Association football in Northern Ireland

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Association football in Northern Ireland
CountryNorthern Ireland
Governing body Irish Football Association
National team(s) Northern Ireland national football team
National competitions
Club competitions
International competitions

Association football in Northern Ireland, widely known as football or sometimes as soccer (to avoid confusion with Gaelic football), is one of the most popular sports in Northern Ireland. The governing body in Northern Ireland is the Irish Football Association (IFA) (not to be confused with the Football Association of Ireland [FAI] in the Republic of Ireland). Gaelic football, rugby union and association football are the most popular sports in Northern Ireland. [1]

Contents

Governing body

The Irish Football Association is the organising body for football in Northern Ireland, and was historically the governing body for the whole of Ireland until the FAI split away.[ citation needed ] The IFA has a permanent seat on the International Football Association Board, which is responsible for the laws of the game. [2]

The Northern Ireland Women's Football Association (NIWFA) is the IFA's women's football arm. It runs a Women's Cup, Women's League and the Northern Ireland women's national football team. [3]

Competitions

The domestic league is the NIFL Premiership. [4] Some of the major teams include Linfield, Crusaders, Cliftonville and Glentoran. A notable historic club was Belfast Celtic, which won nineteen championships before resigning from the league in 1949 and disbanding after a sectarian riot at its Boxing Day match against Linfield. Derry City also left the league in 1972 following security issues arising from the Troubles, eventually to play in the FAI's League of Ireland. Linfield has won 56 league championships to date, more than twice as many titles as any other Northern Irish club and the highest tally of national top-flight titles won by any club worldwide. [5] The Milk Cup is a successful international youth tournament held annually in Northern Ireland, in which clubs and national teams from anywhere in the world may compete. [6] Northern Ireland also played host to the 2005 UEFA Under-19 European Championships. [7]

The Setanta Sports Cup was set up by its sponsors, television channel Setanta Ireland. It was an all-island tournament (two groups of four, then semis and final) featuring eight teams, four being from the League of Ireland and four from the Irish League. Despite fairly low turnouts for each jurisdiction's leagues, the Setanta Cup drew relatively successful gate receipts and in its three-year existence has had one winner from the North (Linfield in 2005). [8]

National team

The Northern Ireland national football team is one of the oldest international teams in the world, it was founded in 1880. [9] It originally played as the Ireland national team until 1950 with players selected from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and competed in the British Home Championship which it won eight times. Northern Ireland joined FIFA in 1911, and UEFA in 1954. [10]

The team enjoyed a period of success in the early and mid-80s in which it qualified for two World Cups, most notably in the 1982 tournament in which it topped Group 5 above Spain, Yugoslavia and Honduras to proceed to the second round. [11] After a poor run of form in the late 1990s and first few years of the 21st century, and a corresponding slump in the FIFA World Rankings, there was a subsequent revival in the team's fortunes with home wins over Spain and England. The team came close to qualifying for the 2008 European Championships, and took part in the Nations Cup competition in 2011 along with Wales, Scotland and the Republic of Ireland. Northern Ireland qualified for UEFA Euro 2016, progressing through the group stage and reaching the round of 16. [12] In 2018, the national team began their UEFA Nations League debut, in league B. [13]

Men's team home matches draw significantly higher attendances than those of the NIFL Premiership. Attendances at Windsor Park home matches have consistently been in the 14,000-18,000 range in the time period between COVID-19 restrictions were lifted and November 2023.

Problems

Sectarian tensions have long been a cause of conflict at football matches in Northern Ireland, [14] and crowd trouble marred games throughout the twentieth century. [15] In 1949, Belfast Celtic withdrew from the Irish League after years of sectarian crowd problems culminated in a Boxing Day match against Linfield at Windsor Park which ended in a pitch invasion and riot in which Belfast Celtic's Protestant centre forward, Jimmy Jones, suffered a broken leg. [15]

Since 1968, Cronin argues that the sport has failed to include the Catholic community with Catholic clubs being either forced out of existence or transferring their allegiance to the FAI. [16] Hooliganism and sectarianism have remained problems throughout the Troubles and up to the present day. Northern Ireland football grounds have been described as "useful sites of public displays of political affiliation", and internal divisions between groups involved in political violence in the mid-1990s was reflected in the supporters of various clubs. [17] Incidents of violence include trouble after Linfield player Conor Hagan was struck by a rocket fired from the crowd, and disturbances between Linfield and Glentoran fans at the 2008 Boxing Day match between the two clubs. [18]

