2026 Dundalk F.C. season
| 2026 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 2026 team and staff | |||
| Chairman | Chris Clinton | ||
| Manager | Ciarán Kilduff | ||
| Stadium | Oriel Park | ||
| FAI Cup | Third round | ||
| Leinster Senior Cup | Semi-final | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Daryl Horgan, (9) All: Daryl Horgan, (10) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 3,819 (v. Drogheda United, 20 February 2026) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 2,073 (v. Waterford, 26 June 2026) | ||
| Biggest win | 5–0 (v. Waterford [H], 13 March 2026) | ||
| Biggest defeat | 0–4 (v. St. Patrick's Athletic [A], 27 February 2026) | ||
|
| |||
Dundalk entered the 2026 League of Ireland Premier Division season after being promoted as champions from the First Division the previous year. Ciarán Kilduff was the club's first-team manager going into the new term, his second season in charge.[1]
2026 is Dundalk's 100th season in the League of Ireland.
Season summary
[edit]At the end of the previous season, US-based businessman Chris Clinton acquired John Temple's shareholding to become the club's majority shareholder.[2]
Vinnie Leonard was bought by Norwich City in February for a reported €400,000 up front and "significant add-ons", which would be the club's record transfer fee received. He remained with the club until the UK transfer window opened in the summer.[3]
Pre-season coincided with the Leinster Senior Cup Round 4 Group Stage. Dundalk were the holders and topped the group with two wins from three. They later defeated Shelbourne in the quarter-final before losing to St. Patrick's Athletic in the semi-final.[4]
The League season began on 6 February 2026. However, Dundalk's opening match (a visit to defending League Champions Shamrock Rovers) was postponed because of a waterlogged pitch, meaning they started the season with an away match to Derry City the following week instead.[5] They ended the first series of matches in fourth position, having lost just one game.[6]
They remained in fourth at the end of the second series, despite a return of five points from the last six matches.[7] The third series showed a similar pattern, where they briefly moved into third place before a run of just two points from the last six matches saw them slip back to fourth and out of contention for the top three.[8]
First-team regulars Eoin Kenny and Gbemi Arubi were transferred to English sides when the transfer window opened in July.[9][10]
First-Team Squad (2026)
[edit]Sources:[11] Note: Substitute appearances in brackets
| No. | Nat. | Name | DOB | Pos. | Debut | League | FAI Cup | Leinster Cup | Totals | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||||
| 1 |  |
Enda Minogue | 12 January 2002 | GK | 2025 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 22 | 0 |
| 2 | |
Conor O'Keeffe | 19 September 1993 | DF | 2025 | 4 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| 3 |  |
Bobby Burns | 10 July 1999 | DF | 2026 | 25 (2) | 2 | 0 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 29 | 2 |
| 4 | |
Mayowa Animasahun | 8 August 2003 | DF | 2021 | 14 (3) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 19 | 0 |
| 5 | |
Harvey Warren | 11 April 2004 | DF | 2026 | 10 (4) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| 6 | |
Aodh Dervin | 21 July 1999 | MF | 2024 | 20 (4) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 28 | 1 |
