The Best Books, Magazines and Podcasts about Irish Football

Ahead of the launch of my new book, Shades of Green: A Journey into Irish Football, I want to share some of the best reading and listening around football across the island of Ireland (excluding player biographies and autobiographies), many of which – or their authors/hosts – were sources for my book.

Books on Irish Soccer

Green is the Colour: How Irish Football Shaped a Nation, Peter Byrne.

This is possibly the most comprehensive tome that covers the complete Irish soccer journey, especially the earlier decades. 

No Foreign Game: Association Football and the Making of Irish Identities, James Quinn

Quinn covers how the game of soccer, once denounced by nationalists as a ‘foreign’ or ‘garrison game’, reflects a lot of the politics and identity across Ireland since the late Victorian era.

I recommend listening to the author’s interview here with the FootPol Podcast. 

The Irish Soccer Split, Cormac Moore

Why are there two football associations, leagues, and national teams on the island of Ireland rather than an all-Ireland set-up, as with other sports like rugby, cricket and Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) sports? 

Moore explains how and why the Dublin clubs broke away from the Belfast-run Irish Football Association (IFA) to form their own governing body, now the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), around the same time as six Protestant-majority counties of Ulster petitioned successfully to remain in the United Kingdom while the 26 other counties became the newly independent Irish Free State in the early 1920s.

Heart and Spirit: A Footballing History of the Republic of Ireland, Alan Hannify

This is a very easy to read summary of the game in the Republic.

Just Follow the Floodlights: The Complete Guide to League of Ireland, Brian Kennedy

Waterford fan Brian Kennedy groundhopped around the League of Ireland and published his chronicles in 2011. Some of the clubs have disappeared since then. I met Brian at Waterford for a match that I cover in my book. He’s also written a comprehensive history of Waterford, Forever Blue: A History of Waterford Football Club, 1930-2023.

Soccer and Society in Dublin: A History of Association Football in Ireland’s Capital, Conor Curran

This is a comprehensive and academic deep-dive into how Association football gained a foothold in the Irish capital, despite stiff competition from both the GAA and rugby.

For more, listen to my interview with Conor here on the early history of football in Dublin.

Political Football: The Life and Death of Belfast Celtic, Barry Flynn

The Belfast Celtic story is one of the great forgotten tales in world football. It was one of my favourite areas to explore when putting Shades of Green together and visited the Belfast Celtic Museum while in the city.

Flynn’s book is very comprehensive and easy to read.

Champagne Football: John Delaney and the Betrayal of Irish Football, Mark Tighe and Paul Rowan

This examination of by two Sunday Times journalists about the goings-on at the FAI under the 15-year management of John Delaney.

Emerald Exiles: How the Irish Made Their Mark on World Football, Barry Landy

Irish players, coaches, and pioneers have made themselves known all around the world, leaving an impact on clubs from Ajax to Boca Juniors. Landy’s book celebrates their achievements.

Green Shoots: Irish Football Histories, Michael Walker

This is a fairly easy-to-read collection of football stories from across the island of Ireland written by an experienced football journalist.

Gunshots & Goalposts: The Story of Northern Irish Football, Benjamin Roberts

Roberts’ book examines the often-fraught history of football in Northern Ireland and the divisive role that sectarianism has played in the region. In my book, I inevitably have to cover sectarianism but look at what clubs are doing to address divisions a quarter of a century after the Good Friday Agreement.

There’s Only One Red Army, Eamonn Sweeney

I’m rounding up the book section with a couple of club-specific books on Sligo Rovers. Sweeney’s book is one of the best books I’ve read on football anywhere. It’s laugh-out-loud funny at times, especially the chapter he dedicates to why Sligo Rovers fans – along with many soccer fans in the League of Ireland – have an issue with the ‘Shams’ (Shamrock Rovers). 

In The Shadow of Benbulben: Dixie Dean at Sligo Rovers, Paul Little

Former Everton and England star, Dixie Dean – the original number 9 – had a brief but impactful spell in Ireland’s wild north-west in the twilight of his career. Little’s book covers his experience in detail, and he was also kind enough to let me interview him for my section on Sligo Rovers.

Magazines, podcasts and blogs

Póg Mo Goal – “Ireland’s only football magazine” fills an important gap in the market and is full of quality writing and design. Co-founder and editor Kie Carew is another interviewee in Shades of Green.

A Bohemian Sporting Life – Bohemian fan and football historian Gerry Farrell produces fascinating long-reads around topics in Irish soccer history that you may not see elsewhere. He also makes an appearance in my book.

LOI Central – A weekly digest of all things League of Ireland. Covers a lot of ground as episodes are over an hour in length.

The Peilcast – This weekly podcast looks assesses the League of Ireland matches plus covers the Republic of Ireland national side. One of the co-hosts, Dave Carabini, is an interviewee in my book discussing the Louth Derby (Drogheda Utd v Dundalk)

Kicking Match – Peter Cinnamond, also an interviewee in my book (we share an admiration for Dundela’s Wilgar Park ground), hosts this weekly deep-dive into the Northern Ireland Football League.

Each Game on its Merits – Two interviewees from my book, Gerry Farrell and Aodhán Ó Ríordáin MEP, host a look back at each of the Republic of Ireland’s international matches in chronological order from the birth of the Irish Free State (early 1920s) onwards.

The Boys We’ve Seen – This weekly show co-hosted by Conor Heffernan and Jonathan Cooper explores the history of Irish football, including players and teams from the Republic of Ireland’s past.

Big shout out to the great club fanzines out there, too, such as Red Inc. at Shelbourne and the Red and Black matchday programme at Bohemians.

Once again, the book is called Shades of Green: A Journey Into Irish Football, and it’s out on 10 March 2025 in paperback and eBook via Pitch Publishing. You can pre-order it now!

If you run a podcast or work for media and would like me to come onto your show or interview me to discuss the book, please get in touch. Likewise, I am available for talks around the time of launch.

Here a quick video summary of Shades of Green: