# Northern Ireland at the FIFA World Cup

The Northern Ireland national football team have appeared in 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 a
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.

## Record at the FIFA World Cup

FIFA World Cup record :
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GF | GA |
| 1930 | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 1934 | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 1938 | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter | Did not enter |
| 1950 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1954 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1958 | Quarter-finals | 8th | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 6 | 10 |
| 1962 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1966 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1970 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1974 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1978 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1982 | Second round | 9th | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 7 |
| 1986 | Group stage | 21st | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 |
| 1990 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1994 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 1998 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2002 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2006 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2010 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2014 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2018 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2022 | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify | Did not qualify |
| 2026 | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined |
| 2030 | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined |
| 2034 | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined | To be determined |
| Total | Quarter-finals | 3/25 | 13 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 23 |
    *Denotes draws including knockout matches decided on penalty kicks.

### By Match

| World Cup | Round | Opponent | Score | Result | Venue | Scorers |
| 1958 | Group stage | Czechoslovakia | 1–0 | W | Halmstad | W. Cush |
| 1958 | Group stage | Argentina | 1–3 | L | Halmstad | P. McParland |
| 1958 | Group stage | West Germany | 2–2 | D | Malmö | P. McParland (2) |
| 1958 | Group stage | Czechoslovakia | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | W | Malmö | P. McParland (2) |
| 1958 | Quarter-finals | France | 0–4 | L | Norrköping | — |
| 1982 | Group stage | Yugoslavia | 0–0 | D | Zaragoza | — |
| 1982 | Group stage | Honduras | 1–1 | D | Zaragoza | G. Armstrong |
| 1982 | Group stage | Spain | 1–0 | W | Valencia | G. Armstrong |
| 1982 | Second round | Austria | 2–2 | D | Madrid | B. Hamilton (2) |
| 1982 | Second round | France | 1–4 | L | Madrid | G. Armstrong |
| 1986 | Group stage | Algeria | 1–1 | D | Guadalajara | N. Whiteside |
| 1986 | Group stage | Spain | 1–2 | L | Guadalajara | C. Clarke |
| 1986 | Group stage | Brazil | 0–3 | L | Guadalajara | — |

### Record by Opponent

FIFA World Cup matches (by team) :
| Opponent | Wins | Draws | Losses | Total | Goals Scored | Goals Conceded |
| Algeria | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Argentina | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Austria | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Brazil | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Czechoslovakia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| France | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 8 |
| Honduras | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Spain | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| West Germany | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Yugoslavia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |

## Northern Ireland at Sweden 1958
### First round
#### Group 1

| Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts |
| West Germany | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 5 | 1.40 | 4 |
| Northern Ireland | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0.80 | 3 |
| Czechoslovakia | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 4 | 2.00 | 3 |
| Argentina | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 0.50 | 2 |

##### Play-off
#### Quarter-final 1958 World Cup
## Northern Ireland at 1982 World Cup
### Squad

Head coach: Billy Bingham
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Club |
| 1 | 1GK | Pat Jennings | (1945-06-12)12 June 1945 (aged 37) | Arsenal |
| 2 | 2DF | Jimmy Nicholl | (1956-02-28)28 February 1956 (aged 26) | Toronto Blizzard |
| 3 | 2DF | Mal Donaghy | (1957-09-13)13 September 1957 (aged 24) | Luton Town |
| 4 | 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
## Northern Ireland at 1986 World Cup
### Squad

Head coach: Billy Bingham
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Club |
| 1 | 1GK | Pat Jennings | (1945-06-12)12 June 1945 (aged 40) | Tottenham Hotspur |
| 2 | 2DF | Jimmy Nicholl | (1956-12-28)28 December 1956 (aged 29) | West Bromwich Albion |
| 3 | 2DF | Mal Donaghy | (1957-09-13)13 September 1957 (aged 28) | Luton Town |
| 4 | 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
## 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.
| Rank | Player | Matches | World Cups |
| 1 | Billy Hamilton | 8 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 1 | David McCreery | 8 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 1 | Sammy McIlroy | 8 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 1 | Jimmy Nicholl | 8 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 1 | Norman Whiteside | 8 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 6 | Mal Donaghy | 7 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 6 | Pat Jennings | 7 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 8 | Gerry Armstrong | 6 | 1982 and 1986 |
| 9 | Eleven players | 5 | |

## Top goalscorers

| Rank | Player | Goals | World Cups |
| 1 | Peter McParland | 5 | 1958 |
| 2 | Gerry Armstrong | 3 | 1982 |
| 3 | Billy Hamilton | 2 | 1982 |
| 4 | Wilbur Cush | 1 | 1958 |
| 4 | Colin Clarke | 1 | 1986 |
| 4 | Norman Whiteside | 1 | 1986 |