| 7 | |
Daryl Horgan | 10 August 1992 | FW | 2014 | 26 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1) | 1 | 28 | 10 |
| 8 | |
Harry Groome | 9 November 2001 | MF | 2025 | 9 (16) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 30 | 3 |
| 9 | |
Gbemi Arubi[a] | 26 May 2004 | FW | 2025 | 19 (4) | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 24 | 9 |
| 9 | |
Cian Dillon[b] | 4 April 2006 | FW | 2026 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 10 |  |
Leo Gaxha | 27 July 2002 | FW | 2025 | 0 (6) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| 11 | |
Ronan Teahan | 31 August 2004 | MF | 2026 | 15 (6) | 2 | 0 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 23 | 2 |
| 12 | |
Luke Mulligan | 13 November 2007 | MF | 2024 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 |
| 13 |  |
Peter Cherrie | 1 October 1983 | GK | 2009 | 0 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| 14 |  |
Norman Garbett | 27 February 2004 | MF | 2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 15 | |
Vinnie Leonard[c] | 21 March 2008 | DF | 2024 | 2 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 15 | |
Trevor Clarke[d] | 26 March 1998 | DF | 2026 | 3 (2) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| 16 | |
Eoin Kenny[e] | 30 December 2005 | FW | 2023 | 19 (3) | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 24 | 7 |
| 16 | |
Egor Vassenin[f] | 24 October 2007 | DF | 2026 | 0 (2) | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 17 | |
Shane Tracey | 4 April 2006 | MF | 2025 | 5 (11) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 19 | 2 |
| 18 | |
Keith Buckley | 19 June 1992 | MF | 2026 | 19 (7) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 27 | 0 |
| 19 | |
Sean Spaight | 25 January 2009 | DF | 2024 | 2 (2) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 (1) | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| 21 | |
Danny Mullen | 1 March 1995 | FW | 2026 | 7 (5) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 (1) | 1 | 15 | 4 |
| 22 | |
Tyreke Wilson | 2 December 1999 | DF | 2026 | 21 (4) | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 4 |
| 23 | |
Aaron Keogh | 10 January 2008 | MF | 2025 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| 24 | |
Rob Cornwall | 16 October 1994 | DF | 2026 | 15 (2) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 18 | 1 |
| 27 | |
Declan McDaid | 22 November 1995 | FW | 2025 | 12 (14) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 (1) | 2 | 29 | 5 |
| 29 | |
TJ Molloy[g] | 4 April 2009 | FW | 2024 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| 31 | |
John Ross Wilson | 13 December 1998 | DF | 2025 | 19 (1) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 22 | 1 |
| 39 | |
Conor Kearns | 6 May 1998 | GK | 2026 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| 44 |  |
Tom Grivosti | 15 June 1999 | DF | 2026 | 1 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
Competitions
[edit]Win Draw Loss
Premier Division
[edit]| 6 February 2026 Round 1 | Shamrock Rovers | P–P | Dundalk | Tallaght, South Dublin |
| 19:45 | Report | Stadium: Tallaght Stadium Referee: Rob Harvey | ||
| Note: match postponed (unplayable pitch) | ||||
| 13 February 2026 Round 2 | Derry City | 2–2 | Dundalk | Derry, Northern Ireland |
| 19:45 | P.McClean  49'Duffy 90' (pen.) |
Report | Eoin Kenny 22' Gbemi Arubi 65' |
