Dundalk

Dundalk G.N.R. (1903–1930)

The Dundalk Great Northern Railway (G.N.R.) Football Club was established during the 1883–84 season as a rugby football club. They played their final rugby match in February 1903, and in September 1903 the club switched codes to association football, setting in motion their journey to become the modern-day Dundalk F.C. The new club, known locally as "the Railwaymen", adopted the Dundalk Athletic Grounds (a facility near the town centre shared by several sporting codes) as its home ground. They played challenge matches at first, then became founder members of the first Dundalk and District League (DDL), formed in 1906. There are no records of the club being active between 1907–08 and 1912–13, but they re-joined the local league in 1913–14 for what was the final season before the outbreak of World War I.

The local league was dormant during the war, but the G.N.R. club entered both the Irish Junior Cup and Leinster Junior Cup competitions during the war years. After exiting the Irish Junior Cup in January 1917, the club was inactive again for the following two seasons. It re-formed for 1919–20, affiliated with the Leinster Football Association, and joined both the Newry and District League and the revived DDL. The G.N.R. club spent three seasons in the DDL, winning it twice, and represented the district in both Junior Cup competitions those seasons. They reached the Leinster Junior Cup final in 1920 (the club's first cup final), which they lost to Avonmore after two replays.

Looking to progress, they were elected to the Leinster Senior League for 1922–23 to replace sides that had been promoted to the nascent Free State League. They played four seasons in that division, before being elected to the Free State League on 15 June 1926 to replace Dublin club Pioneers as the national league looked to spread to the provinces.

On 21 August 1926, they travelled to Cork to face Fordsons for their league debut, eventually finishing eighth in the 1926–27 season. By this stage, the team represented the G.N.R. works in name only and the club's management committee decided to make it independent of the company. New colours of white shirts and blue shorts with a crest of the town's coat of arms were adopted in December 1927. They contested their first cup final as a senior club in April 1929, the Leinster Senior Cup final, which they lost after a replay. It was the last time that the club was billed to appear as 'Dundalk G.N.R.', and the name of the club was formally changed to 'Dundalk A.F.C.' in the summer of 1930.

The works teams

When Dundalk G.N.R. joined the League of Ireland in 1926, it was one of four works-teams in the 10-team league—the others being Jacobs, St. James's Gate and Fordsons. Another railway works-team—Midland Athletic of the Midland Great Western Railway—had competed for two seasons but had resigned when the company went through a merger. By 1944–45, Dundalk were the only club with works-team roots remaining. Another works-team, Transport (sponsored by CIÉ), joined in 1948–49 but were not re-elected for 1962–63, leaving Dundalk again as the only surviving club with works-team roots. The works themselves became Dundalk Engineering Works Ltd with the demise of the G.N.R.(I) company in 1958.

First successes (1930–1949)

With a new manager, Steve Wright, "doing everything except selling the programmes", Dundalk finished as runners-up in both the League and the FAI Cup in 1930–31. Proof that they could compete at a national level gave the management committee the confidence to press ahead and the club was converted to a membership-based limited company, 'Dundalk A.F.C. Limited', on 25 January 1932. In the 1932–33 season, they became the first team from outside Dublin to win a league title, sealing it in Dalymount Park with their first victory over Bohemians. In becoming champions, they also became the first team from outside Dublin or Belfast to win a league title in Ireland since the inception of the original Irish League in 1890. Hoping to improve gate receipts and revenue, the club's management committee decided to move from the Athletic Grounds to a ground of their own. In 1936, they secured land on the Carrick Road owned by P.J. Casey (a former committee member) on a long-term lease, and named it 'Oriel Park'.

After winning the league title, they were runners-up eight times across the five main competitions (League, Shield, FAI Cup, Dublin City Cup and Leinster Senior Cup), before winning the 1937–38 City Cup—their first cup final victory. They won their first FAI Cup—in their fourth appearance in the final—with victory over Cork United in Dalymount Park in 1942. Five weeks later, they won the inaugural Dublin and Belfast Inter-City Cup to become (unofficially) 'Champions of All Ireland'. The following September, in the new season, the City Cup was won for a second time.

