Republic of Ireland women's national football team

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Republic of Ireland
Shirt badge/Association crest
Nickname(s)The Girls in Green (Irish: Na cailíní i nglas)
AssociationWomen's Football Association of Ireland
ConfederationUEFA (Europe)
Head coachEileen Gleeson
CaptainKatie McCabe
Most capsEmma Byrne (134)
Top scorerOlivia O'Toole (54)
Home stadiumTallaght Stadium
FIFA codeIRL
First colours
Second colours
FIFA ranking
Current 25 Decrease 1 (15 March 2024)[1]
Highest22 (March – June 2023)
Lowest38 (July – August 2003)
First international
 Wales 2–3 Republic of Ireland 
(Llanelli, Wales; 13 May 1973)
Biggest win
 Republic of Ireland 11–0 Georgia 
(Tallaght, Dublin, Ireland; 30 November 2021)
Biggest defeat
 Sweden 10–0 Republic of Ireland 
(Borås, Sweden; 20 September 1992)
World Cup
Appearances1 (first in 2023)
Best resultGroup stage (2023)
WebsiteOfficial website

The Republic of Ireland women's national football team (Irish: Foireann sacair ban Phoblacht na hÉireann) represents the Republic of Ireland in competitions such as the FIFA Women's World Cup and the UEFA Women's Championship. The team played in their first World Cup at the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup.[2] It has taken part in invitational tournaments such as the Algarve Cup, the Istria Cup, the Cyprus Cup and Pinatar Cup.[3] It is organised by the Women's Football Association of Ireland.

History[edit]

In 1973, the Women's Football Association of Ireland was established[4] and in the same year on 13 May the Republic of Ireland made their official international debut, Paula Gorham's hat-trick securing a 3–2 win in an away friendly game against Wales.[5] They made their competitive debut on 19 September 1982 in a 1984 European Competition for Women's Football qualifier against Scotland. This time the Republic of Ireland lost 3–0. On 2 October 1982 the Republic of Ireland gained their first competitive win when they defeated Northern Ireland 2–1 in an away game in the same competition. After losing 10–0 to Sweden in a Euro 1993 qualifier, the FAI did not enter a team in the 1995 competition.[6] This defeat against Sweden remains the team's biggest defeat.

During the 2000s the Republic of Ireland enjoyed some minor successes. In 2000 they won the Celt Cup – a four team tournament that also featured Northern Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man.[7] In their 2005 UEFA Women's Euro campaign they also won their second level group, finishing above Romania, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Malta. This would have secured promotion to the elite group of nations which competed directly for qualification to major tournaments, had the two level system not been scrapped for the next qualifying campaign. The Republic of Ireland also won their group at the 2013 Cyprus Cup, finishing above South Korea, South Africa and Northern Ireland.

The Republic of Ireland has also enjoyed some success at both under-17 and under-19 levels. In 2010, with a team that included Megan Campbell, Ciara Grant, Dora Gorman, Denise O'Sullivan, Siobhán Killeen and Clare Shine, the Republic of Ireland U-17 squad were runners-up in the 2010 UEFA Women's Under-17 Championship and quarter-finalists in the 2010 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.[8] In the UEFA championship semi-final the Republic of Ireland defeated Germany 1–0.[9] With a team that included Megan Connolly, Savannah McCarthy and Katie McCabe the Republic of Ireland team won their group at the 2014 UEFA Women's Under-19 Championship and qualified for the semi-finals.[10]

In April 2017, the squad demanded better treatment from the FAI and threatened to boycott a home match against Slovakia.[11] They wanted a higher match fee, and broken time payment for amateurs missing work.[11] They claimed that they had to share with underage teams the tracksuits they wore travelling to and from away matches, and change out of them in airport toilets.[11] The boycott threat was lifted when agreement on improvements was reached.[12]

In November 2021 the team recorded their biggest ever win: 11–0 against Georgia in the qualifiers for 2023 World Cup.[13] The team secured a crucial victory in their World Cup qualifying campaign, defeating Finland 1-0 in a Group A match.[14] The decisive goal was scored in the second half by substitute Lily Agg, allowing the Irish team to claim second place in the group with one game remaining.[15] This achievement was soon surpassed when Ireland won the play-off final 1–0 over Scotland in Glasgow on 11 October 2022 to qualify for the final tournament.[16] A crucial first-half penalty save from Courtney Brosnan kept Ireland alive before Donegal native Amber Barrett scored the decisive goal, days after news of an explosion that killed several people in her county. She dedicated the goal to the victims and the community.[17] While celebrating in the Hampden changing rooms, several players sang Celtic Symphony praising the Irish Republican Army, for which manager Vera Pauw and players Áine O'Gorman and Chloe Mustaki apologised; the chanting was condemned by politicians from Northern Ireland.[18][19] The FAI was fined €20,000 for the chanting.[20]

