The Republic of Ireland Women's National Team (WNT) concluded their 2026 group stage campaign with a sense of achievement, having secured a play-off spot for the 2027 FIFA Women's World Cup. 

Competing in League A, Ireland faced elite opposition in France, the Netherlands and Poland, finishing with three wins from six matches in one of the most competitive groups in European qualifying.

The campaign was highlighted by a significant victory over the Netherlands at Páirc Uí Chaoimh in June, where a disciplined performance was helped by some brilliant finishing at the other end, including Amber Barrett's dramatic 89th-minute winner. This period saw the squad evolve tactically, maintaining defensive solidity while increasing their goal output against top-tier nations.

2026 Campaign Facts

Elite Standing: By winning three fixtures in League A, Ireland confirmed their status among the top nations in Europe, ensuring a seeded position for the upcoming play-off series.
Offensive Growth: Ireland scored nine goals across the six qualifying matches in 2026, averaging 1.5 goals per game against opponents all ranked within the top 30 globally.
Home Support: Just under 40,000 supporters attended Ireland’s three home qualifiers in 2026, with over 18,000 in attendance at the Aviva for the 1-0 win over Poland. Ireland WNT are one of the best supported teams in European football, regularly claiming top attendance numbers compared to our European counterparts. 

2026 Results

Tuesday, March 3, 2026 | Ireland 1-2 France
UEFA Women's European Qualifiers | Tallaght Stadium
Attendance: 8,376
Sky Ireland Player of the Match: Emily Murphy
Starting XI: Courtney Brosnan; Anna Patten, Caitlin Hayes, Chloe Mustaki, Aoife Mannion; Megan Connolly, Marissa Sheva, Katie McCabe, Denise O’Sullivan; Kyra Carusa, Emily Murphy.
Substitutes Used: Abbie Larkin (for Carusa 70'), Amber Barrett (for Connolly 85').

Saturday, March 7, 2026 | Netherlands 2-1 Ireland
UEFA Women's European Qualifiers | Stadion Galgenwaard
Attendance: 12,244
Sky Ireland Player of the Match: Emily Murphy
Starting XI: Courtney Brosnan; Aoife Mannion, Anna Patten, Caitlin Hayes, Chloe Mustaki, Katie McCabe; Lucy Quinn, Megan Connolly, Marissa Sheva; Kyra Carusa, Emily Murphy.
Substitutes Used: Abbie Larkin (for Murphy 59'), Abbie Barrett (for Quinn 65'), Abbie Larkin (for Carusa 84'), Saoirse Noonan (for Sheva 91').

Tuesday, April 14, 2026 | Poland 2-3 Ireland
UEFA Women's European Qualifiers | Stadion Miejski
Attendance: 4,270
Sky Ireland Player of the Match: Emily Murphy
Starting XI: Courtney Brosnan; Aoife Mannion, Anna Patten, Caitlin Hayes, Chloe Mustaki; Katie McCabe, Denise O’Sullivan, Megan Connolly, Marissa Sheva; Abbie Larkin, Emily Murphy.
Substitutes Used: Abbie Barrett (for Larkin 69'), Jess Ziu (for Sheva 86').

Saturday, April 18, 2026 | Ireland 1-0 Poland
UEFA Women's European Qualifiers | Aviva Stadium
Attendance: 18,267
Sky Ireland Player of the Match: Denise O'Sullivan
Starting XI: Courtney Brosnan; Anna Patten, Caitlin Hayes, Chloe Mustaki, Aoife Mannion; Denise O’Sullivan, Megan Connolly, Marissa Sheva, Katie McCabe; Kyra Carusa, Emily Murphy.
Substitutes Used: Abbie Larkin (for Carusa 72').

Friday, June 5, 2026 | Ireland 3-2 Netherlands
UEFA Women's European Qualifiers | Páirc Uí Chaoimh
Attendance: 12,569
Sky Ireland Player of the Match: Abbie Larkin
Starting XI: Courtney Brosnan; Aoife Mannion, Anna Patten, Caitlin Hayes, Megan Connolly, Chloe Mustaki; Abbie Larkin, Marissa Sheva, Ruesha Littlejohn, Katie McCabe; Kyra Carusa.
Substitutes Used: Jess Ziu (for Littlejohn 46'), Kyra Carusa (for Kiernan 76'), Amber Barrett (for Larkin 76'), Saoirse Noonan (for Connolly 85').

Tuesday, June 9, 2026 | France 1-0 Ireland
UEFA Women's European Qualifiers | Stade Auguste-Delaune
Attendance: 7,599
Sky Ireland Player of the Match: Caitlin Hayes
Starting XI: Courtney Brosnan; Anna Patten, Caitlin Hayes, Chloe Mustaki, Aoife Mannion; Denise O’Sullivan, Megan Connolly, Marissa Sheva, Katie McCabe; Emily Murphy, Kyra Carusa.
Substitutes Used: Jess Ziu (for Sheva 61'), Abbie Larkin (for Carusa 70'), Abbie Larkin (for McCabe 73'), Saoirse Noonan (for Mannion 89'), Amber Barrett (for Sheva 89'), Abbie Barrett (for Hayes 89').

2026 Leaders

Most Minutes Played
540 - Caitlin Hayes
540 - Katie McCabe
540 - Anna Patten
540 - Courtney Brosnan
535 - Aoife Mannion

Goals
3 - Katie McCabe
2 - Marissa Sheva
1 - Amber Barrett, Kyra Carusa, Abbie Larkin, Emily Murphy

Assists
2 - Marissa Sheva
1 - Anna Patten
1 - Abbie Larkin
1 - Kyra Carusa

Accurate Passes
238 - Caitlin Hayes
210 - Anna Patten
195 - Chloe Mustaki
184 - Aoife Mannion
152 - Katie McCabe

Defensive Duels Won
38 - Aoife Mannion
34 - Denise O’Sullivan
29 - Chloe Mustaki
24 - Caitlin Hayes
22 - Katie McCabe

Successful Dribbles
8 - Denise O’Sullivan
7 - Emily Murphy
6 - Marissa Sheva
5 - Katie McCabe
4 - Abbie Larkin

2026 Qualifying Squad

Rank | Player | Total Minutes

1 | Caitlin Hayes | 540'
2 | Katie McCabe | 540'
3 | Anna Patten | 540'
4 | Courtney Brosnan | 540'
5 | Chloe Mustaki | 540'
6 | Aoife Mannion | 539'
7 | Megan Connolly | 530'
8 | Marissa Sheva | 507'
9 | Denise O'Sullivan | 450'
10 | Emily Murphy | 419'
11 | Kyra Carusa | 372'
12 | Abbie Larkin | 269'
13 | Jess Ziu | 77'
14 | Amber Barrett | 67'
15 | Lucy Quinn | 65'
16 | Ruesha Littlejohn | 46'
17 | Leanne Kiernan | 14'
18 | Saoirse Noonan | 7'
19 | Hayley Nolan | 0' (Unused sub in 2026 Qualifiers)
20 | Tyler Toland | 0' (Unused sub in 2026 Qualifiers)