Northern Ireland at the FIFA World Cup - wikipedia Northern Ireland at the FIFA World Cup The Northern Ireland national football team have appeared in the finals of the FIFA World Cup on three occasions. Their best World Cup performance was in their first appearance in the finals, the 1958 World Cup, where they reached the quarter - finals after beating Czechoslovakia 2 -- 1 in the play - off. They were knocked out by France, losing 4 -- 0. In the 1958 competition Northern Ireland became the least populous country to have qualified for the World Cup, a record that stood until Trinidad & Tobago qualified for the 2006 World Cup. Northern Ireland remains, however, the least populous country to have qualified for more than one World Cup finals tournament, to win a World Cup finals match, to have scored at a World Cup finals, and to have progressed from the first round of the World Cup finals. Captain of the national side at the 1958 World Cup was Danny Blanchflower, who also captained Tottenham Hotspur in the English league and was twice footballer of the year in England. His younger brother Jackie was also a key member of the national team, and won two league titles in England with Manchester United, until his career was ended by injuries suffered in the Munich air disaster of February 1958. Despite the presence of world class forward George Best, another Manchester United player, for most of the 1960s and into the 1970s, Northern Ireland failed to qualify for any major tournaments during this time. Northern Ireland also qualified for the 1982 World Cup. Their opening game was against Yugoslavia at the La Romareda in Zaragoza. It was the international debut of 17 - year - old Norman Whiteside who became the youngest player ever in the World Cup finals, a record that still stands. The game finished goalless. Five days later they drew 1 -- 1 with Honduras, which was a disappointment, and many believed had doomed Northern Ireland 's chances of advancing in the competition. They needed a win against hosts Spain in the third and final group game at the Mestalla Stadium in Valencia. They faced a partisan atmosphere with a mostly Spanish crowd and a Spanish speaking referee in Héctor Ortiz who was unwilling to punish dirty play from the Spanish players. However a mistake from goalkeeper Luis Arconada gifted Gerry Armstrong the only goal of the game, and despite having Mal Donaghy sent off on 60 minutes, Northern Ireland went on to record an historic 1 -- 0 win and top the first stage group. A 2 -- 2 draw with Austria at the Vicente Calderón Stadium meant that a win against France would take them into the semi-finals, however a French team inspired by Michel Platini won 4 -- 1 and eliminated Northern Ireland from the competition. In the 1986 World Cup, they reached the first round. Billy Bingham, a member of the 1958 squad, was manager for both of these tournaments. They have qualified for the 2018 World Cup playoffs. Contents 1 Record at the FIFA World Cup 1.1 By Match 1.2 Record by Opponent 2 Northern Ireland at Sweden 1958 2.1 First round 2.1. 1 Group 1 2.1. 1.1 Play - off 2.1. 