Deletion of Seamus Coleman

Comment: I'm new to AfD discussions and am a little confused by an (apparent) lack of consistency. In this recent discussion Wikipedia:Articles for deletion/Chris Gardner (curler) the consensus was overwhelming that this curler meets both  and  despite the fact that he '''may''' only have played in tournaments where prize money was on offer, with no evidence he had actually won any. Seamus Coleman has played competitive football in a top level national league of an important footballing nation and now has a professional contract with one of the largest teams in Europe AND has Under-21 caps AND has significant coverage in Irish newspapers and some from the UK and that's less noteworthy than Chris Gardner?? Many of the players in the LOI are on full time, professional contracts. I understand that it is not a '''fully''' professional league but the fact that it is a top level league of a significant country and not the fifth or sixth level of e.g. England or a larger country surely allows a degree of flexibility over the precise definition of thlete? As for the comments that he fails  I wonder if the reports had been in the largest circulation newspapers of the USA or England would there be doubt over ? Sorry if I'm well wide of the mark here, but it is a little confusing
Stance: comment
Cited policy: Wikipedia:Notability (WP:N||WP:A||WP:N||WP:N||WP:athlete)