March 28, 2024

Republic of Ireland Senior Football Team Results 1940 – 1959

Up to the end of the 1930’s Ireland had only played six competitive football matches and with mixed results. Two matches in the Paris Olympics and four qualifiers for the World Cup. This was in the days before there were qualifying groups as we know them today had been introduced.

With so little competitive team soccer behind the national soccer team positive results in terms of qualification for the World Cup was a very tall order for such a small nation.

Irish Football Results and the World War II

Nevertheless Irish domestic soccer was relatively healthy and optimism was high. Sadly for the soccer world, and the World in general, World War II erupted in 1939 forcing the cancellation of the 1942 and 1946 World Cup competitions.

In addition to this the first European Championships finals were not held until 1960 thereby further limiting the number of competitive football available to the Republic of Ireland.

Ireland’s first competitive match during the 1940’s was in an Olympic qualifier in July 1948 against the Netherlands almost eleven years after the Republic’s last competitive match. It was a poor result as Ireland lost the match on a score line of 3-1.

Republic of Ireland Match Results 1940 to 1959 (inclusive)

Home Team
Match Result
Away Team Date & Venue Competition
Portugal
3:1
Ireland 16/06/1946 Lisbon Friendly Match
Spain
0:1
Ireland 23/06/1946 Madrid Friendly Match
Ireland
0:1 (0:0)
England 30/09/1946 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
3:2
Spain 02/03/1947 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
0:2
Portugal 04/05/1947 Dublin Friendly Match
Portugal
2:0
Ireland 23/05/1948 Lisbon Friendly Match
Spain
2:1
Ireland 30/05/1948 Barcelona Friendly Match
Netherlands
3:1 (2:0)
Ireland 26/07/1948 Portsmouth Olympic Qualifier
Ireland
0:1
Switzerland 05/12/1948 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
0:2 (0:0)
Belgium 24/04/1949 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
1:0
Portugal 22/05/1949 Dublin Friendly Match
Sweden
3:1 (2:1)
Ireland 02/06/1949 Stockholm World Cup Qualifier
Ireland
1:4
Spain 12/06/1949 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
3:0 (2:0)
Finland 08/09/1949 Dublin World Cup Qualifier
England
0:2 (0:1)
Ireland 21/09/1949 Liverpool Friendly Match
Finland
1:1 (0:0)
Ireland 09/10/1949 Helsinki World Cup Qualifier
Ireland
1:3 (0:2)
Sweden 13/11/1949 Dublin World Cup Qualifier
Belgium
5:1 (3:0)
Ireland 10/05/1950 Brussels Friendly Match
Ireland
2:2
Norway 26/11/1950 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
0:1
Argentina 13/05/1951 Dublin Friendly Match
Norway
2:3
Ireland 30/05/1951 Oslo Friendly Match
Ireland
3:2 (2:0)
Germany FR 17/10/1951 Dublin Friendly Match
Germany FR
3:0 (1:0)
Ireland 04/05/1952 Cologne Friendly Match
 

Austria

6:0 (4:0)

Ireland 07/05/1952 Vienna Friendly Match
 

Spain

6:0

Ireland 01/06/1952 Madrid Friendly Match
Ireland
1:1 (1:0)
France 16/11/1952 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
4:0 (0:0)
Austria 25/03/1953 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
3:5 (0:2)
France 04/10/1953 Dublin World Cup Qualifier
Ireland
4:0 (1:0)
Luxembourg 28/10/1953 Dublin World Cup Qualifier
France
1:0 (0:0)
Ireland 25/11/1953 Paris World Cup Qualifier
Luxembourg
0:1 (0:0)
Ireland 07/03/1954 Luxembourg World Cup Qualifier
Ireland
2:1
Norway 07/11/1954 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
1:0 (0:0)
Netherlands 01/05/1955 Dublin Friendly Match
Norway
1:3
Ireland 25/05/1955 Oslo Friendly Match
Germany FR
2:1 (1:0)
Ireland 28/05/1955 Hamburg Friendly Match
Ireland
1:4
Yugoslavia 19/10/1955 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
2:2
Spain 27/11/1955 Dublin Friendly Match
Netherlands
1:4 (0:0)
Ireland 10/05/1956 Rotterdam Friendly Match
Ireland
2:1 (2:0)
Denmark 03/10/1956 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
3:0 (0:0)
Germany FR 25/11/1956 Dublin Friendly Match
England
5:1 (4:0)
Ireland 08/05/1957 London World Cup Qualifier
Ireland
1:1 (1:0)
England 19/05/1957 Dublin World Cup Qualifier
Denmark
0:2 (0:0)
Ireland 02/10/1957 Copenhagen World Cup Qualifier
Poland
2:2 (1:1)
Ireland 11/05/1958 Chorzow Friendly Match
Austria
3:1 (1:0)
Ireland 14/05/1958 Vienna Friendly Match
Ireland
2:2 (2:2)
Poland 05/10/1958 Dublin Friendly Match
Ireland
2:0 (0:0)
Czechoslovakia 05/04/1959 Dublin European Qualifier
Czechoslovakia
4:0 (0:0)
Ireland 10/05/1959 Bratislava European Qualifier
Ireland
3:2
Sweden 01/11/1959 Dublin Friendly Match

Scores in parentheses are half-time scores

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