They played their first ever Women's World Cup game on the 20th of July 2023, losing 1-0 to Australia, one of the co-host nations of the competition, following a penalty.[21] Ireland was then beaten by Canada, the reigning Olympic champion.[22]

Home stadium[edit]

Throughout their history, the Republic of Ireland have played their home games at various grounds. The most regularly used have included Dalymount Park, Tolka Park, Richmond Park and Turners Cross. They have also played occasional games at Glenmalure Park, Belfield Park, Carlisle Grounds, Ferrycarrig Park, Flancare Park and at Lamberton, Arklow.[23] While, they played the majority of their home games at Tallaght Stadium since 2013,[citation needed] the national team played their first home game at the Aviva Stadium in September 2023.[24]

Results and fixtures[edit]

The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.

Legend

  Win   Draw   Lose   Fixture

2023[edit]

12 April Friendly United States  1–0  Republic of Ireland St. Louis, United States
00:30 IST
  • Cook 43'
Report Stadium: Citypark
Attendance: 22,294
Referee: Crystal Sobers (Trinidad and Tobago)
22 June Friendly Republic of Ireland  3–2  Zambia Dublin, Ireland
Report
Stadium: Tallaght Stadium
Attendance: 5,732
14 July Friendly Colombia  Abandoned  Republic of Ireland Brisbane, Australia
Stadium: Meakin Park
Attendance: 0 (Closed door game)
Note: Pre-World Cup warmup match abandoned after 20 minutes due to "overly physical" play from Colombia that resulted in the hospitalisation of Denise O'Sullivan.[25]
31 July FIFA WC Group Republic of Ireland  0–0  Nigeria Brisbane, Australia
20:00 UTC+10 Report Stadium: Lang Park
Attendance: 24,884
Referee: Katia García (Mexico)

2024[edit]

23 February Friendly Italy  0–0  Republic of Ireland Florence, Italy
17:15 GMT Report Stadium: Viola Park
Referee: Emanuela Rusta (Albania)
27 February Friendly Republic of Ireland  0–2  Wales Dublin, Ireland
19:30 GMT Report Stadium: Tallaght Stadium
Attendance: 8,218

Coaching staff[edit]

Current coaching staff[edit]

The senior women's management team includes:[26]

Role Name
Head coach Republic of Ireland Eileen Gleeson
Assistant coach Republic of Ireland Colin Healy
Assistant coach Republic of Ireland Emma Byrne
Assistant coach Wales Rhys Carr
Performance coach Republic of Ireland Ivi Casagrande

Manager history[edit]

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

The following players were named to the squad for the UEFA Women's Euro 2025 qualifying matches against France and England on 5 and 9 April 2024 respectively.[35]

Niamh Fahey and Jessica Ziu withdrew from the squad due to injury and were replaced by Erin McLaughlin and Emily Whelan.[36][37]

Caps and goals updated as of 9 April 2024 after the match against  England.

No. Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club
1 1GK Courtney Brosnan (1995-11-10) 10 November 1995 (age 28) 36 0 England Everton
16 1GK Grace Moloney (1993-04-01) 1 April 1993 (age 31) 6 0 England London City Lionesses
23 1GK Sophie Whitehouse (1996-10-10) 10 October 1996 (age 27) 0 0 England Lewes

2 2DF Jessie Stapleton (2005-02-07) 7 February 2005 (age 19) 5 0 England Reading
3 2DF Megan Campbell (1993-06-28) 28 June 1993 (age 30) 49 4 England London City Lionesses
4 2DF Louise Quinn (1990-06-17) 17 June 1990 (age 33) 117 16 England Birmingham City
5 2DF Caitlin Hayes (1995-09-22) 22 September 1995 (age 28) 10 2 Scotland Celtic
7 2DF Diane Caldwell (1988-09-11) 11 September 1988 (age 35) 102 4 Switzerland Zürich Frauen
12 2DF Anna Patten (1999-04-20) 20 April 1999 (age 24) 2 0 England Aston Villa
13 2DF Aoife Mannion (1995-09-24) 24 September 1995 (age 28) 5 0 England Manchester United