During the mid-1940s, the management committee relied on player sales to English clubs to bankroll the club, as gate receipts alone did not meet its running costs. After missing out in both the League and the City Cup by a point in 1947–48, the committee decided to invest the surplus from its transfer dealings on several professional players from Scotland and a player-coach, Ned Weir. The investment paid off when the City Cup was won for a third time at the start of the new season by topping its new league format unbeaten, while the club's second FAI Cup was won with victory over Shelbourne in the 1949 final. But the new team fell short in both the Shield and the League and, despite the cup double and improved gate receipts, the additional income was not enough to cover the increase in costs.

Struggles and recovery (1950–1964)

The attempt to maintain a full-time squad had not paid off and the 1949 cup-winning team was broken up. A surplus from transfer dealings prevented a more serious financial crisis arising, and despite the turnover in players, Dundalk won the Leinster Senior Cup for the first time in 1950–51. The cutbacks started to have an impact, and they finished second from bottom in the league table the following season. They went on a memorable FAI Cup run, however, coming from 3–1 down against Waterford in a semi-final replay to win 6–4 in extra time; then defeated Cork Athletic in the 1952 FAI Cup Final (also in a replay), to win the Cup for a third time.

Midway through the 1952–53 season, Club Secretary Sam Prole left to take over at Drumcondra. Prole, a Great Northern Railway employee, had played for Dundalk G.N.R. in junior football, and had been Secretary for 25 years. He had been responsible for the club's transfer activities, and player sales tailed off after his departure. The subsequent drop in income obliged the club to focus on controlling costs, and they finished last in the two seasons after he left. They continued to struggle for the rest of the decade but, in contrast to their league form, they won their fourth FAI Cup with a 1–0 victory over Shamrock Rovers in the 1958 final.

Having not challenged for the League or Shield during the 1950s, they ended the decade at the top of the league table. Although they subsequently fell short of winning the title, the club was competitive again. A second Leinster Senior Cup was won in 1960–61, and a first league title in 30 years followed in 1962–63. That success meant that Dundalk entered European competition for the first time, where they became the first Irish side to win an away leg of a European tie by beating FC Zurich, 2–1 (in a 4–2 aggregate defeat), in the 1963–64 European Cup. They could not manage to retain the title that season, finishing as runners-up, and they were also runners-up in the Shield. But they did win the season-end Top Four Cup for the first time.

Takeover, rise and fall (1964–1974)

A poor 1964–65 followed, and the club's management committee decided that it was time to hire a modern-style manager, who would have sole responsibility for recruitment and player selection. They appointed Gerry Doyle, who had spent most of his career as both a player and a coach with Shelbourne. The new season saw little improvement, however, and with financial losses growing and investment in Oriel Park needed, it became clear early in the 1965–66 season that the membership-based ownership model could not provide the financial support required to take the club forward. A new public limited company took over in January 1966, after the voluntary liquidation of the old company.

The new board invested heavily in both Oriel Park and the squad ahead of the 1966–67 season, and signed a new player-coach, Alan Fox, from Bradford City. The pay-off was immediate. Dundalk finally won their first League of Ireland Shield, then charged to the league title, winning it by seven points, to seal the club's only League and Shield Double. They then won that season's Top Four Cup to complete the club's first 'treble'.

The following season, Oriel Park hosted European football for the first time, under newly installed floodlights, with the visit of Vasas SC of Hungary. But Fox fell out with the club's board during the trip to Budapest for the return leg, and he was released the following March, despite his side being set to retain the title. The Dublin City Cup of 1967–68 was his final success at the club. Dundalk subsequently finished as runners-up in the League, qualifying for the 1968–69 Fairs Cup, where they won a European tie for the first time with victory over DOS Utrecht. But fourth-place in the League that season, and another City Cup, was all that the remnants of Fox's team could achieve.

