The Origins and Development of Football in Ireland

by Richard M. Peter

1999 · Ulster Historical Foundation

Football, be it Gaelic, rugby, or soccer is unquestionably the most popular team sport in Ireland. Surprisingly, the modern codes of Gaelic, Rugby, and Assocation football in Ireland are little more than a century old. R.M. Peter's pioneering Annual was published in 1880. Reproduced here, it provides voluminous detail on more than 600 players and 50 clubs of the time: it is a mine of information for the sports enthusiast, the historian, the genealogist alike.