2025 League of Ireland Premier Division

League of Ireland Premier Division
Season2025
Dates14 February 2025 – 1 November 2025
ChampionsShamrock Rovers
(22nd title)
RelegatedCork City
Champions LeagueShamrock Rovers
Europa LeagueDerry City
Conference LeagueShelbourne
Bohemians
Matches180
Goals437 (2.43 per match)
Top goalscorerPádraig Amond
(14 goals)
Biggest home winDerry City 7–2 Waterford
(4 July 2025)
Biggest away winWaterford 0–4 Sligo Rovers
(18 April 2025)
Highest scoringDerry City 7–2 Waterford
(4 July 2025)
Longest winning run5 matches
Shamrock Rovers
Shelbourne
Longest unbeaten run11 matches
Shamrock Rovers
Longest winless run14 matches
Cork City
Longest losing run7 matches
Waterford
Highest attendance33,208
Bohemians 1–0 Shamrock Rovers
(16 February 2025)
Lowest attendance1,611
Cork City 1–2 Shelbourne
(13 October 2025)
Total attendance679,959
Average attendance3,778
← 2024
2026 →

The 2025 League of Ireland Premier Division, known as the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division for sponsorship reasons,[1] was the 41st season of the League of Ireland Premier Division, the top Irish league for association football clubs since its establishment in 1985.

The competition began on 14 February 2025 and concluded on 1 November 2025.[2] As part of the opening weekend of fixtures, the derby between arch-rivals Bohemians and Shamrock Rovers took place at the Aviva Stadium, the national football stadium of the Republic of Ireland where a record Premier Division crowd of 33,208 was present.[3] The 2025 season became the first year that the league is entirely made up of full-time professional clubs and players.[4][5]

On 27 January 2025, it was announced that Virgin Media Television (Ireland) would become the "sole and exclusive free to air broadcaster of the SSE Airtricity Men’s Premier Division" for the next four years, pledging to show one live game from each round of the division.[6] A new radio deal for broadcasting on Newstalk was announced just before the season started.[7]

On 29 October, Shamrock Rovers won the title after a 1-0 victory over Galway United. It was their 22nd Premier Division title and their fifth in the last six seasons.[8]

Teams

The league consists of ten teams – the top nine teams from the previous season and one team promoted as champions from the First Division, Cork City.[9] They replaced Dundalk, who were relegated after 16 consecutive seasons in the top flight.[10]

Stadiums and locations

Locations of Premier Division teams
Locations of Dublin Premier Division teams
Team Location Stadium Capacity
Bohemians Dublin (Phibsborough) Dalymount Park 4,500
Cork City Cork Turners Cross 7,485
Derry City Derry Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium 6,242
Drogheda United Drogheda Sullivan and Lambe Park 3,500
Galway United Galway Eamonn Deacy Park 5,000
Shamrock Rovers Dublin (Tallaght) Tallaght Stadium 10,500
Shelbourne Dublin (Drumcondra) Tolka Park 5,750
Sligo Rovers Sligo The Showgrounds 3,873
St Patrick's Athletic Dublin (Inchicore) Richmond Park 5,340
Waterford Waterford RSC 5,160

Personnel and kits

Note: Flags indicate national team as has been defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

Team Manager Captain Kit manufacturer Shirt sponsor
Bohemians Alan Reynolds Keith Buckley O'Neills Des Kelly Interiors
Cork City Gerard Nash Sean Maguire Rebel Army Zeus Packaging
Derry City Tiernan Lynch Mark Connolly O'Neills Diamond Corrugated
Drogheda United Kevin Doherty Ryan Brennan Macron NoFo Brew Co
Galway United John Caulfield Conor McCormack O'Neills Comer Property Management
Shamrock Rovers Stephen Bradley Roberto Lopes Macron MASCOT Workwear
Shelbourne Joey O'Brien Mark Coyle O'Neills Chadwicks
Sligo Rovers John Russell John Mahon Umbro Avant Money
St Patrick's Athletic Stephen Kenny Joe Redmond Umbro Manguard Plus
Waterford Jon Daly Pádraig Amond Puma DG Foods

