A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
| Nickname(s) | Boys in Green | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Association | Football Association of Ireland (FAI) | ||
| Head coach | Jim Crawford | ||
| Captain | Anselmo García MacNulty | ||
| Most caps | Conor Coventry (28) | ||
| Top scorer | Robbie Brady (7) Kevin Doyle (7) | ||
| |||
| First international | |||
 Rep. Ireland 1–1 Northern Ireland  (Dublin; 8 March 1978) | |||
| Biggest win | |||
 San Marino 0–7 Rep. Ireland (Serravalle, San Marino; 22 March 2024) | |||
| Biggest defeat | |||
 Germany 8–0 Rep. Ireland (Baunatal; 23 March 1993) | |||
| Best result | Have never qualified | ||
The Republic of Ireland national under-21 football team is a representative team of Irish football players. It is governed by the Football Association of Ireland and represents them at Under-21 level against the national teams of other national associations. The team played its first match in 1978 and has competed in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship since 1988.
History
As a European under-21 team, the Republic of Ireland participates in the UEFA European Under-21 Championship, which takes place every two years. There is no Under-21 World Cup, although there is an Under-20 World Cup. Ireland did not enter the first five Under-21 Championships, entering for the first time in 1988 but failing to qualify. Ireland have never qualified for the European Under-21 Championships.
UEFA European Under-21 Championship record
| UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship record | UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship Qualification record | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Pld | W | D * | L | GF | GA | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | |
| 1978 | did not enter | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||||||
| 1980 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||||||
| 1982 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||||||
| 1984 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||||||
| 1986 | – | – | – | – | – | – | ||||||||
| 1988 | did not qualify | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 7 | |||||||
| 1990 | did not enter | – | – | – | – | – | – | |||||||
| 1992 | did not qualify | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 14 | |||||||
 1994
|
8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 20 | ||||||||
 1996
|
8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 9 | ||||||||
 1998
|
8 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 11 | 7 | ||||||||
 2000
|
8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 13 | 12 | ||||||||
 2002
|
8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 10 | 7 | ||||||||
| 2004
|
8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 11 | ||||||||
 2006
|
8 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 14 | ||||||||
 2007
|
2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | ||||||||
 2009
|
8 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 14 | ||||||||
 2011
|
10 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 11 | ||||||||
 2013
|
8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 10 | ||||||||
 2015
|
8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 10 | 12 | ||||||||
 2017
|
10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 14 | 17 | ||||||||
 2019
|
10 | 4 | 2 | 4 | 12 | 15 | ||||||||
  2021
|
10 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 15 | 8 | ||||||||
 2023
|
12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 17 | 11 | ||||||||
| Total | 134 | 43 | 27 | 64 | 160 | 187 | ||||||||
- *Draws include knockout matches decided by penalty shootout.