Future Ireland manager Liam Tuohy took over in the summer of 1969 and also joined the board, and as a result of his managerial experience, Dundalk entered the new decade at the top of the league table. But Tuohy was obliged to thin the squad and cut the wage bill because of the scale of the debts still hanging over the club from the redevelopment of Oriel Park, and he could not build a side able to sustain a title challenge. The 1971–72 Shield success would be the high point of his reign, and he quit at the end of that season, criticising a lack of local support in the process. His only other trophy at the club was the 1970–71 Leinster Senior Cup.

Dundalk had to sell or release a number of players to survive after Tuohy left, and they slid down the table—with a young, inexperienced team finishing second from bottom in 1972–73. To recover the situation, a new board took over the running of the club, and hired John Smith from Walsall as player-manager. After renegotiating the club's debts, they were able to provide Smith with funds to sign several players. Smith delivered a Leinster Senior Cup in his first season, but they subsequently fell away in the league after a good start, and Smith quit two matches into his second season for a job outside football. Following his departure, the club appointed Jim McLaughlin as player-manager in November 1974.

A trophy-laden era (1975–1995)

It was under McLaughlin that Dundalk recovered and reached a new level of success. With the remnants of Smith's squad and players unwanted elsewhere, he won his first league title (the club's fourth) in 1975–76, losing one match in the process. The title brought European football back to the town for the first time since 1969 and in the following season's European Cup, they met PSV Eindhoven and were deemed unlucky not to win the first leg at home. That match started an unbeaten run in Europe in Oriel Park of eight matches over the following five seasons. They ended the season by winning the Leinster Senior Cup, and a week later won the club's first FAI Cup since 1958 when they defeated Limerick United in the 1977 final.

League form had been mixed for the two seasons following the title and, despite winning their first League Cup and retaining the Leinster Senior Cup, a poor end to the 1977–78 league season led to rumours that McLaughlin would be let go. The club supported the "reorganisation" he demanded, however, and it used funds from the sale of three players to Liverpool to invest in the squad and make ground improvements at Oriel. McLaughlin's second league title followed in 1978–79, and they went on to defeat Waterford in the Cup final to complete the club's first League and Cup Double. The Double winning side's 1979–80 European Cup run the following season, where they narrowly missed out on qualifying for the quarter-finals (going down 3–2 on aggregate to Celtic), was the club's best European performance until 2016.

They finished as runners-up in the league for the next two seasons, and achieved their only domestic cup double in 1980–81—winning both the League Cup and the FAI Cup. McLaughlin's third and final league title at the club arrived in 1981–82, after an early season 10-point gap to Bohemians was overhauled. A trophy-less 1982–83 season, which saw Dundalk slip to third place in the league table behind Louth rivals Drogheda United, signalled that the team was entering a transition period. But McLaughlin resigned in May 1983, saying he needed a change.

After two seasons that ended in mid-table, former player Turlough O'Connor was appointed ahead of the League's split into two divisions in 1985–86. O'Connor quickly built a squad capable of challenging for honours and his sides consistently finished in the top four over the following eight seasons. They won the 1987 League Cup Final, and finished as runners-up in both the League and the FAI Cup to qualify for Europe for the first time in five years. The following season started with a visit from Cup Winners' Cup holders Ajax Amsterdam, and ended with the club's second League and Cup Double—with the title being won on the last day of the season, and the FAI Cup being won with victory over Derry City.

O'Connor won his second League Cup in 1989–90, and another league title followed in 1990–91 in an end of season, winner takes all match in Turner's Cross against Cork City. But Dundalk spurned an opportunity to progress in the European Cup, when a 1–1 draw away to Honved was followed by a 0–2 home defeat. Attendances started to drop noticeably during 1992–93, as the new English Premier League, broadcast live on BSkyB, was growing in popularity. By the end of the season the board was facing financial issues that threatened the club's survival—a "healthy" surplus in 1989, had become a serious deficit, with income falling due to some of the lowest gate receipts in memory. The 1993–94 season started with mixed results, with good away victories being followed by defeats at home and, after a home defeat to Monaghan United, O'Connor resigned.