Managerial changes

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in the table Incoming manager Date of appointment
Derry City Ruaidhrí Higgins Mutual consent 15 November 2024[11] Pre-season Tiernan Lynch 18 November 2024[12]
Waterford Keith Long Sacked 19 April 2025[13] 8th Matt Lawlor (interim) 20 April 2025[14]
Matt Lawlor (interim) End of interim spell 6 May 2025[15] John Coleman 3 May 2025[15]
Cork City Tim Clancy Resigned 9 May 2025[16] 9th Liam Kearney &
Greg Yelverton (interim) 		14 May 2025[17]
Liam Kearney &
Greg Yelverton (interim) 		End of interim spell 15 May 2025[18] Gerard Nash 15 May 2025[19]
Shelbourne Damien Duff Resigned 22 June 2025[20] 6th Joey O'Brien[note 1] 22 June 2025[20][21]
Waterford John Coleman Sacked 28 September 2025[22] 9th Matt Lawlor (interim) 28 September 2025[23]

League table

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Shamrock Rovers (C) 36 19 9 8 56 33 +23 66 Qualification for Champions League first qualifying round
2 Derry City 36 18 9 9 52 39 +13 63 Qualification for Europa League first qualifying round[a]
3 Shelbourne 36 15 14 7 48 37 +11 59 Qualification for Conference League second qualifying round
4 Bohemians 36 16 6 14 48 39 +9 54 Qualification for Conference League first qualifying round
5 St Patrick's Athletic 36 13 13 10 42 32 +10 52
6 Drogheda United 36 12 15 9 38 38 0 51
7 Sligo Rovers 36 11 8 17 42 54 −12 41
8 Galway United 36 9 12 15 37 44 −7 39
9 Waterford (O) 36 11 6 19 41 60 −19 39 Qualification for promotion/relegation play-off
10 Cork City (R) 36 4 12 20 33 61 −28 24 Relegation to League of Ireland First Division
Source: SSE Airtricity League, Soccerway[24]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.[24]
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ Shamrock Rovers won the 2025 FAI Cup, meaning the Europa League berth went to the second place team Derry City. The two Conference League berths went to the third and fourth place teams, Shelbourne and Bohemians respectively.


Results

Teams play each other four times (twice at home and twice away).

Home \ Away BOH DER DRO COR GAL SHM SHE SLI STP WAT
Bohemians 1–0 0–1 1–0 0–2 1–0 1–0 4–2 2–1 1–2
3–4 0–1 3–0 3–0 2–0 2–3 1–1 0–0 2–1
Derry City 1–0 1–3 2–1 1–1 1–2 2–0 3–0 1–0 1–2
1–1 3–0 0–0 1–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 2–2 7–2
Drogheda United 1–0 1–1 3–2 1–1 1–2 2–2 3–0 0–0 2–0
1–4 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–2 2–1 1–0 0–1 0–0
Cork City 2–1 1–2 1–1 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–1
0–2 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–1 1–2 2–3 0–0 2–0
Galway United 1–2 2–3 2–1 2–1 0–1 1–1 0–1 2–1 1–0
2–0 1–2 1–1 2–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 3–1 2–4
Shamrock Rovers 2–3 0–0 3–0 4–1 0–0 2–2 2–0 1–0 2–0
2–1 2–0 2–1 4–1 1–0 0–1 1–2 4–0 1–0
Shelbourne 1–0 3–1 0–1 1–1 2–2 1–1 3–2 2–1 0–1
2–2 0–1 0–0 3–1 1–0 1–2 3–1 0–0 2–1
Sligo Rovers 0–1 0–1 2–2 1–1 1–2 2–1 1–2 0–1 2–3
0–0 2–0 1–1 1–1 2–1 2–2 0–2 1–0 1–0
St Patrick's Athletic 3–0 2–0 0–0 3–2 2–0 2–2 0–0 4–3 2–2
0–0 0–1 0–0 4–0 1–1 1–0 0–1 3–0 1–1
Waterford 0–3 2–1 2–2 2–1 1–0 1–3 0–1 0–4 1–2
2–1 1–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 1–2 2–2 1–2 0–2
Source: [1], Extratime.ie
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
For upcoming matches, an "a" indicates there is an article about the rivalry between the two participants.

Promotion/relegation play-offs

The ninth-placed team (Waterford F.C.) from the 2025 League of Ireland Premier Division qualified for a play-off alongside the second, third, fourth, and fifth-placed teams from the 2025 League of Ireland First Division (Cobh Ramblers, Bray Wanderers, UCD, and Treaty United).

The First Division teams contest the semi-finals and final. The semi-finals will be held over two legs, with the second-placed team facing the fifth-placed team and the third-placed team facing the fourth-placed team. The semi-final winners then contest the First Division final, with the winners ultimately facing the ninth-placed League of Ireland Premier Division team for the final place in the 2026 League of Ireland Premier Division.