Stadium: Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium Attendance: 4,323 Referee: Declan Toland |
| Note: fixture reversed because of ongoing work at Oriel Park | ||||
| 20 February 2026 Round 3 | Dundalk | 1–1 | Drogheda United | Dundalk |
| 20:00 | Danny Mullen 57' |
Report | Keeley 88' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 3,819 Referee: Rob Hennessy |
| 24 February 2026 Round 1 (refixed) | Shamrock Rovers | 1–1 | Dundalk | Tallaght, Dublin |
| 20:00 | Lopes 19' |
Report | Vinnie Leonard  76'Danny Mullen 90' |
Stadium: Tallaght Stadium Attendance: 4,352 Referee: Aaron O'Dowd |
| Note: refixed from postponement 6 February 2026 | ||||
| 27 February 2026 Round 4 | St Patrick's Athletic | 4–0 | Dundalk | Inchicore, Dublin |
| 19:45 | Palmer 20' Hoare 25'Elbouzedi 48'Keena 85' |
Report | Stadium: Richmond Park Attendance: 4,427 Referee: Lucas Keating |
| 6 March 2026 Round 5 | Galway United | 2–2 | Dundalk | Galway |
| 19:45 | Walsh 51' Twardek 62' |
Report | Gbemi Arubi 12' Bobby Burns 81' |
Stadium: Eamonn Deacy Park Attendance: 1,933 Referee: Alan Patchell |
| 13 March 2026 Round 6 | Dundalk | 5–0 | Waterford | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Ronan Teahan 30' Declan McDaid 43'Daryl Horgan 87'Eoin Kenny 90', 90' |
Report | Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,819 Referee: Marc Lynch |
| 16 March 2026 Round 7 | Dundalk | 1–0 | Sligo Rovers | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Daryl Horgan 82' (pen.) Aodh Dervin 84' |
Report | Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,343 Referee: Oliver Moran |
| 20 March 2026 Round 8 | Bohemians | 1–1 | Dundalk | Phibsborough, Dublin |
| 20:00 | Hickey 20' |
Report | Gbemi Arubi 59' |
Stadium: Dalymount Park Attendance: 4,383 Referee: Rob Hennessy |
| 3 April 2026 Round 9 | Shelbourne | 2–3 | Dundalk | Drumcondra, Dublin |
| 19:45 | Rossi 59' Martin 67' |
Report | Gbemi Arubi 11' Bobby Burns 22'Rossi  86' (o.g.) |
Stadium: Tolka Park Attendance: 4,674 Referee: Lucas Keating |
| 7 April 2026 Round 10 | Dundalk | 2–0 | St Patrick's Athletic | Dundalk |
| 17:00 | Tyreke Wilson 7' Shane Tracey 20'Daryl Horgan 80' |
Report | Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 3,294 Referee: Aaron O’Dowd |
| 10 April 2026 Round 11 | Dundalk | 2–2 | Derry City | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Tyreke Wilson 35' Ronan Teahan 80' |
Report | Clarke 14' Akinyemi 45'James McClean 95' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,736 Referee: Paul Norton |
| 17 April 2026 Round 12 | Dundalk | 2–1 | Galway United | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Declan McDaid 81', 85' |
Report | Walsh 90' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,673 Referee: Daryl Carolan |
| 25 April 2026 Round 13 | Sligo Rovers | 2–0 | Dundalk | Sligo |
| 19:45 | Fitzgerald 12' Kavanagh 48' |
Report | Stadium: The Showgrounds Attendance: 2,691 Referee: Declan Toland |
| 1 May 2026 Round 14 | Dundalk | 1–2 | Shelbourne | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Daryl Horgan 89' (pen.) |
Report | Kelly 11' McInroy 52' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 3,149 Referee: Paul Norton |
| 4 May 2026 Round 15 | Waterford | 3–3 | Dundalk | Waterford |
| 19:45 | Lonergan 40' Amond 60'Mahon 88' |
Report | Daryl Horgan 14', 83' Gbemi Arubi 35' |
Stadium: Waterford Regional Sports Centre Attendance: 1,667 Referee: Daniel Murphy |