6 3MF Megan Connolly (1997-03-07) 7 March 1997 (age 27) 54 4 England Bristol City
8 3MF Ruesha Littlejohn (1990-07-03) 3 July 1990 (age 33) 80 6 England London City Lionesses
10 3MF Denise O'Sullivan (1994-02-04) 4 February 1994 (age 30) 113 20 United States North Carolina Courage
11 3MF Katie McCabe (captain) (1995-09-21) 21 September 1995 (age 28) 86 26 England Arsenal
14 3MF Heather Payne (2000-01-20) 20 January 2000 (age 24) 46 2 England Everton
15 3MF Lucy Quinn (1993-09-29) 29 September 1993 (age 30) 23 5 England Birmingham City
17 3MF Lily Agg (1993-12-17) 17 December 1993 (age 30) 15 3 England Birmingham City
19 3MF Tyler Toland (2001-08-08) 8 August 2001 (age 22) 18 1 England Blackburn Rovers
22 3MF Isibeal Atkinson (2001-07-17) 17 July 2001 (age 22) 15 0 England Crystal Palace
3MF Erin McLaughlin (2003-03-08) 8 March 2003 (age 21) 3 0 Republic of Ireland Peamount United

9 4FW Amber Barrett (1996-01-10) 10 January 1996 (age 28) 42 7 Belgium Standard Liège
18 4FW Kyra Carusa (1995-11-14) 14 November 1995 (age 28) 25 7 United States San Diego Wave
20 4FW Leanne Kiernan (1999-04-27) 27 April 1999 (age 24) 32 4 England Liverpool
21 4FW Emily Murphy (2003-03-02) 2 March 2003 (age 21) 3 0 United States Wake Forest University
4FW Abbie Larkin (2005-04-27) 27 April 2005 (age 18) 17 1 England Crystal Palace
4FW Emily Whelan (2002-08-22) 22 August 2002 (age 21) 9 0 Scotland Glasgow City

Recent call-ups[edit]

  • The following players have also been called up to the Republic of Ireland squad within the 12 months previous to April 2024.
Pos. Player Date of birth (age) Caps Goals Club Latest call-up
GK Megan Walsh (1994-11-12) 12 November 1994 (age 29) 1 0 England West Ham v.  Hungary, 26 September 2023

DF Niamh Fahey (1987-10-13) 13 October 1987 (age 36) 112 1 England Liverpool v.  France, 5 April 2024 INJ
DF Chloe Mustaki (1995-07-29) 29 July 1995 (age 28) 8 0 England Bristol City v.  Northern Ireland, 31 October 2023
DF Hayley Nolan (1997-03-07) 7 March 1997 (age 27) 3 0 England Crystal Palace v.  Northern Ireland, 31 October 2023
DF Claire O'Riordan (1994-10-12) 12 October 1994 (age 29) 19 1 Belgium Standard Liège v.  Albania, 31 October 2023
DF Savannah McCarthy (1997-03-26) 26 March 1997 (age 27) 11 0 Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers v.  Hungary, 26 September 2023
DF Éabha O'Mahony (2002-05-17) 17 May 2002 (age 21) 4 0 United States Texas Longhorns v.  Hungary, 26 September 2023
DF Áine O'Gorman (1989-05-13) 13 May 1989 (age 34) 119 13 Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup
DF Harriet Scott (1993-02-10) 10 February 1993 (age 31) 24 0 England Birmingham City 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup PRE
DF Tara O'Hanlon (2005-03-13) 13 March 2005 (age 19) 2 0 England Manchester City v.  Zambia, 22 June 2023

MF Jessica Ziu (2002-06-06) 6 June 2002 (age 21) 14 0 England West Ham United v.  France, 5 April 2024 INJ
MF Jessica Fitzgerald (2006-07-12) 12 July 2006 (age 17) 0 0 Republic of Ireland Peamount United v.  Wales, 27 February 2024
MF Jamie Finn (1998-04-21) 21 April 1998 (age 25) 20 0 England Birmingham City v.  Italy, 23 February 2024 INJ
MF Sinead Farrelly (1989-11-16) 16 November 1989 (age 34) 8 0 United States Gotham FC v.  Northern Ireland, 31 October 2023
MF Freya Healy (2007-11-05) 5 November 2007 (age 16) 0 0 Republic of Ireland Peamount United v.  Northern Ireland, 31 October 2023
MF Ciara Grant (1993-06-11) 11 June 1993 (age 30) 18 0 Scotland Hearts 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup
MF Roma McLaughlin (1998-03-06) 6 March 1998 (age 26) 11 0 Denmark Fortuna Hjørring v.  Zambia, 22 June 2023

