The FAI has confirmed that it is not going to renew the contract of senior women’s manager Eileen Gleeson. Let’s hope it doesn’t take as long as it did to replace Stephen Kenny as men’s senior manager. Gleeson, who replaced Vera Pauw after the 2023 World Cup, did well in the Nations League campaign, but failure to qualify for the Euro 2025 finals in Switzerland next year ultimately cost the 52 year-old her job.
However, it looks like Gleeson had a clause in her contract that ensures she has the option of staying on to work for the FAI in some capacity. She had previously worked as the head of women's and girls’ football, but she will not be returning to that position, which is currently filled by Welsh-born Hannah Dingley.
Gleeson will now sit down with the FAI in the coming weeks to discuss exactly what role she can fill within the association. She guided Ireland to a flawless Nations League campaign, winning six games at home and away against Albania, Northern Ireland and Hungary to gain promotion to League A.
But in the Euro 2025 campaign the Girls in Green faced much tougher opposition, having been grouped with England, France and Sweden, three of the top six-ranked countries in the world. Their only win came against France in Pairc Ui Chaoimh in Cork, but they were always guaranteed a place in the play-offs thanks to their Nations League results.
Gleeson’s team had no difficulty beating Georgia 9-0 on aggregate in the play-off semi-final, but failure to beat Wales in the play-off final was costly for the team and their manager. After drawing 1-1 in the first leg in Cardiff it looked like the Irish women with over 25,000 supporters cheering them on at the Aviva in the second leg, would qualify for the Women’s Euro finals for the first time in history. But it was Wales who progressed to the finals thanks to a 2-1 win in Dublin 4.
Gleeson played for local Dublin clubs, but was never capped at international level. She has held a UEFA pro license since 2015.
