Irish football has plenty to offer, from the Premier Division and First Division to lower tiers and amateur leagues. This article takes a look at upcoming events, explores betting strategies, and offers reasons why this type of betting has untapped potential.
Irish Leagues
The most recognised Irish league is the Premier Division, and looking at the biggest bookmakers in Ireland on Betfree.ie, you’ll see that the majority of bookmakers cover this league.
The 2025 season consists of the ten top clubs: Shelbourne, Shamrock Rovers, St Patrick’s Athletic, Sligo Rovers, Cork City, Derry City, Bohemians, Waterford, Galway United, and Drogheda United. Cork City wer promoted last year from the second-tier league, the First Division, replacing Dundalk who were relegated.
RECENT IRISH PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS
- 2024 Shelbourne
- 2023 Shamrock Rovers
- 2022 Shamrock Rovers
- 2021 Shamrock Rovers
- 2020 Shamrock Rovers
As you can see, Shamrock Rovers were crowned champions for four consecutive years since 2020, but Shelbourne robbed them of this title last season and won the Premier Division for the first time since the mid-2000s. This came as a huge surprise, but Rovers’ manager Stephen Bradley, who has been coaching the team since 2016, insists that they were "not good enough" last season.
With this being said, they are still the bookie's favourite alongside St Patrick's. There are several upcoming games that fans can look forward to, but the early-season pace-setters are Drogheda, St Patrick's, Galway United and Shelbourne. However, the league table can change significantly before the final round of games in November, with the eventual winners going on to play in the first qualifying round for the UEFA Champions League.
The First Division is the second-highest tier of the Irish Football League and is also made up of ten clubs including Dundalk, who as we mentioned were relegated last year. The remaining clubs include Longford Town, Wexford, Athlone Town, Bray Wanderers, Cobh Ramblers, Finn Harps, Kerry, Treaty United, and UCD. The list below shows the previous winners of the First Division.
RECENT IRISH PREMIER LEAGUE CHAMPIONS
- 2024 Cork City
- 2023 Galway United
- 2022 Cork City
- 2021 Shelbourne
- 2020 Drogheda United
Last season’s winners, Cork City, are playing in the Premier Division this term and were replaced by Dundalk. So far, Dundalk have been an interesting watch and are unsurprisingly dominating proceedings with eight wins and a draw from their first nine games of 2025. Bray Wanderers, Cobh Ramblers and Wexford have also been performing to their usual standard, all pointing to an exciting campaign ahead.
What You Need To Know About Betting On Irish Football
The first thing to decide when betting on Irish football is which betting site to use and whether or not they offer the leagues in question. Unfortunately some platforms disregard less popular leagues and don't offer them, so the well-established bookmakers that have a large sportsbook and are known for football betting are the best place to look. Also, bear in mind the welcome offers which are usually in the form of free bets, but can also be a money-back special. The best type of new customer bonus, a no-deposit gift, is now rare.
Secondly, you must consider strategies that will improve your potential payouts. Keeping up with recent matches, the previous winners of the competition, new additions to the squad, transfers, changes in management, home or away games, and the weather, can all provide vital insights.
Betting used to be more of a casual pastime that was more about placing emotional but uninformed bets on your favourite team winning an important match, but over the years punters have learned that there's much more to it. A helpful tip that we encourage is downloading the mobile app, if your bookmaker has it, and turning on notifications. This way you can absorb information and learn about updates instantly, instead of having to waste time trying to find it online.
Exploring different markets aside from win-only is also a powerful betting tactic. For example, the Irish Premier Division is known to produce a fair number of draws and sometimes, there are no goals scored throughout the entire match. Taking this into account is crucial because you can make use of the Draw No Bet promotion that betting sites offer, leaving only the win outcome or lose outcome and refunding your stake if the result is a tie. In a similar way, the Both Teams To Score- No market predicts that one or other of the teams will fail to score a goal. Other markets with decent odds include Over/Under total goals betting, and Correct Score. You can study whether the teams playing are known to strongly attack or defend, as this will give you an inkling as to how a match may transpire.
Live betting is also something to consider as you have a guaranteed advantage over those who place pre-match bets. The unpredictable nature of football in Ireland means that you can never truly predict the outcome of a match. Finding a bookmaker with live streaming is favourable because you can follow the game along and react to unforeseen factors, such as goals, injuries, substitutions, and weather conditions.
The final tip we can disclose is to choose a bookmaker that offers early cash-out. After placing a bet you can see whether it's eligible by heading over to your betslip where it should display a cash-out button, if available. Even though the odds will be lower and you may lose out on big winnings, this is fantastic for sports like football where things can take a drastic turn in the last few moments.