FW Saoirse Noonan (1999-07-13) 13 July 1999 (age 24) 4 1 England Durham v.  Northern Ireland, 31 October 2023
FW Ellen Dolan (2006-06-30) 30 June 2006 (age 17) 0 0 Republic of Ireland Peamount United v.  Northern Ireland, 31 October 2023
FW Marissa Sheva (1997-04-22) 22 April 1997 (age 26) 7 0 United States Washington Spirit v.  Hungary, 26 September 2023
FW Alannah McEvoy (2001-02-07) 7 February 2001 (age 23) 0 0 Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers v.  United States, 12 April 2023

Notes:

  • INJ – Withdrew due to injury.
  • PRE – Preliminary squad / standby.

Records[edit]

  • Statistics correct as of 9 April 2024.
  • Active players in bold.

Competitive record[edit]

FIFA Women's World Cup[edit]

FIFA Women's World Cup record Qualification record
Year Result GP W D* L GF GA GD GP W D* L GF GA GD
China 1991 did not qualify UEFA Euro 1991
Sweden 1995 did not enter UEFA Euro 1995
United States 1999 did not qualify 6 3 1 2 8 4 +4
United States 2003 6 4 0 2 18 7 +11
China 2007 8 1 1 6 3 15 −12
Germany 2011 8 4 1 3 12 10 +2
Canada 2015 10 5 2 3 13 9 +4
France 2019 8 4 1 3 10 6 +4
AustraliaNew Zealand 2023 Group Stage 3 0 1 2 1 3 –2 9 6 2 1 27 4 +23
2027 To be determined To be determined
Total Group Stage 3 0 1 2 1 3 –2 55 27 8 20 91 55 +36
*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

UEFA Women's Championship[edit]

