Ireland basketball team

Ireland

FIBA ranking	82 (3 March 2026)[1]
Joined FIBA	1947
FIBA zone	FIBA Europe
National federation	Basketball Ireland
Coach	Michael Bree
Nickname(s)	Na buachaillí i nglas (The Boys in Green)
Olympic Games
Appearances	1 (1948)
Medals	None
FIBA World Cup
Appearances	None
EuroBasket
Appearances	None
Championship for Small Countries
Appearances	7
Medals	Gold: (1994, 2021) Silver: (1988) Bronze: (2018)
Home Away
First international
Mexico 71–9 Ireland  (London, England; 2 August 1948)
Biggest win
Ireland 112–39 Gibraltar  (Cardiff, Wales; 12 December 1990)
Biggest defeat
Italy 128–49 Ireland  (Edinburgh, Scotland; 3 May 1976)

The Ireland men's national basketball team (Irish: Foireann cispheile náisiúnta na hÉireann) represents the island of Ireland in international basketball. It is governed by Basketball Ireland with players from both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Ireland plays their home matches at the National Basketball Arena in Tallaght, Dublin.

Ireland has little history on the international stage, as they have yet to qualify for top tournaments such as the EuroBasket or the FIBA World Cup. However, the national team did participate at the Summer Olympics once, in 1948.

History

The Amateur Basketball Association of Ireland (ABAI; now Basketball Ireland) was formed in 1945 and affiliated to FIBA in 1947. An indoor version of basketball had been played in the Irish Army from 1936, but using non-standard rules to create an indoor winter substitute for Gaelic football; until 1943, the Army Athletic Council officially recognized only Gaelic games.^[2] The ABAI sent a team of the best Army players to the 1948 Olympic tournament in nearby London, despite the refusal of Army command to release the players for intensive training. The team coaches were officers unfamiliar with the sport, who outranked the players and ignored their advice. Although many top sides were absent from the London Games in the aftermath of World War II, the Irish team finished last, losing every match heavily; the worst a 71–9 loss to Mexico, who finished fourth.^[3] Only two members of the team were over 6 feet (1.8 m) tall.^[4]

The team's standard improved gradually from the 1970s to the 2000s, as more school leavers won scholarships to play US college basketball, and some Irish American professional players took up eligibility to compete for their ancestral country. Ireland entered European-zone Olympic qualification tournaments in 1972,^[5] 1976,^[6] 1984,^[7] and 1988,^[8] losing every match each time. In 1988, Ireland finished runner-up in the inaugural Promotion Cup, the third tier of EuroBasket, later named EuroBasket Division C, and now the FIBA European Championship for Small Countries. In 1993, the National Basketball Arena opened in Dublin, which became the team's new permanent home. Division C was hosted there the following year, and Ireland beat Cyprus 81–78 in the final to gain promotion to EuroBasket Division B. Ireland narrowly failed to win promotion to Division A in FIBA EuroBasket 2005 Division B, losing to Denmark by four points after having won the first game in Dublin by ten.

In February 2010, during the Irish financial crisis, Basketball Ireland announced that it was €1.2m in debt and was deactivating its senior international squads to cut costs.^[9] In December 2015, the team was reactivated for 2016.^[10]

In December 2015, it was announced that Ireland would play at the 2016 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries.^[11] The team finished in the fourth position overall.

Ireland played in the 2018 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries, held in San Marino from 26 June to 1 July. Ireland finished (1–1) in group play, losing to Malta then defeating Andorra. In the semi-finals Ireland lost to Norway, sending the team to the bronze medal match where they defeated Gibraltar to finish in third place.^[12]

Three years later, Ireland hosted the 2021 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries in Dublin. The national team would go undefeated during the tournament at (4–0), to capture their second title at the competition all time.^[13][14]

After Ireland's 2021 European Championship for Small Countries triumph, they entered EuroBasket 2025 Pre-Qualifying, where they earned a victory in their first match away to Cyprus 73–81.^[15] Although following the win, Ireland would go (3–6) during the rest of their pre-qualifying campaign, to eventually be eliminated.^[16]

Ireland then put their focus into the 2027 FIBA World Cup European Pre-Qualifiers. However, they began their campaign with two demoralising losses, before sweeping their doubleheader in November 2024 against Azerbaijan and Kosovo.^[17][18] Ultimately, a heavy defeat at the hands of Switzerland 85–54 in February 2025, ended Ireland's hopes of progressing to the next round.^[19]