In addition to problems in domestic football, the Northern Ireland international team has also suffered from sectarian problems. In 2002 Celtic player Neil Lennon announced that he would no longer play for Northern Ireland because he received a death threat, [14] and death threats appeared on the walls of loyalist areas including in his home town of Lurgan, County Armagh. [19]

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northern Ireland national football team</span> Mens national association football team representing Northern Ireland

The Northern Ireland men's national football team represents Northern Ireland in international association football. From 1882 to 1950, all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association (IFA). In 1921, the jurisdiction of the IFA was reduced to Northern Ireland following the secession of clubs in the soon-to-be Irish Free State, although its team remained the national team for all of Ireland until 1950, and used the name Ireland until the 1970s. The Football Association of Ireland (FAI) organises the separate Republic of Ireland national football team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glentoran F.C.</span> Association football club in Northern Ireland

Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club based in East Belfast, that plays in the Irish League Premiership. The club was founded in 1882 and has since won more than 130 honours.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linfield F.C.</span> Association football club in Northern Ireland

Linfield Football Club is a Northern Irish professional football club, based in south Belfast, which plays in the Irish Premiership – the highest level of the Irish League. The fourth-oldest club on the island of Ireland, Linfield was founded in 1886 by workers at the Ulster Spinning Company's Linfield Mill. Since 1905, the club's home ground has been Windsor Park, which is also the home of the Northern Ireland national team and is the largest football stadium in Northern Ireland. The club's badge displays Windsor Castle, in reference to the ground's namesake. Linfield is also the world's most successful club in terms of league titles won; it has 56 league titles, the last being won in the 2021/22 season.

The Irish Football Association Challenge Cup, commonly referred to as the Irish Cup is the primary football knock-out cup competition in Northern Ireland. Inaugurated in 1881, it is the fourth-oldest national cup competition in the world. Prior to the break-away from the Irish Football Association by clubs from what would become the Irish Free State in 1921, the Irish Cup was the national cup competition for the whole of Ireland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Setanta Sports Cup</span> Football tournament

The Setanta Sports Cup was a club football competition featuring teams from both football associations on the island of Ireland. Inaugurated in 2005, it was a cross-border competition between clubs in the League of Ireland from the Republic of Ireland and the NIFL Premiership from Northern Ireland. The cup was sponsored by Setanta Sports, the Irish subscription sports television network. The competition was discontinued after the 2014 edition. A successor competition, the Champions Cup, was announced in 2019.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colin Coates (footballer)</span> Northern Irish footballer (born 1985)

Colin Coates is a semi-professional footballer from Northern Ireland who plays as a defender for Ballymena United.

This article covers the History of Derry City Football Club, from the club's early days in the Irish League, through the "wilderness years" and into the present day as the club competes in the League of Ireland. For season by season results see Seasons

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rory Patterson</span> Northern Irish footballer

Rory Christopher Patterson is a Northern Irish footballer who plays as a forward for Belfast Celtic He also played for the Northern Ireland national team. Having played youth football for Sion Swifts, Moorfield Celtic and Townsend United, Patterson joined Rochdale in 2002 before having spells with Radcliffe Borough and Mossley.

The 2008–09 IFA Premiership was the 1st season of the IFA Premiership, the highest level of league football in Northern Ireland, and the 108th season of Irish league football overall.

The 2009–10 IFA Premiership was the 2nd season of the IFA Premiership, the highest level of league football in Northern Ireland, and the 109th season of Irish league football overall.

The 2010–11 IFA Premiership was the 3rd season of the IFA Premiership, the highest level of league football in Northern Ireland, and the 110th season of Irish league football overall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Daniel Kearns (footballer)</span> Irish footballer

Daniel Anthony Kearns is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for NIFL Premiership club Larne. Kearns joined Peterborough United from Dundalk in 2011 and had three separate loan spells with clubs across Northern England. He permanently joined Carlisle United after leaving Peterborough, and spent a year there before returning to Ireland, spending his later career at various clubs in the Irish Premiership and League of Ireland.

The 2011–12 IFA Premiership was the 4th season of the IFA Premiership, the highest level of league football in Northern Ireland, and the 111th season of Irish league football overall.

For the equivalent tournament in the Republic of Ireland, see FAI Women's Cup.