| 8 May 2026 Round 16 | Dundalk | 1–3 | Bohemians | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Aodh Dervin 34' Rob Cornwall 67' |
Report | Tierney 50' James-Taylor 68' (pen.)Myers 90' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 3,133 Referee: Aaron O'Dowd |
| 15 May 2026 Round 17 | Dundalk | 1–0 | Shamrock Rovers | Oriel Park |
| 20:00 | Tyreke Wilson 78' John Ross Wilson 87' |
Report | Attendance: 2,961 Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 22 May 2026 Round 18 | Drogheda United | 1–1 | Dundalk | Drogheda |
| 20:00 | Burney 57' |
Report | Gbemi Arubi 18' |
Stadium: Sullivan & Lamb Park Attendance: 2,547 Referee: Rob Hennessy |
| 29 May 2026 Round 19 | Dundalk | 2–1 | Derry City | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Daryl Horgan 20' Gbemi Arubi 61' |
Report | Dummigan 59' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,617 Referee: Oliver Moran |
| 12 June 2026 Round 20 | Galway United | 0–1 | Dundalk | Cork |
| 19:45 | Report | Tyreke Wilson 90' |
Stadium: Turners Cross Attendance: 454 Referee: Kevin O'Sullivan | |
| Note: Match moved to Turners Cross, Cork, because Galway United's home ground and alternative arrangements were unavailable. | ||||
| 19 June 2026 Round 21 | Bohemians | 1–2 | Dundalk | Phibsborough, Dublin |
| 20:00 | Byrne 5' |
Report | Danny Mullen 22' Eoin Kenny 77'Declan McDaid 87' |
Stadium: Dalymount Park Referee: Paul McLaughlin |
| 26 June 2026 Round 22 | Dundalk | 2–3 | Waterford | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Eoin Kenny 10' Harry Groome 29' |
Report | Lonergan 45', 64' Mahon 84' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,073 Referee: Marc Lynch |
| 3 July 2026 Round 23 | Shelbourne | 2–1 | Dundalk | Drumcondra, Dublin |
| 20:00 | Kelly 39' Wood 41' |
Report | JR Wilson 3' |
Stadium: Tolka Park Attendance: 4,032 Referee: Aaron O'Dowd |
| 10 July 2026 Round 24 | Dundalk | 1–2 | Drogheda United | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Gbemi Arubi 29' |
Report | Farrell 73', 85' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: unreported Referee: Rob Harvey |
| 24 July 2026 Round 25 | St Patrick's Athletic | 1–1 | Dundalk | Inchicore, Dublin |
| 19:45 | Hoare 57' |
Report | Daryl Horgan 35' (pen.) |
Stadium: Richmond Park Attendance: 4,510 Referee: Kevin O’Sullivan |
| 31 July 2026 Round 26 | Dundalk | 1–1 | Sligo Rovers | Dundalk |
| 19:45 | Daryl Horgan 52' |
Report | McElroy 90' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 2,266 Referee: Neil Doyle |
| 7 August 2026 Round 27 | Shamrock Rovers | 3–2 | Dundalk | Tallaght, South Dublin |
| 20:00 | Watts 3' (pen.) Noonan 19'Afolabi 38' |
Report | Rob Cornwall 15' Daryl Horgan 27' (pen.) |
Stadium: Tallaght Stadium Attendance: 5,102 Referee: Rob Harvey |
League table
[edit]| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | St Patrick's Athletic | 27 | 13 | 8 | 6 | 43 | 23 | +20 | 47 | Qualification for Conference League second qualifying round |
| 3 | Bohemians | 27 | 12 | 8 | 7 | 42 | 31 | +11 | 44 | Qualification for Conference League first qualifying round |
| 4 | Dundalk | 27 | 9 | 10 | 8 | 42 | 41 | +1 | 37 | |
| 5 | Shelbourne | 26 | 8 | 10 | 8 | 34 | 36 | −2 | 34 | |
| 6 | Derry City | 27 | 7 | 12 | 8 | 35 | 32 | +3 | 33 |
Updated to match(es) played on 9 August 2026. Source: League of Ireland
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored.