Competitive record

FIBA World Cup World Cup Qualification Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1950 Did not enter Did not enter 1954 1959 1963 1967 1970 1974 1978 Did not qualify EuroBasket served as qualifiers 1982 1986 Did not enter Did not enter 1990 1994 1998 Did not qualify EuroBasket served as qualifiers 2002 2006 2010 2014 Did not enter Did not enter 2019 2023 2027 Did not qualify 6 3 3 2031 To be determined To be determined Total 0/21 6 3 3 Olympic Games Olympic Games Qualifying Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1936 No national representative 1948 23rd 6 0 6 1952 Did not enter 1956 1960 Did not enter 1964 1968 1972 Did not qualify 4 0 4 1976 5 0 5 1980 Did not enter Did not enter 1984 Did not qualify 3 0 3 1988 4 0 4 1992 5 0 5 1996 Did not enter Did not enter 2000 2004 2008 2012 2016 2020 2024 2028 Total 1/21 6 0 6 21 0 21 Championship for Small Countries FIBA European Championship for Small Countries Year Position Pld W L 1988 5 4 1 1990 4th 5 3 2 1992 4th 5 2 3 1994 5 5 0 2016 4th 5 3 2 2018 4 2 2 2021 4 4 0 Total 33 23 10

EuroBasket EuroBasket Qualification Year Position Pld W L Pld W L 1935 No national representative 1937 1939 1946 1947 Did not enter 1949 1951 1953 1955 1957 1959 1961 1963 Did not enter 1965 1967 1969 1971 1973 1975 1977 Did not qualify 5 1 4 1979 Did not enter Did not enter 1981 Did not qualify 4 0 4 1983 5 0 5 1985 Did not enter Did not enter 1987 Did not qualify 4 0 4 1989 Did not enter Did not enter 1991 1993 1995 1997 Did not qualify 5 2 3 1999 8 4 4 2001 11 3 8 2003 21 10 11 2005 Division B 8 5 3 2007 Division B 6 1 5 2009 Division B 8 2 6 2011 Did not enter Did not enter 2013 2015 2017 2022 2025 Did not qualify 10 4 6 2029 To be determined To be determined Total 0/38 95 32 63

Results and fixtures

  Win   Loss

2025

Switzerland  v  Ireland

20 February 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Switzerland	85–54	Ireland	Fribourg, Switzerland
19:30 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter: 30–16, 18–15, 19–9, 18–14
	Pts: Mbala 19 Rebs: three players 5 Asts: Fofana 10	Boxscore	Pts: N. Quinn 18 Rebs: N. Quinn 9 Asts: Flood 3	Arena: Site Sportif Saint-Léonard Attendance: 3,000 Referees: Alessandro Perciavalle (ITA), Arnau Padros (ESP), Ioannis Agrafiotis (GRE)

Azerbaijan  v  Ireland

23 February 2025 2027 FIBA World Cup pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Azerbaijan	64–79	Ireland	Baku, Azerbaijan
17:00 (UTC+4)	Scoring by quarter: 16–21, 14–20, 19–13, 15–25
	Pts: S. Shirzadov 14 Rebs: Hall 12 Asts: K. Mammadov 4	Boxscore	Pts: Flood 23 Rebs: N. Quinn 9 Asts: Flood 5	Arena: Baku Sports Palace Attendance: 700 Referees: Zdravko Rutešić (MNE), Duhan Köyiçi (TUR), Nemanja Vlahović (SRB)

Luxembourg  v  Ireland

27 November 2025 EuroBasket 2029 pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Luxembourg	89–77	Ireland	Luxembourg City, Luxembourg
19:30 (UTC+1)	Scoring by quarter: 26–11, 21–26, 17–24, 25–16
	Pts: Kovac 38 Rebs: Logelin, Rugg 6 Asts: Gutenkauf 6	Boxscore	Pts: Badmus 24 Rebs: Buivydas 10 Asts: Flood 6	Arena: d'Coque Attendance: 1,200 Referees: Mehmet Karabilecen (TUR), Diogo Martins (POR), Karol Kowalski (POL)

Ireland  v  North Macedonia

30 November 2025 EuroBasket 2029 pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Ireland	76–88	North Macedonia	Dublin, Ireland
17:00 (UTC+0)	Scoring by quarter: 27–20, 13–22, 22–19, 14–27
	Pts: Alajiki 26 Rebs: Alajiki 10 Asts: Badmus 3	Boxscore	Pts: Jakimovski 26 Rebs: Wiley 9 Asts: Jakimovski, Mekić 4	Arena: National Basketball Arena Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Marek Mikulčík (SVK), Martin Van Hoye (BEL), Jānis Rozenbergs (LAT)