He was replaced by another former player, Dermot Keely. The older players were released, and a thin squad struggled—missing out on the 'Top Six' round-robin that decided the title. They played out the final third of the season in a meaningless 'bottom six' round-robin in front of tiny crowds, which contributed to the worsening financial position. Early the following season the financial issues came to a head, and a number of local businessmen formed a new interim company to take the club over, saving it from bankruptcy. Despite the financial problems, and with a squad still lacking in depth, Keely led his team to the club's ninth league title on a dramatic final day. Starting the day in third place in the table, they needed to win their match at home and for both Shelbourne and Derry City to fail to win their games. They defeated Galway United and news eventually filtered through that both of their challengers had failed to win, confirming Dundalk as Champions.

Decline and upheaval (1995–2012)

The 1994–95 title did not halt the overall decline, and Keely did not see out the title defence, quitting midway through the 1995–96 season—reportedly frustrated at being unable to strengthen his squad. Dundalk sank down the table and had to survive a promotion/relegation play-off in 1996–97. The board turned to Jim McLaughlin to try to turn things around, but early in the 1998–99 season it was revealed that the club was in serious financial trouble again and the whole squad had been transfer listed. An end of season collapse saw the club drop from the top-tier for the first time, with relegation confirmed 20-years to the day after they had won their first Double.

The club was taken over by a supporters' co-op in 2000, and initial expectations were of an immediate return to the top-flight. But Dundalk became embroiled in a losing battle with the league's hierarchy and Kilkenny City, which reached the High Court, over the latter playing an improperly registered player. The following season the co-op invested heavily in the playing squad and, under new manager Martin Murray, they were promoted as 2000–01 First Division Champions. Although seemingly well-placed for the return to the top-flight, they were relegated again the following season, with the League being reduced from 12 teams to 10. Despite this setback, Murray's side won the club's ninth FAI Cup a week later, with victory over Bohemians in the final.

After being relegated again, Dundalk were stuck in the lower reaches of the First Division for the next four seasons. With no sign of promotion, the co-op members agreed to the club being taken back into private ownership by its CEO, Gerry Matthews. They finished second under new manager John Gill in 2006, securing a play-off tie against Waterford United. Even though they won the play-off, they were still denied a place in the 2007 Premier Division, with Galway United (who had finished third in that season's First Division) selected by the FAI's 2006 IAG Report to be promoted ahead of both Dundalk and Waterford. In 2008, they won promotion back to the Premier Division, pipping Shelbourne to the top spot on the final night of the season. Gill was replaced by Ian Foster for the return to the top flight, despite winning the First Division title.

At first, Dundalk stabilised their position back in the Premier Division—qualifying for the 2010–11 Europa League, leading the league table midway through the 2010 season, and reaching the 2011 Setanta Sports Cup final. But results subsequently deteriorated and, with financial losses mounting as the 2011 season drew to a close, Matthews decided to let Foster's contract expire and relinquish control of the club. With the club in danger of insolvency during a disastrous 2012, it was taken over by local businessmen Andy Connolly and Paul Brown (owners of the team's official sponsors, Fastfix), and Dundalk subsequently managed to remain in the top-flight by defeating Waterford United in the play-off.

Revival and dominance (2013–2019)

Having saved the club, the new owners turned to Stephen Kenny to become the new manager. They mounted an unexpected title challenge in his first season, eventually finishing as runners-up. Kenny kept the nucleus of the new side together for the following season, and went on to guide the club to its first league title since 1994–95. They also won that season's League Cup, the club's first League and League Cup Double. The 2015 season saw them dominate, winning the club's third League and FAI Cup Double—with the title being won by 11-points and the Cup with victory over Cork City in the final. They also won the Leinster Senior Cup—the club's first 'treble' since 1966–67. A third league title in a row was sealed with two games to spare in 2016.