UEFA Women's Championship record Qualifying record
Year Result GP W D* L GS GA GP W D* L GS GA
1984 did not qualify 6 2 1 3 6 14
Norway 1987 6 2 0 4 4 17
Germany 1989 4 0 1 3 1 8
Denmark 1991 4 2 1 1 6 3
Italy 1993 4 1 0 3 1 12
Germany 1995 did not enter did not enter
NorwaySweden 1997 did not qualify 8 6 0 2 20 10
Germany 2001 6 2 1 3 6 12
England 2005 8 5 3 0 35 5
Finland 2009 10 4 1 5 11 18
Sweden 2013 8 3 0 5 8 11
Netherlands 2017 8 3 0 5 17 14
England 2022 8 4 1 3 11 10
Switzerland 2025 to be determined to be determined
Total - - - - - - - 80 34 9 37 126 134
*Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  2. ^ Nowakowski, Wojciech (8 August 2023). "Morocco, Ireland, Portugal: All 8 Women's World Cup debutants and how far they made it". Her Football Hub. Retrieved 24 October 2023.
  3. ^ "Women's tournaments come to the fore in March". www.fifa.com.
  4. ^ Fan Hong, J. A. Mangan (2004). Soccer, Women, Sexual Liberation: Kicking Off a New Era. Frank Cass Publishers.
  5. ^ Ryan, Eoin (10 May 2020). "Trailblazers – When Dundalk Ladies represented Ireland". RTÉ Sport. Retrieved 29 August 2020. When the WFAI was established in 1973, almost a full three years after the Corinthians clash, Gorham scored a hat-trick in the Republic of Ireland's first officially recognised women's international – a 3–2 victory away to Wales.
  6. ^ "Irish goalkeeping great Sue Hayden". Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  7. ^ Garin, Erik (20 October 2003). "1st Celt Cup – Women Tournament – 2000". RSSSF. Retrieved 24 December 2013.
  8. ^ "UEFA.com – Women's Under-17 2010 – Republic of Ireland-Sweden". www.uefa.com.
  9. ^ "UEFA.com – Women's Under-17 2010 – Republic of Ireland-Germany". www.uefa.com.
  10. ^ "Women's Under-19 2014 - Sweden-Republic of Ireland – UEFA.com". Uefa.com. 21 July 2014.
  11. ^ a b c "Ireland women's team withdraw from training". RTÉ.ie. 5 April 2017. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  12. ^ "Agreement reached between FAI and Women's National Team". RTÉ.ie. 6 April 2017. Retrieved 6 April 2017.
  13. ^ Ryan, Eoin (30 November 2021). "Recap: Republic of Ireland 11–0 Georgia". RTÉ.ie.
  14. ^ "World Cup Qualifier FT: Ireland 1 Finland 0 - Vera Pauw's side book playoff spot". The Irish Times.
  15. ^ "Republic of Ireland Women 1-0 Finland Women: Girls in Green secure World Cup play-off spot". Sky Sports.
  16. ^ "History in Hampden as Ireland clinch qualification for 2023 World Cup". The 42. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  17. ^ "'This is for Creeslough, this is for Donegal' - Amber Barrett pays poignant tribute after famous playoff goal". The Irish Independent. 11 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  18. ^ Reid, Kurtis (12 October 2022). "Watch: Republic of Ireland players apologise as video emerges of pro-IRA chant". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  19. ^ "Republic of Ireland women: FAI and manager Pauw apologise for players' IRA chant after play-off win". BBC Sport. 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  20. ^ "Republic of Ireland women: FAI fined 20,000 euros by Uefa for players' pro-IRA chant". BBC Sport. 8 December 2022. Retrieved 8 December 2022.
  21. ^ "Catley penalty gives Australia win over Republic". BBC Sport.
  22. ^ www.fifa.com https://www.fifa.com/fifaplus/en/tournaments/womens/womensworldcup/australia-new-zealand2023/articles/canada-republic-of-ireland-womens-world-cup-2023. Retrieved 29 March 2024. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  23. ^ "Women's European Qualifiers Qualifying Round - Arklow Town FC, Arklow - 28 May 2000". fai.ie. Retrieved 23 September 2023.
  24. ^ O'Connell, Dylan (23 September 2023). "Ireland enter new era with win over Northern Ireland in front of 35,994 fans at the Aviva". echolive.ie. Retrieved 23 September 2023. The Republic of Ireland women's national team marked their first-ever game at the Aviva Stadium with a 3-0 victory over Northern Ireland in the UEFA Nations League
  25. ^ "Denise O'Sullivan scare for Ireland as Colombia game abandoned". RTÉ Sports. 14 July 2023.
  26. ^ "Support Staff confirmed for Ireland WNT". Football Association of Ireland. 12 February 2024. Retrieved 13 February 2024.
  27. ^ "Republic of Ireland women's football players". Women's Football Archive. 13 June 2022.
  28. ^ "End of an era for Irish women". Kickin Magazine. 7 July 2000. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  29. ^ Kelly, Niall (31 December 2020). "Noel King takes charge of Shelbourne's WNL team ahead of 2021 season". The42. Retrieved 12 April 2021. King spent almost a decade in charge of Ireland's Women's National Team from 2000 to 2010
  30. ^ "Ronan succeeds King at Ireland helm". UEFA. 15 October 2010. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  31. ^ Mackey, Liam (29 December 2016). "Sue Ronan kicks through football's glass ceiling". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  32. ^ "Colin Bell replaces Sue Ronan as Ireland manager". RTÉ Sport. 8 February 2017. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  33. ^ Fallon, John (4 September 2019). "Ex-Netherlands boss Vera Pauw appointed as new Ireland women's manager". Irish Independent. Retrieved 12 April 2021.
  34. ^ "Gleeson appointed interim Republic of Ireland boss in wake of Pauw exit". RTÉ News. 30 August 2023. Retrieved 30 August 2023.
  35. ^ "Ireland WNT squad selected for opening EURO 2025 qualifiers". Football Association of Ireland. 28 March 2024. Retrieved 28 March 2024.
  36. ^ "Niamh Fahey withdraws from Republic of Ireland squad". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 2 April 2024. Retrieved 2 April 2024.
  37. ^ "Erin McLaughlin links up with Ireland squad". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 3 April 2024. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
  38. ^ "Olivia O'Toole; Escaping Drugs, Fighting Inequality & Becoming Ireland's Top Scorer – Her Sport". 6 March 2020.[dead link]

External links[edit]