2026

Ireland  v  Azerbaijan

27 February 2025 EuroBasket 2029 pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Ireland	75–76	Azerbaijan	Dublin, Ireland
19:30 (UTC+0)	Scoring by quarter: 19–18, 16–23, 19–18, 21–17
	Pts: Flood 18 Rebs: N. Quinn 12 Asts: Fulton 11	Boxscore	Pts: Van Beck 20 Rebs: S. Donat, Van Beck 6 Asts: K. Mammadov 8	Arena: National Basketball Arena Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Jan Baloun (CZE), Iain Macdonald (GRB), Nikola Bejat (NOR)

Ireland  v  Luxembourg

2 March 2026 EuroBasket 2029 pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Ireland	91–85	Luxembourg	Dublin, Ireland
19:30 (UTC+0)	Scoring by quarter: 22–23, 17–12, 26–21, 26–29
	Pts: N. Quinn 22 Rebs: N. Quinn 14 Asts: Fulton 12	Boxscore	Pts: Rugg 23 Rebs: Rugg 11 Asts: Gutenkauf 6	Arena: National Basketball Arena Attendance: 2,000 Referees: Viktor Nagy (HUN), Pierre Landy (FRA), José Pedroso (POR)

North Macedonia  v  Ireland

2 July 2026 EuroBasket 2029 pre-qualifiers – 1st round	North Macedonia	vs.	Ireland	North Macedonia
--:-- (UTC+2)
		Boxscore

Azerbaijan  v  Ireland

5 July 2026 EuroBasket 2029 pre-qualifiers – 1st round	Azerbaijan	vs.	Ireland	Azerbaijan
--:-- (UTC+4)
		Boxscore

Team

Current roster

Roster for the EuroBasket 2029 Pre-Qualifiers matches on 27 February and 2 March 2026 against Azerbaijan
and Luxembourg.^[20][21][22]

Ireland men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G 4 Adrian O'Sullivan 32 – (1993-07-21)21 July 1993 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Ballincollig PG 5 CJ Fulton 23 – (2002-06-24)24 June 2002 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Iowa Wolves SG 6 Sean Fitzpatrick 21 – (2004-08-16)16 August 2004 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) UCD Marian G/F 9 Ryan Leonard 27 – (1998-09-29)29 September 1998 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Limerick PG 11 Sean Flood (C) 29 – (1996-09-10)10 September 1996 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Unattached F 13 Jordan Blount 29 – (1997-01-05)5 January 1997 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Killorglin C 15 James Gormley 26 – (1999-08-31)31 August 1999 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) Éanna F/C 24 Matt Zona 24 – (2002-02-23)23 February 2002 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) Cheshire Phoenix F 25 Eoin Nelson 25 – (2000-05-22)22 May 2000 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Neptune C 32 Neal Quinn 24 – (2001-05-31)31 May 2001 2.13 m (7 ft 0 in) BCM Gravelines F 64 Samuel Alajiki 23 – (2002-11-12)12 November 2002 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Hapoel Galil Elyon	Head coach Michael Bree Assistant coach(es) Paul Kelleher Ciaran O’Sullivan Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 27 February 2026

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2
C	Neal Quinn	James Gormley	Eoin Nelson
PF	Matt Zona	Jordan Blount
SF	Samuel Alajiki	Ryan Leonard
SG	Sean Flood	Sean Fitzpatrick
PG	CJ Fulton	Adrian O'Sullivan

Past rosters

1948 Olympic Games: finished 23rd among 23 teams^[27]

4 Donald O'Donovan, 5 Frank O'Connor, 6 Paddy Crehan, 7 Jimmy McGee, 8 Bill Jackson, 9 Harry Boland, 10 Tommy Keenan,
12 Dermot Sheriff, 13 Danny Reddin, 14 Paddy Sheriff, 15 Jim Flynn, 16 Christy Walsh (Coach: Donald McCormack)

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2016 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries: finished 4th among 8 teams^[28]

