Apart from Shelbourne’s dramatic march to the League of Ireland title two seasons ago, the 2020s have belonged to Shamrock Rovers. Hoops boss Stephen Bradley has unlocked a winning blend of experience and youth and the results have been spectacular. Last season, the Tallaght club were crowned champions for the fifth time in six years.
That blend of old and young will remain to the fore in 2026 following the arrival of former Ireland international Enda Stevens and the decision of talented youngster Michael Noonan to stay put for the moment. Stevens (35) arrived from Stoke City just as Noonan was expected to join German side Hoffenheim. Rovers accepted a bid of just under €2 million but the 17-year-old striker has decided to stay put until the transfer window in June.
Both Josh Honohan and Aaron McEneff did move on, but Jake Mulraney joins from St Patrick’s Athletic and Jack Byrne returns from his sabbatical in Dubai to cover for the injured Danny Mandroiu.
Overall, Rovers should be as competitive as ever, with off-pitch stability ensured by Ronan Finn’s appointment as director of football following Stephen McPhail’s departure. Attendances in Tallaght are expected to swell as fans pay to see the Hoops’ exceptional teenage quartet of Noonan, Adam Brennan, Max Kovalevskis and Victor Ozhianvuna.
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The Contenders
The rest of the league is on alert after the on-field and off-field activity of Derry City, thanks to the financial backing of Philip O’Doherty. The Ryan McBride Brandywell has a new stand, with a new pitch coming in the summer. There is also the morale-boosting return of James McClean, who is back at home to play out his career as a holding midfielder.
“I’ve played in midfield before, but higher up,” said McClean. “It’s something I’m obviously going to have to get used to.”
It is clear that Derry City mean business in 2026. The club has expanded an arrangement with the GAA to use Celtic Park when the Brandywell’s much-derided 4G surface is replaced in April.
O’Doherty, the club chairman, makes no bones about ambitions for the season ahead.
“The target is very clear,” the 65-year-old told the Derry Journal. “We want to win the league this year and maybe next year as well.”
O’Doherty has placed a lot of trust in Tiernan Lynch as the manager enters his second season in charge. He said of Lynch: “I really enjoy his logic. Sometimes I don’t understand it because I’m not a football person. I’ve total confidence in him. I let him run the club.”
It might not be a 36-year-old McClean who provides the point of difference for the Candystripes, or the signing of Darragh Markey from Drogheda United, or even Welsh striker Josh Thomas. The most significant capture appears to be James Clarke.
Bohemians expected to lose Clarke to a club overseas after his eight goals and six assists helped bring European football back to Dalymount Park. Losing him to a direct rival will have stung.
Shelbourne did most of their squad improvements last summer, building a team that reached the Uefa Conference League group stages but failed to find the consistency needed to launch a title defence.
Manager Joey O’Brien highlighted the need for a No 9 who scores more goals than Mipo Odubeko. The 23-year-old scored eight times in the league and added another three in European outings as he competed with – and occasionally played alongside – Seán Boyd.
Portuguese striker Rodrigo Freitas signed for Shelbourne in January and O’Brien will be hoping he weighs in with his share of goals. Freitas joins a team that overwhelmed opponents on its best days last year, even registering a famous victory over Rijeka in Croatia. Scottish midfielder Kerr McInroy, alongside Jack Henry-Francis, Ali Coote and Harry Wood, will be important players in the upcoming campaign.
In defence, Odhrán Casey offsets Lewis Temple’s move to Bolton Wanderers, while there will be plenty of interest in Swedish winger Maill Lundgren and Sean Moore, who has been injured since he signed from West Ham United.
European qualification or relegation trouble
The rumour mill caught fire when Dele Alli was spotted strolling through Dublin Airport, but Bohemians manager Alan Reynolds has not made any enquiries about the former England international.
Instead, watch out for 16-year-old centre forward Hugh Martin.
Reynolds has added reinforcements in defence, with Senan Mullen on loan from Torino to form a centre-back partnership with Sam Todd, who arrives from Derry City. Defensive midfielder Sadou Diallo has also arrived at Dalymount Park from Derry.
Harry Vaughan is a loan addition from Hull City and the American midfielder Patrick Hickey could prove an inspired signing from Galway United. But the Phibsborough faithful will rely on local lads Dawson Devoy, Dayle Rooney and Ross Tierney to engineer opportunities for Martin and Douglas James-Taylor.
After failing to secure European football, St Patrick’s Athletic manager Stephen Kenny cancelled a winter holiday to spend time with his former Republic of Ireland coaches, Keith Andrews at Brentford and John Eustace at Derby County.
“Just to make sure we improve all aspects of what we do, to make sure we can do that with the constraints that we have,” explained Kenny.
Mason Melia held up his end in 2025, scoring 13 league goals before the move to Tottenham Hotspur. Kenny repeatedly pointed to injuries, particularly Romal Palmer in midfield, which may have prompted Mulraney moving to Rovers (with Darragh Nugent coming the other way). Melia’s replacement is either Max Mata, the New Zealand international who previously impressed at Sligo Rovers, or English centre forward Ryan Edmondson. Time will tell.
Kevin Doherty guided Drogheda United to a mid-table finish last season after the club suffered the heartache of being denied a tilt at Europa League qualification. Losing key figures like Markey to Derry and Luke Heeney to Waterford are offset by signing the former St Pat’s attacker Brandon Kavanagh.
Owen Elding’s long-expected departure to Hibernian was factored into Sligo Rovers’ plans for 2026. The youngster scored 16 goals in all competitions last season but manager John Russell has not missed a beat in rebuilding the team around midfielder Jad Hakiki. Russell has added eight players, including Mai Traore up front and Archie Meekison in midfield as Shane Blaney returns from Scotland to shore up the defence.
John Caulfield’s Galway United have presumably learned from losing Moses Dyer last June, six months into a two-year-deal. The New Zealander netted nine goals before triggering a release clause to sign for a Cambodian club. The recruitment of nine players, including Canadian defender Gianfranco Facchineri and Al-Amin Kazeem from St Pat’s, gives the Tribesmen a fresh look. Galway will switch to Pearse Stadium GAA grounds when work commences on Eamonn Deacy Park in July.
Jon Daly’s first utterance as Waterford manager was to ward off clubs from approaching Pádraig Amond after the 37-year-old topped the Premier Division scoring charts for a second successive season. Daly has been busy over the winter, signing Conan Noonan from Shamrock Rovers after an impressive loan spell and the former Ireland under-21 forward Conor Carty from St Pat’s.
“It was a complete rebuild and it was probably a bigger job than I anticipated when I went in,” Daly admitted. “I genuinely believe that we can overachieve and punch above our weight.”
Dundalk return to the top flight following the turmoil of 2024 when the club almost went into liquidation. The change of ownership from John Temple to American investor Chris Clinton ensured that Ciarán Kilduff had the funds to, ideally, avoid a second relegation in three years. There is interest in 17-year-old defender Vinnie Leonard from a “litter of clubs” according to Kilduff.
The Dundalk boss has acquired Danny Mullen from Derry, Bohs pair Keith Buckley and Rob Cornwall, along with the talented Ronan Teahan from Kerry FC. If they all slot in, Oriel Park will be a difficult place to go in search of points.
Opening Premier Division fixtures
Friday, February 6th (7.45pm unless stated)
Waterford v Shelbourne
Derry City Sligo Rovers
Galway United v Drogheda United
Shamrock Rovers v Dundalk, 8pm (Virgin Media Two)
Sunday, February 8th
Bohemians v St Patrick’s Athletic, Aviva Stadium, 3pm (Virgin Media Two).
