Ireland’s men’s and women’s teams have both secured qualification for the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup, marking a major moment for the sport as the two national sides booked their places at the global tournament following impressive campaigns in Santiago, Chile.
The Ireland Men ended their eight-year wait to return to hockey’s biggest stage with a commanding 4–0 win over Wales in the semi-final of the qualifiers before closing the tournament with a 2–1 victory over France to finish top of the standings with a perfect record.
Ireland made the ideal start against Wales when Jonny Lynch finished from the team’s first attacking phase, blasting into the roof of the net after Lee Cole’s long ball was worked through Jeremy Duncan.
After absorbing a spell of Welsh pressure through the remainder of the opening quarter, Ireland doubled their advantage in the second period. Louis Rowe reacted quickly to take a free hit and combined with Matthew Nelson before finishing neatly to make it 2–0.
Ireland’s dominance continued after the break. Fergus Gibson delivered an inviting ball into the circle which Lynch deftly redirected under goalkeeper Toby Reynolds-Cotterill for his second of the match.
Matthew Nelson added a fourth before the end of the third quarter, finishing a slick passing move to seal a convincing victory and confirm Ireland’s return to the World Cup.
The men then rounded off the tournament with another impressive performance, defeating France 2–1 in the final to complete five wins from five.
France took the lead through a well-worked penalty corner routine finished by Louis Haertelmeyer, but Ireland responded before half-time when Greg Williams rifled home a penalty corner to level the contest.
Williams struck again after the break with another powerful penalty corner to put Ireland ahead, before goalkeeper Jaime Carr produced a series of outstanding saves to preserve the lead during sustained French pressure late in the game.
The win secured top spot in the tournament and ensured Ireland climbed to ninth in the world rankings, their highest position since their victory over New Zealand at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The Ireland Women followed suit shortly afterwards, securing their own World Cup qualification after a dramatic penalty shootout victory over Japan.
The sides remained locked at 0–0 after 70 minutes despite Ireland creating the better opportunities throughout a tense contest.
Niamh Carey was influential in the opening stages, winning an early penalty corner which Roisin Upton fired goalwards only to be denied by Japanese goalkeeper Akio Tanaka. Katie Mullan and Charlotte Beggs both came close before the end of the first half, while Elizabeth Murphy was required to make a sharp save at the other end as Japan threatened on the counterattack.
Ireland continued to press after the break, with chances for Sarah Hawkshaw and Emily Kealy, while Niamh Carey also forced another save from Tanaka late in the game.
The closest Ireland came to breaking the deadlock arrived in the closing minutes when Mullan finished during a scramble following a penalty corner routine, but the effort was ruled out for a back-stick infringement.
With neither side able to find a goal in regulation time, the contest moved to a shootout.
Hannah McLoughlin and Sarah Hawkshaw converted their attempts for Ireland, while goalkeeper Elizabeth Murphy made two crucial saves. Jessica McMaster then scored Ireland’s third before Murphy produced the decisive stop to secure a 3–1 shootout victory.
The result confirmed Ireland’s place at the 2026 FIH Hockey World Cup, completing a memorable period for the sport with both national teams booking their places at the tournament in August.
Attention for both sides will now turn to upcoming international competitions, with the women preparing for the next stages of the FIH Pro League in June and the men targeting the FIH Hockey Nations Cup, before both teams travel to the Netherlands and Belgium later this summer for the World Cup.
Image Credit: Hockey Ireland
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