The 2012–13 IFA Premiership was the 5th season of the IFA Premiership, the highest level of league football in Northern Ireland, and the 112th season of Irish league football overall.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Big Two derby</span> Association football derby in Belfast

The Big Two derby, also referred to simply as the Big Two or Bel Classico, is the name given to the Irish League association football derby between Belfast clubs, Linfield and Glentoran. The derby is also sometimes referred to as the Belfast derby. They are the two most successful and most supported clubs in Irish League Football. They traditionally face each other on Boxing Day each year which usually attracts the largest Irish Premiership attendance of the season. They regularly play each other in the league, and have contested more cup finals together than any other two clubs. They also make up two of the three clubs that have competed in every season of the Irish League's top flight since its inception in 1890 – neither club ever suffering relegation.

The Northern Ireland Women's Football Association (NIWFA) is the governing body of women's association football in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1977.

Sunday football in Northern Ireland has been a controversial issue. Until 2008, the Irish Football Association (IFA) under IFA Article 27, prohibited any clubs affiliated with them from playing association football matches on Sunday. The ban initially came from various government legislation, both local and national. Northern Ireland's Protestant Christian majority's observance of Sunday as the Sabbath, was also a major factor which amounted to a continuance of the observance of tradition for a lot longer than in the rest of the UK. It was also a way to combat a perceived encroachment on their culture by Catholics. Since the abolition of the ban, teams can play matches on Sunday if they have mutual agreement, although some teams such as Linfield have club rules against such games.

Newry City Ladies Football Club is a women's association football club based in Newry, County Armagh, Northern Ireland. They were founded in 2011 and re-founded in 2012. They are currently affiliated to Newry City A.F.C. men's team and play at The Showgrounds.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Champions Cup (All-Ireland)</span> Association football competition

The Champions Cup was a cross-border association football super cup inaugurated in 2019 that features the league champions from both football associations on the island of Ireland. The competition sees the League of Ireland Premier Division champions from the Republic of Ireland face the NIFL Premiership champions from Northern Ireland. The Champions Cup is the successor to the Setanta Sports Cup, the previous all-Ireland competition which ran from 2005 until 2014. The Champions Cup is sponsored by Unite the Union, the British and Irish trade union. The 2019 edition was the only one contested, and as of 2022 there is little prospect of the competition returning.

References

  1. ↑ "Northern Ireland". BBC Sport. Archived from the original on 2019-01-23. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  2. ↑ "IFA | Irish Football Association | Northern Ireland Football". IFA. Archived from the original on 2020-09-26. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  3. ↑ "NIWFA". IFA. Archived from the original on 2019-01-25. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  4. ↑ "Danske Bank Premiership". IFA. Archived from the original on 2019-01-25. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  5. ↑ "Football titles world league: Rangers top, but who is most dominant?". The Independent. 2012-02-16. Archived from the original on 2012-08-17. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  6. ↑ "SuperCupNI". www.supercupni.com. Archived from the original on 2019-01-25. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  7. ↑ UEFA.com. "Under-19 - France savour first triumph". UEFA.com. Archived from the original on 2019-07-05. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  8. ↑ "Setanta Cup · The Daily Edge". The Daily Edge. Archived from the original on 2019-01-25. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  9. ↑ "NI football's greatest moments". 2015-10-09. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  10. ↑ uefa.com. "Member associations - Northern Ireland - Overview". UEFA.com. Archived from the original on 2019-02-16. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  11. ↑ McCann, Eamonn. "Northern Ireland is the most successful country ever in World Cup finals". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 2020-11-12. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  12. ↑ "Northern Ireland Euro 2016 exit painful but leaves legacy for future success". 2016-06-26. Archived from the original on 2019-01-24. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  13. ↑ UEFA.com. "Northern Ireland - UEFA Nations League". UEFA.com. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  14. 1 2 "Sectarianism in sport discussed". BBC. 2003-04-11. Archived from the original on 2008-07-01. Retrieved 2011-03-10.
  15. 1 2 Richard William Cox; Dave Russell; Wray Vamplew (2002). Encyclopedia of British football. Psychology Press. pp. 190, 262.
  16. ↑ Mike Cronin (2001), Catholics and Sport in Northern Ireland: Exclusiveness or Inclusiveness?, International Sports Studies, vol. 21, no. 1, p. 26
  17. ↑ Gary Armstrong; Richard Giulianotti (2001). Fear and loathing in world football. p. 53.
  18. ↑ Stuart McKinley (2008-12-26). "Riot police deal with hooligan fans as Linfield beat Glentoran". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 2011-02-28.
  19. ↑ Colin Blackstock (2002-08-22). "Northern Ireland football captain quits match after death threats". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 2014-09-09. Retrieved 2011-03-10.

See also

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