2 Quarter - final 1958 World Cup 3 Northern Ireland at 1982 World Cup 3.1 Squad 3.2 Matches 4 Northern Ireland at 1986 World Cup 4.1 Squad 4.2 Matches 5 Record players 6 Top goalscorers 7 References Record at the FIFA World Cup Year Round Position GP D * GF GA 1930 Did not enter 1934 1938 1950 Did not qualify 1954 1958 Quarter - finals 7th 5 6 10 1962 Did not qualify 1966 1970 1978 1982 Second round 9th 5 5 7 1986 Group stage 21st 0 6 Did not qualify 1998 2002 2006 2014 2018 2022 To be determined 2026 Total 3 / 21 - 13 5 5 13 23 * Draws include knockout matches decided on penalty kicks By Match World Cup Round Opponent Score Result Venue Scorers 1958 Group stage Czechoslovakia 1 -- 0 Halmstad W. Cush Argentina 1 -- 3 Halmstad P. McParland West Germany 2 -- 2 Malmö P. McParland ( 2 ) Czechoslovakia 2 -- 1 ( a.e.t. ) Malmö P. McParland ( 2 ) Quarter - finals France 0 -- 4 Norrköping & -- 1982 Group stage Yugoslavia 0 -- 0 Zaragoza & -- Honduras 1 -- 1 Zaragoza G. Armstrong Spain 1 -- 0 Valencia G. Armstrong Second round Austria 2 -- 2 Madrid B. Hamilton ( 2 ) France 1 -- 4 Madrid G. Armstrong 1986 Group stage Algeria 1 -- 1 Guadalajara N. Whiteside Spain 1 -- 2 Guadalajara C. Clarke Brazil 0 -- 3 Guadalajara & -- Record by Opponent FIFA World Cup matches ( by team ) Opponent Wins Draws Losses Total Goals Scored Goals Conceded Algeria 0 0 Argentina 0 0 Austria 0 0 Brazil 0 0 0 Czechoslovakia 0 0 France 0 0 8 Honduras 0 0 Spain 0 West Germany 0 0 Yugoslavia 0 0 0 0 Northern Ireland at Sweden 1958 Northern Ireland squad -- 1958 FIFA World Cup 1 Gregg 2 Cunningham 3 McMichael 4 Blanchflower ( c ) 5 Keith 6 Peacock 7 Bingham 8 Cush 9 Simpson 10 McIlroy 11 McParland 12 Uprichard 13 Casey 14 Scott 15 McCrory 16 Dougan 17 Coyle 18 Rea 19 Graham 20 Chapman 21 Hamill 22 Trainor Coach : Doherty First round Group 1 Team Pld GF GA GAv Pts West Germany 0 7 5 1.40 Northern Ireland 5 0.80 Czechoslovakia 8 2.00 Argentina 0 5 10 0.50 8 June 1958 19 : 00 CET Northern Ireland 1 -- 0 Czechoslovakia Cush 21 ' Report Örjans Vall, Halmstad Attendance : 10,647 Referee : Seipelt ( Austria ) 11 June 1958 19 : 00 CET Argentina 3 -- 1 Northern Ireland Corbatta 37 ' ( pen. ) Menéndez 56 ' Avio 60 ' Report McParland 4 ' Örjans Vall, Halmstad Attendance : 14,174 Referee : Ahlner ( Sweden ) Play - off 17 June 1958 19 : 00 ( CET ) Northern Ireland 2 -- 1 ( a.e.t. ) Czechoslovakia McParland 44 ', 97 ' Report Zikán 18 ' Malmö Stadion, Malmö Attendance : 6,196 Referee : Guigue ( France ) 15 June 1958 19 : 00 CET West Germany 2 -- 2 Northern Ireland Rahn 20 ' Seeler 78 ' Report McParland 18 ', 60 ' Malmö Stadion, Malmö Attendance : 21,990 Referee : Campos ( Portugal ) Quarter - final 1958 World Cup 19 June 1958 19 : 00 CET France 4 -- 0 Northern Ireland Wisnieski 22 ' Fontaine 55 ', 63 ' Piantoni 68 ' Report Idrottsparken, Norrköping Attendance : 12,000 Referee : Gardeazabal ( Spain ) Northern Ireland at 1982 World Cup Squad Head coach : Billy Bingham No. Pos. Player Date of birth ( age ) Caps Club 1GK Pat Jennings ( 1945 - 06 - 12 ) 12 June 1945 ( aged 37 ) Arsenal 2DF Jimmy Nicholl ( 1956 - 02 - 28 ) 28 February 1956 ( aged 26 ) Toronto Blizzard 2DF Mal Donaghy ( 1957 - 09 - 13 ) 13 September 1957 ( aged 24 ) Luton Town 3MF David McCreery ( 1957 - 09 - 16 ) 16 September 1957 ( aged 24 ) Tulsa Roughnecks 5 2DF Chris Nicholl ( 1946 - 10 - 12 ) 12 October 1946 ( aged 35 ) Southampton 6 2DF John O'Neill ( 1958 - 03 - 11 ) 11 March 1958 ( aged 24 ) Leicester City 7 3MF Noel Brotherston ( 1956 - 11 - 18 ) 18 November 1956 ( aged 25 ) Blackburn Rovers 8 3MF Martin O'Neill ( c ) ( 1952 - 03 - 01 ) 1 March 1952 ( aged 30 ) Norwich City 9 4FW Gerry Armstrong ( 1954 - 05 - 23 ) 23 May 1954 ( aged 28 ) Watford 10 3MF Sammy McIlroy ( 1954 - 08 - 02 ) 2 August 1954 ( aged 27 ) Stoke City 11 4FW Billy Hamilton ( 1957 - 05 - 09 ) 9 May 1957 ( aged 25 ) Burnley 12 2DF John McClelland ( 1955 - 12 - 07 ) 7 December 1955 ( aged 26 ) Rangers 13 2DF Sammy Nelson ( 1949 - 04 - 01 ) 1 April 1949 ( aged 33 ) Brighton 14 3MF Tommy Cassidy ( 1950 - 11 - 18 ) 18 November 1950 ( aged 31 ) Burnley 15 3MF Tommy Finney ( 1952 - 11 - 06 ) 6 November 1952 ( aged 29 ) Cambridge United 16 3MF Norman Whiteside ( 1965 - 05 - 07 ) 7 May 1965 ( aged 17 ) Manchester United 17 1GK Jim Platt ( 1952 - 01 - 26 ) 26 January 1952 ( aged 30 ) Middlesbrough 18 3MF Johnny Jameson ( 1958 - 03 - 11 ) 11 March 1958 ( aged 24 ) Glentoran 19 4FW Felix Healy ( 1955 - 09 - 27 ) 27 September 1955 ( aged 26 ) Coleraine 20 3MF Jim Cleary ( 1956 - 05 - 27 ) 27 May 1956 ( aged 26 ) Glentoran 21 4FW Bobby Campbell ( 1956 - 09 - 13 ) 13 September 1956 ( aged 25 ) Bradford City 22 1GK George Dunlop ( 1956 - 01 - 16 ) 16 January 1956 ( aged 26 ) Linfield Matches 17 June 1982 21 : 00 CEST Yugoslavia 0 -- 0 Northern Ireland Report La Romareda, Zaragoza Attendance : 25,000 Referee : Erik Fredriksson ( Sweden ) 21 June 1982 21 : 00 CEST Honduras 1 -- 1 Northern Ireland Laing 60 ' Report Armstrong 10 ' La Romareda, Zaragoza Attendance : 15,000 Referee : Chan Tam Sun ( Hong Kong ) 25 June 1982 21 : 00 CEST Spain 0 -- 1 Northern Ireland Report Armstrong 47 ' Estadio Luis Casanova, Valencia Attendance : 49,562 Referee : Héctor Ortiz ( Paraguay ) 1 July 1982 ( Second Round ) 17 : 15 CEST Austria 2 -- 2 Northern Ireland Pezzey 50 ' Hintermaier 68 ' Report Hamilton 27 ', 75 ' Estadio Vicente Calderón, Madrid Attendance : 20,000 Referee : Adolf Prokop ( East Germany ) 4 July 1982 ( Second Round ) 17 : 15 CEST Northern Ireland 1 -- 4 France Armstrong 75 ' Report Giresse 33 ', 80 ' Rocheteau 46 ', 68 ' Estadio Vicente Calderón, Madrid Attendance : 37,000 Referee : Alojzy Jarguz ( Poland ) Northern Ireland at 1986 World Cup Squad Head coach : Billy Bingham No. Pos. Player Date of birth ( age ) Caps Club 1GK Pat Jennings ( 1945 - 06 - 12 ) 12 June 1945 ( aged 40 ) Tottenham Hotspur 2DF Jimmy Nicholl ( 1956 - 12 - 28 ) 28 December 1956 ( aged 29 ) West Bromwich Albion 2DF Mal Donaghy ( 1957 - 09 - 13 ) 13 September 1957 ( aged 28 ) Luton Town 2DF John O'Neill ( 1958 - 03 - 11 ) 11 March 1958 ( aged 28 ) Leicester City 5 2DF Alan McDonald ( 1963 - 10 - 12 ) 12 October 1963 ( aged 22 ) Queens Park Rangers 6 3MF David McCreery ( 1957 - 09 - 16 ) 16 September 1957 ( aged 28 ) Newcastle United 7 3MF Steve Penney ( 1964 - 01 - 16 ) 16 January 1964 ( aged 22 ) Brighton 8 3MF Sammy McIlroy ( c ) ( 1954 - 08 - 02 ) 2 August 1954 ( aged 31 ) Manchester City 9 4FW Jimmy Quinn ( 1959 - 11 - 18 ) 18 November 1959 ( aged 26 ) Blackburn Rovers 10 3MF Norman Whiteside ( 1965 - 05 - 07 ) 7 May 1965 ( aged 21 ) Manchester United 11 4FW Ian Stewart ( 1961 - 09 - 10 ) 10 September 1961 ( aged 24 ) Newcastle United 12 1GK Jim Platt ( 1952 - 01 - 26 ) 26 January 1952 ( aged 34 ) Coleraine 13 1GK Philip Hughes ( 1964 - 11 - 19 ) 19 November 1964 ( aged 21 ) Bury 14 4FW Gerry Armstrong ( 1954 - 05 - 23 ) 23 May 1954 ( aged 32 ) Tottenham Hotspur 15 3MF Nigel Worthington ( 1961 - 11 - 04 ) 4 November 1961 ( aged 24 ) Sheffield Wednesday 16 3MF Paul Ramsey ( 1962 - 09 - 03 ) 3 September 1962 ( aged 23 ) Leicester City 17 4FW Colin Clarke ( 1962 - 10 - 30 ) 30 October 1962 ( aged 23 ) Bournemouth 18 2DF John McClelland ( 1955 - 12 - 07 ) 7 December 1955 ( aged 30 ) Watford 19 4FW Billy Hamilton ( 1957 - 05 - 09 ) 9 May 1957 ( aged 29 ) Oxford United 20 2DF Bernard McNally ( 1963 - 02 - 17 ) 17 February 1963 ( aged 23 ) Shrewsbury Town 21 3MF David Campbell ( 1965 - 06 - 02 ) 2 June 1965 ( aged 20 ) Nottingham Forest 22 4FW Mark Caughey ( 1960 - 08 - 31 ) 31 August 1960 ( aged 25 ) Linfield Matches 3 June 1986 12 : 00 CST Algeria 1 -- 1 Northern Ireland Zidane 59 ' Report Whiteside 6 ' Estadio Tres de Marzo, Guadalajara Attendance : 22,000 Referee : Valeri Butenko ( Soviet Union ) 7 June 1986 12 : 00 CST Northern Ireland 1 -- 2 Spain Clarke 46 ' Report Butragueño 1 ' Salinas 18 ' Estadio Tres de Marzo, Guadalajara Attendance : 28,000 Referee : Horst Brummeier ( Austria ) 12 June 1986 12 : 00 CST Northern Ireland 0 -- 3 Brazil Report Careca 15 ', 87 ' Josimar 42 ' Estadio Jalisco, Guadalajara Attendance : 51,000 Referee : Siegfried Kirschen ( East Germany ) Record players One of Northern Ireland 's record World Cup players, Norman Whiteside, also holds the record for the youngest player ever to appear in the tournament. When he was fielded against Yugoslavia, he was only 17 years and 41 days old. No. Name Matches World Cups Billy Hamilton 8 1982 and 1986 David McCreery 8 1982 and 1986 Sammy McIlroy 8 1982 and 1986 Jimmy Nicholl 8 1982 and 1986 Norman Whiteside 8 1982 and 1986 6 Mal Donaghy 7 1982 and 1986 Pat Jennings 7 1982 and 1986 8 Gerry Armstrong 6 1982 and 1986 9 Eleven players 5 Top goalscorers No. Name Goals World Cups Peter McParland 5 1958 Gerry Armstrong 1982 Wilbur Cush 1958 Billy Hamilton 1982 Colin Clarke 1986 Norman Whiteside 1986 References Jump up ^ Whiteside, Norman ( 2007 ). Determined. Headline Publishing Group. p. 129. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7553 - 1598 - 7. Jump up ^ Whiteside, Norman ( 2007 ). Determined. Headline Publishing Group. p. 135. ISBN 978 - 0 - 7553 - 1598 - 7. Countries at the FIFA World Cup Team appearances Teams with no appearances All - time table AFC Australia China Indonesia Iran Iraq Japan Kuwait North Korea Saudi Arabia South Korea United Arab Emirates CAF Algeria Angola Cameroon DR Congo Egypt Ghana Ivory Coast Morocco Nigeria Senegal South Africa Togo Tunisia CONCACAF Canada Costa Rica Cuba El Salvador Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Panama Trinidad and Tobago United States CONMEBOL Argentina Bolivia Brazil Chile Colombia Ecuador Paraguay Peru Uruguay OFC New Zealand UEFA Austria Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Czech Republic Denmark East Germany England France Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Israel Italy Netherlands Northern Ireland Norway Poland Portugal Republic of Ireland Romania Russia Scotland Serbia Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden Switzerland Turkey Ukraine Wales Considered a successor team by FIFA, or have competed under another name ( s ). Have been member of multiple confederations. Team and national federation no longer exist. Northern Ireland national football team General Irish Football Association Ireland national football team ( 1882 -- 1950 ) Managers Venues Windsor Park Celtic Park Solitude Grosvenor Park The Oval Dalymount Park Balmoral Showgrounds Bloomfield Ulster Cricket Ground Statistics Results Players Players Pre-1950 players Dual Irish international footballers World Finals Summary 1958 1982 1986 European Finals Summary 2016 Other tournaments British Home Championship ( 1884 -- 1984 ) Nations Cup 2011 Culture Green and White Army Other teams Women 's Amateur ( defunct ) U-21 U-19 U-18 Schools U-17 U-16 Schools Juniors Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Northern_Ireland_at_the_FIFA_World_Cup&oldid=847823117 '' Categories : Northern Ireland at the FIFA World Cup Countries at the FIFA World Cup Talk Contents About Wikipedia Deutsch Edit links This page was last edited on 28 June 2018, at 01 : 10 ( UTC ). About Wikipedia

Question: when was the last time northern ireland were in the world cup
Answer: 1986