Ireland men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G 4 Adrian O'Sullivan 22 – (1993-07-21)21 July 1993 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) UCC Demons G 5 Paul Dick 25 – (1991-04-30)30 April 1991 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Cheshire Jets G 6 Lorcan Murphy 21 – (1994-12-08)8 December 1994 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Neptune SF 7 Ciarán O'Sullivan 25 – (1990-12-27)27 December 1990 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) Swords Thunder SF 9 Stephen James 24 – (1992-03-16)16 March 1992 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Cheshire Jets C 10 Brian Fitzpatrick 26 – (1989-11-06)6 November 1989 2.04 m (6 ft 8 in) Horsens C 11 Keelan Cairns 24 – (1992-05-26)26 May 1992 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) UCC Demons PF 12 Colin O'Reilly 32 – (1984-01-30)30 January 1984 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) UCC Demons F 13 Jordan Blount 19 – (1997-01-05)5 January 1997 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) UIC Flames C 14 Conor Gallagher 31 – (1984-09-15)15 September 1984 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) Killester F 15 Kevin Lacey 27 – (1989-02-24)24 February 1989 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) Swords Thunder PG 16 Kyle Hosford 27 – (1989-06-27)27 June 1989 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) UCC Demons	Head coach Colin O'Reilly Assistant coach(es) Puff Summers Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 28 June 2016

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2018 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries: finished 3rd among 7 teams^[29]

Ireland men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G 4 Adrian O'Sullivan 24 – (1993-07-21)21 July 1993 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) UCC Demons SG 5 Aidan Quinn 22 – (1995-07-10)10 July 1995 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Belfast Star G 6 Lorcan Murphy 23 – (1994-12-08)8 December 1994 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Templeogue PG 7 Patrick Lyons 22 – (1995-08-16)16 August 1995 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in) Moycullen SG 8 Travis Black 27 – (1991-01-16)16 January 1991 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) Swords Thunder F 9 Jordan Blount 21 – (1997-01-05)5 January 1997 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) UIC Flames PG 10 Ciaran Roe 25 – (1993-06-21)21 June 1993 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Killester SF 11 Matthew Kelly 30 – (1987-10-15)15 October 1987 1.95 m (6 ft 5 in) UCD Marian F 12 Taiwo Badmus 24 – (1993-07-03)3 July 1993 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) Virginia–Wise C 14 Keelan Cairns 26 – (1992-05-26)26 May 1992 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) Belfast Star C 15 Eoghain Kiernan 21 – (1996-07-10)10 July 1996 2.06 m (6 ft 9 in) Killester C 16 Paul Freeman 35 – (1983-03-31)31 March 1983 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) Moycullen	Head coach Pete Strickland Assistant coach(es) Ioannis Liapakis Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 26 June 2018

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2021 FIBA European Championship for Small Countries: finished 1st among 5 teams^[30]

Ireland men's national basketball team roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. No. Name Age – Date of birth Height Club Ctr. G 4 Adrian O'Sullivan 28 – (1993-07-21)21 July 1993 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Carbajosa PG 5 CJ Fulton 19 – (2002-06-24)24 June 2002 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) Lafayette College G 6 Lorcan Murphy 26 – (1994-12-08)8 December 1994 1.86 m (6 ft 1 in) Templeogue G 7 Sean Flood 24 – (1996-09-10)10 September 1996 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) Karlsruhe PG 8 Kyle Hosford 32 – (1989-06-27)27 June 1989 1.82 m (6 ft 0 in) UCC Demons F 9 Eoin Quigley 29 – (1991-09-18)18 September 1991 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Tralee Warriors PG 10 Ciaran Roe 28 – (1993-06-21)21 June 1993 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) Killester F 11 Neil Randolph 29 – (1992-02-29)29 February 1992 1.96 m (6 ft 5 in) Templeogue C 12 Will Hanley 31 – (1990-03-12)12 March 1990 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) Hebraica Macabi F 13 Jordan Blount 24 – (1997-01-05)5 January 1997 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Carbajosa F 14 John Carroll 26 – (1995-03-16)16 March 1995 2.03 m (6 ft 8 in) Zamora C 15 Jason Killeen (C) 36 – (1985-01-22)22 January 1985 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) Templeogue	Head coach Mark Keenan Assistant coach(es) Adrian Fulton Puff Summers Legend (C) Team captain Club – describes last club before the competition Age – describes age on 10 August 2021

Kit

See also

• Sport in Ireland
• Ireland women's national basketball team
• Ireland men's national under-20 basketball team
• Ireland men's national under-18 basketball team
• Ireland men's national under-16 basketball team
• Ireland men's national 3x3 team
• Super League

References

External links

• Official website
• Ireland FIBA profile
• Ireland National Team – Men at Eurobasket.com