Republic of Ireland-born football migrants and university access, 1945–2010

Abstract

This article assesses the rates of third-level degree obtainment amongst Republic of Ireland-born football migrants who played league football in England in the period from 1945 until 2010. It will illustrate that despite a general widening of access and participation at university level in the Republic of Ireland in the late twentieth century, the number of these footballers who successfully completed degree courses remained small. It will show that some players have taken up third-level education independently and their access routes will be discussed along with influences on their post-playing career decisions. Despite improvements in educational access for young players at British clubs, and the development of university scholarships for aspiring players in Ireland, the Irish government has been slow to provide assistance for football migrants in terms of player and educational welfare. This article traces the evolution of governmental attitudes towards the provision of welfare and education for talented footballers, and illustrates that it was not until the early twenty-first century that these matters began to gain significant attention in the Dáil. However, there is currently no formal structure in place in Ireland to help them prepare for and come to terms with a post-professional career.

Keywords:

• soccer
• migration
• education
• access
• government

Notes on contributor

Conor Curran is an Irish Research Council Government of Ireland Postdoctoral Research Fellow in the School of Education at Trinity College, Dublin where he is completing a study of the history of physical education in Ireland. Previously, he worked as a lecturer in Irish history at Dublin City University’s Open Education Unit and has taught sports history at the International Centre for Sports History and Culture at De Montfort University, Leicester. His Ph.D. thesis was published as The Development of Sport in Donegal, 1880–1935 by Cork University Press in 2015. In 2013 he was awarded a FIFA Havelange Research Scholarship to examine the migration of Irish footballers to Britain. This was published as Irish Soccer Migrants: a Social and Cultural History by Cork University Press in 2017. He is also co-editor of New Perspectives on Association Football in Irish History (Routledge, 2018).