2016 also saw the club qualify for the Champions League play-off round, after they first defeated FH of Iceland, then came from a goal down in the tie to defeat BATE Borisov 3–1 on aggregate. They drew Legia Warsaw for the play-off, with the first leg played in the Aviva Stadium in Dublin in front of a crowd of 30,417. They suffered a 2–0 defeat in the home leg, but shocked Legia in the return leg by taking a 1–0 lead. With Dundalk pushing for the equaliser that would have taken the tie to extra-time, Legia scored on the break, and won the tie 3–1 on aggregate. As a result, Dundalk qualified for the group stage of the Europa League. A draw with AZ Alkmaar in the Netherlands, followed by a victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv in Tallaght Stadium, were the first points earned by an Irish club in the group stage of European competition.

The departure of some key players after the European run, and a slow start to the new season, meant that they slipped to runners-up spots in both league and FAI Cup although they won their sixth League Cup. The club's European form had attracted interest from abroad, however, and a consortium of American investors led by Peak6 Investments completed a takeover in January 2018. Kenny's side reasserted itself in 2018, winning another League and Cup Double—the second under Kenny and fourth in the club's history—breaking points-total and goals scored-total records in the process. In the aftermath, Kenny resigned in order to accept the Republic of Ireland U-21 manager's role.

Hoping to achieve continuity, the new owners replaced Kenny with his Assistant Manager, Vinny Perth, as Head Coach, with John Gill returning as First-team coach. Despite falling 13-points behind early 2019 leaders Shamrock Rovers in April, they overhauled the deficit within weeks, and subsequently won the club's 14th league title with four games to spare. They also won the League Cup by defeating Derry City on penalties in the final, to secure a second League and League Cup Double. They were denied a first domestic Treble of League, FAI Cup and League Cup, however, when they were beaten in a penalty shoot-out in the FAI Cup Final. But they ended the season with a comprehensive 7–1 aggregate victory over Northern Irish champions, Linfield, in the inaugural Champions Cup.

Transition (2020–present)

Early the following season, a goal scored by Jordan Flores went viral and was subsequently nominated for the FIFA Puskás Award. Soon after, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic saw the cessation of football in line with other European countries. The season resumed with a reduced schedule of 18 matches in total and matches being played behind closed doors. Manager Vinny Perth was dismissed following Dundalk's exit from Europe in the first qualifying round of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League. He was replaced by Italian Filippo Giovagnoli. Dundalk subsequently qualified for the group stage of the 2020–21 Europa League after victories over Inter Club d'Escaldes, Sheriff Tiraspol and KÍ Klaksvik in the qualifying rounds. They were drawn in Group B alongside Arsenal, Rapid Wien, and Molde. They failed to pick up any points and finished bottom of the group.

In the FAI Cup, they had an 11–0 semi-final victory over Athlone Town—setting a new record for the biggest win in the competition's history, which was also a new club record victory. They followed that with a 4–2 extra-time victory over Shamrock Rovers, with David McMillan scoring a hat-trick, to win the Cup for the twelfth time and qualify for Europe for the 25th time.

The 2021 season saw Shane Keegan named first-team manager, with Giovagnoli reverting to the position of 'coach' because he did not have a UEFA Pro Licence. The season began with a victory in the President's Cup, but after a run of defeats at the start of the league campaign, both Keegan and Giovagnoli left the club. Dundalk struggled for the remainder of the domestic season with their lowest league finish since 2012 and went out to Vitesse Arnhem in the third qualifying round of the inaugural Europa Conference League. Before the season ended, the club was returned to local ownership when a consortium led by former co-owner Andy Connolly and sports technology firm STATSports agreed a takeover with Peak6. The new owners then installed former captain Stephen O'Donnell as the club's new head coach in the close season.

O'Donnell steered his new-look side to a third place finish and qualification for the Europa Conference League at the first attempt. They failed to capitalise in the 2023 season, exiting the Conference League in the second qualifying round and finishing mid-table and outside the European qualification places. The club saw another change of ownership in the close season, when it was taken over by US-based Irish businessman, Brian Ainscough. A poor start to the 2024 season, which saw Dundalk at the foot of the table after eight matches, resulted in O'Donnell being let go.