13 |
| 9 | Jimmy Dunne | 12 |
| 10 | Ian Harte | 11 |
See here for top goal scorers per country.
Trivia
- It is often said in Ireland that Germany's common use of a green-coloured away jersey is in recognition of Ireland being the first team to play Germany after World War 2. Despite the fact that Switzerland were actually the Germans' first opponent, this urban myth persists.
- Gary Kelly is the uncle of Ian Harte. Both players featured in the same squad for Ireland's 2002 World Cup campaign.
- Ireland and Wales have played each other at five different Dublin venues ; Croke Park, Lansdowne Road, Tolka Park, Dalymount Park and the Royal Dublin Society showgrounds.
- Ireland at home are a formidable team, however the away record in qualifying competitions is dismal. In the past 40 years, Ireland have only three away wins against countries who previously qualified for a major tournament; Scotland in 1987, Turkey in 1991 and Northern Ireland in 1994.
- Ireland's longest competitive winning streak achieved in 1989 during the 1990 FIFA World Cup qualification campaign is five games. The defeated opponents on that occasion were Spain, Northern Ireland, Hungary and Malta twice. Today's team is presently on a competitive winning streak of four games.
See also
References
External links
- Rep. of Ireland national team 1926-2000(with line-up)
- From RSSSF:
- Ireland - International Results
- Ireland - Record International Players covers Appearances and Goalscoring
- IRISH NATIONAL TEAM COACHES (since 1969) (Only covers matches up to June 1999)