Bracket

Semi-finalsFinalPromotion/relegation play-off
4UCD022
PD9Waterford2
3Bray Wanderers134
3Bray Wanderers1FD3Bray Wanderers1
5Treaty United0
5Treaty United (a.e.t.)112
2Cobh Ramblers011

Semi-finals

24 October 2025 UCD 0–1 Bray Wanderers Belfield
19:45 Report Doyle 90+4' Stadium: UCD Bowl
Attendance: 927
Referee: Lucas Keating
28 October 2025 Bray Wanderers 3–2 UCD Bray
19:45
  • Cantwell 3'
  • Curtis 61'
  • Ferizaj 90+3'
 Report
  • McManus 26'
  • Behan 90+5'
 Stadium: Carlisle Grounds
Attendance: 2,030
Referee: Daniel Murphy

Bray Wanderers won 4–2 on aggregate

24 October 2025 Treaty United 1–0 Cobh Ramblers Limerick
19:45 Hanson 77' Report Stadium: Markets Field
Attendance: 1,849
Referee: Oliver Moran
28 October 2025 Cobh Ramblers 1–1 (a.e.t.) Treaty United Cobh
19:45 Whelan 90+4' Report Martin 105' Stadium: St. Colman's Park
Attendance: 1,636
Referee: Mark Houlihan

Treaty United won 2–1 on aggregate

Final

2 November 2025 Bray Wanderers 1–0 Treaty United Athlone
15:00 Ferizaj 90' Report Stadium: Athlone Town Stadium

Promotion/relegation play-off

7 November 2025 Bray Wanderers 1–2 Waterford Drumcondra
19:45
  • Knight 8'
    Warren  90+3'
 Report
Stadium: Tolka Park
Attendance: 3,648
Referee: Kevin O'Sullivan

Positions by round

To preserve chronological evolvements, any postponed matches are not included to the round at which they were originally scheduled, but added to the full round they were played immediately afterwards. For example, if a match is scheduled for round 7, but then played between rounds 8 and 9, it will be added to the standings for round 8.

Team ╲ Round123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536
Shamrock Rovers9991086653334321111111111111111111111
Derry City10689107766667532236644223333332322222
Shelbourne111334445445676665565555555644663333
Bohemians357769977776754343232332222223234454
St Patrick's Athletic586442122223145454456666766544456545
Drogheda United523211311111213522323444444466545666
Sligo Rovers81010891010101091010101010101010999999999999777887
Galway United434543234552468877777778888888989778
Waterford242125588898887788888887677777898999
Cork City4756788991089999999101010101010101010101010101010101010
Leader and qualification for Champions League first qualifying round
Qualification for Conference League second qualifying round
Qualification for Conference League first qualifying round
Qualification for promotion/relegation play-off
Relegation to League of Ireland First Division
Source: leagueofireland.ie, Extratime.ie

Season statistics

Top scorers

Rank Player Club Goals[25]
1 Pádraig Amond Waterford 14
2 Mason Melia St Patrick's Athletic 13
3 Michael Duffy Derry City 12
Owen Elding Sligo Rovers
5 Moses Dyer Galway United 10
6 Rory Gaffney Shamrock Rovers 9
Tommy Lonergan Waterford
Harry Wood Shelbourne
9 Liam Boyce Derry City 8
Graham Burke Shamrock Rovers
James Clarke Bohemians
Mipo Odubeko Shelbourne

Hat-tricks

Player For Against Result Date Ref.
Colm Whelan Bohemians Waterford 3–0 (A) 7 March 2025 [26]
John Martin Shelbourne Sligo Rovers 3–2 (H) 23 May 2025 [27]
Liam Boyce Derry City Waterford 7–2 (H) 4 July 2025 [28]

Clean sheets

Rank Player Club Clean sheets
1 Joseph Anang St Patrick's Athletic 18
2 Luke Dennison Drogheda United 14
3 Brian Maher Derry City 12
4 Kacper Chorążka Bohemians 11
5 Edward McGinty Shamrock Rovers 10
6 Sam Sargeant Sligo Rovers 7
7 Stephen McMullan Waterford 5
8 Conor Kearns Shelbourne 4
Wessel Speel Shelbourne
10 Conor Brann Cork City 3
Evan Watts Galway United

Discipline

Player

  • Most red cards: 1
    • 32 players (Various)

Club

  • Most yellow cards: 114
    • Derry City
  • Most red cards: 7
    • Derry City

Attendances

No. Club Average attendance[29] Change Highest
1 Bohemian FC 5,860 73,2% 33,208
2 Shamrock Rovers FC 5,791 35,7% 9,522
3 Shelbourne FC 4,556 7,6% 5,633
4 St. Patrick's Athletic FC 4,293 1,3% 5,374
5 Derry City FC 3,462 35,5% 4,327
6 Cork City FC 3,053 15,8% 5,034
7 Sligo Rovers FC 2,814 39,9% 4,023
8 Galway United FC 2,786 -15,4% 4,323
9 Waterford FC 2,608 36,2% 3,488
10 Drogheda United FC 2,189 16,6% 2,596

See also

Notes

  1. ^ O'Brien was initially named as interim head coach, before being appointed on a permanent basis on 3 July 2025.