FAI Cup
[edit]| 17 July Second round | St Mochta's | 1–3 | Dundalk | Dundalk, County Louth |
| 19:45 | Dean Moran 83' |
Shane Tracey 15' Trevor Clarke 37'Harry Groome 65' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 1,148 Referee: Alan Patchell | |
| Note: St Mochta's were drawn as the home team but the two clubs agreed to switch the venue to Dundalk's Oriel Park home venue.[12] | ||||
Leinster Senior Cup
[edit]Round 4 Group A
[edit]| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dundalk | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 6 |
| Shelbourne | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 6 |
| St Peter's Athlone | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 3 |
| Athlone Town | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 9 | –5 | 3 |
| 11 January 2026 Match 1 | St Peter's Athlone | 5–2 | Dundalk | Athlone, County Westmeath |
| 13:00 | Jonathan Kiernan 20' Dylan Gavin 43' (pen.) 67' (pen.)Niall Scullion 57'Dylan Sumner 81' |
Report | Darci Lawless 54' (o.g.) Luke Mulligan 60'Enda Minogue 66' |
Stadium: McCarthy Park Attendance: unreported Referee: Declan Toland |
| Note: U20 squad used for match | ||||
| 13 January 2026 Match 2 | Dundalk | 3–1 | Shelbourne | Dundalk, County Louth |
| 19:45 | Danny Mullen 42' Eoin Kenny 51', 83' |
Report | Ring 75' |
Stadium: Dundalk Sports Centre Attendance: unreported Referee: Declan Toland |
| 24 January 2026 Match 3 | Athlone Town | 0–5 | Dundalk | Athlone, County Westmeath |
| 13:00 | Gbemi Arubi 21' (pen.) Harry Groome 40'Declan McDaid 76'Daryl Horgan 83'Declan McDaid 84' |
Stadium: Athlone Town Stadium Attendance: unreported Referee: Mark Houlihan |
Quarter Final
[edit]| 14 April 2026 QF | Dundalk | 3–1 | Shelbourne | Dundalk, County Louth |
| 19:45 | Tunde Anunlopo 1' Ethan Hall 39'Shay Casey 56' |
Report | Moore 88' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 500 (est.) Referee: Daryl Carolan |
| Note: Several U20 squad players used for match | ||||
Semi Final
[edit]| 26 May 2026 SF | Dundalk | 0–1 | St. Patrick's Athletic | Dundalk, County Louth |
| 19:45 | Report | Rooney 42' |
Stadium: Oriel Park Attendance: 500 (est.) Referee: Paul McLaughlin | |
| Note: Several U20 squad players used for match | ||||
Awards
[edit]Player of the Month
[edit]| Month | Player | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| May | Daryl Horgan |
[13] |
| June | Eoin Kenny |
[14] |
Footnotes
[edit]- ↑ player transferred to Burton Albion 18 July 2026
- ↑ signed 22 July 2026 ahead of Round 25
- ↑ player transferred to Norwich City 1 July 2026
- ↑ signed 2 July 2026 ahead of Round 23
- ↑ player transferred to Portsmouth 6 July 2026
- ↑ signed on loan from Shamrock Rovers 16 July 2026 ahead of Round 25
- ↑ player sent on loan to Armagh City F.C.
References
[edit]- ↑ "Ciaran Kilduff named new Dundalk boss". rte.ie. RTÉ. 6 November 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
- ↑ "Chris Clinton named Dundalk FC chairperson". dundalkfc.com. dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 10 November 2025.
- ↑ McDonnell, Daniel. "Dundalk agree deal to sell promising defender Vinnie Leonard to Norwich". independent.ie. Retrieved 16 February 2026.
- ↑ "Dundalk 0 St Patrick's Athletic 1". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 27 May 2026.
- ↑ "Shamrock Rovers-Dundalk clash in Premier Division off after heavy rain". rte.ie. RTÉ. Retrieved 6 February 2026.
- ↑ "Shelbourne 2, Dundalk 3". extratime.com. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ "Drogheda United 1 Dundalk 1". extratime.com. Retrieved 26 May 2026.
- ↑ extratime.conm https://extratime.com/fixtures/2026-league-of-ireland-premier-division/shamrock-rovers-v-dundalk/89935/0/match-centre/. Retrieved 13 August 2026.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ↑ "Eoin Kenny completes move to Portsmouth from Dundalk". rte.ie. RTÉ. Retrieved 18 July 2026.
- ↑ "Arubi Transfer To Burton Albion Confirmed". dundalkfc.com. Retrieved 18 July 2026.
- ↑ "Dundalk FC Squad 2025". dundalkfc.com. 19 January 2025. Retrieved 26 January 2025.
- ↑ https://www.fai.ie/latest/club-orange-mens-fai-cup-second-round-fixtures-confirmed/
- ↑ "Dundalk's Daryl Horgan scoops player of the month award". rte.ie. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
- ↑ "Portsmouth's Eoin Kenny signs off with League of Ireland June Player of the Month award". rte.ie. Retrieved 17 July 2026.
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| Matches |
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| Related articles | |||||||||