References

  1. ^ "2025 League of Ireland fixtures released". League of Ireland. 15 December 2024. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  2. ^ "Date agreed for release of 2025 League of Ireland fixtures". Irish Mirror. 20 November 2024. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  3. ^ "Bohemians to meet Shamrock Rovers at Aviva Stadium in league opener". leagueofireland.ie. 27 November 2024. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  4. ^ Doyle, Garry (6 January 2025). "League of Ireland set to break new frontier in 2025". Irish Mirror.
  5. ^ "Bragging rights for Bohemians on historic day for the League of Ireland". RTE Sport. 16 February 2025. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
  6. ^ "Virgin Media Television secures exclusive rights for SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division". 27 January 2025.
  7. ^ "Off The Ball secures national radio deal with League of Ireland for Newstalk". RadioToday. 10 February 2025. Retrieved 15 February 2025.
  8. ^ "Shamrock Rovers wrap up title with narrow win over Galway United". RTE Sport. 29 October 2025. Retrieved 18 November 2025.
  9. ^ "Cork City secure First Division title with win over UCD". Irish Examiner. 6 September 2024. Retrieved 26 December 2024.
  10. ^ "Dundalk relegated as Derry City maintain title push with St Pat's test to come". Irish Independent. 18 October 2024. Retrieved 10 January 2025.
  11. ^ "Club Announcement". Derry City. 15 November 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2025.
  12. ^ "Welcome Tiernan Lynch". Derry City. 18 November 2024. Retrieved 19 April 2025.
  13. ^ "Club Statement: Keith Long". Waterford. 19 April 2025. Retrieved 19 April 2025.
  14. ^ FC, Waterford (20 April 2025). "Lawlor Appointed Interim Head Coach". Waterford FC. Retrieved 20 April 2025.
  15. ^ a b FC, Waterford (3 May 2025). "Welcome to Waterford FC, John Coleman!". Waterford FC. Retrieved 3 May 2025.
  16. ^ "Club Statement: Tim Clancy". Cork City FC Shop. Retrieved 10 May 2025.
  17. ^ Horgan, Andrew (14 May 2025). "Liam Kearney: It is important City's new manager is based in Cork". Irish Examiner.
  18. ^ Howey, Aaron (15 May 2025). "Gerard Nash Becomes Cork City FC Manager". Cork City.
  19. ^ Fallon, John (15 May 2025). "Cork City appoint 38-year-old Ger Nash as new boss". Irish Examiner.
  20. ^ a b Cleary, Darren (22 June 2025). "Club Statement | Damien Duff resigns". Shelbourne. Retrieved 22 June 2025.
  21. ^ Cleary, Darren (3 July 2025). "Shelbourne FC is delighted to announce the appointment of Joey O'Brien as Head Coach". Shelbourne. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  22. ^ FC, Waterford (28 September 2025). "Club Statement - John Coleman".
  23. ^ https://waterfordfc.ie/2025/09/28/matt-lawlor-named-interim-head-coach/
  24. ^ a b "PREMIER DIVISION". Soccerway. Perform Group. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
  25. ^ "2025 League of Ireland Premier Division Tables & Results & Stats | extratime.com - The Home of Irish Football - Extratime.com". www.extratime.com. Retrieved 18 October 2025.
  26. ^ Flanagan, Adrian (7 March 2025). "Colm Whelan hat-trick downs high-flying Waterford as Bohemians bounce back". RTÉ. Retrieved 14 June 2025.
  27. ^ Geraghty, Darryl (23 May 2025). "John Martin hat-trick propels Shels to badly needed win over Sligo Rovers". RTÉ. Retrieved 1 June 2025.
  28. ^ "Liam Boyce bags hat-trick as Derry City in seventh heaven against Waterford". Irish Independent. 4 July 2025. Retrieved 6 July 2025.
  29. ^ https://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/aveirl.htm
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