Killarney Celtic F.C.
Football club
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Killarney Celtic Football Club is an association football club based in Killarney, Ireland. Founded in 1976, the club qualified for the FAI Cup in 2017. The club play their home games at Celtic Park.[2]
| Full name | Killarney Celtic Football Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1976 | |
| Ground | Celtic Park | |
| Chairman | Philip O'Callaghan[1] | |
| Manager | Brian Spillane | |
| League | Kerry District League Premier A | |
| Website | www | |
|
| ||
History
Killarney Celtic was founded in 1976 by locals Mike Daly and Billy Healy to give interested players a chance to play soccer on a regular basis.[3] The club joined the Kerry District League (KDL) the same year and their first competitive game was played on 24 October 1976. In the team's first season, they went unbeaten in the league and gained promotion to Division 2.[3] A second unbeaten season meant Killarney were promoted to the top flight of the KDL. The club remained in Kerry's top division until 1998 when they left for the Munster Senior League.[3] By 2006, the club had an under-14 team.[4]
In 2017, Killarney beat Boyle Celtic of Roscommon to qualify for the first round of the FAI Cup.[5] They drew Cobh Wanderers away from home in the following round, and were defeated by their fellow Munster side.[6]
Killarney made it to the quarterfinals of the 2022–23 FAI Junior Cup, losing on penalties to Limerick opponents Ballynanty Rovers.[7] In 2025, the club won their seventh consecutive Kerry District League Premier A title.[8] On 19 December 2025, Killarney Celtic were announced as one of the founding clubs in the FAI National League.[9][1][10] The club are expected to compete in the truncated season of the league, beginning in Autumn 2026.[11][12] In June 2026, the club announced Brian Spillane as their new manager.[13]
Honours
- Kerry District League Premier A / Premier Division (16): 1981–82, 1985–86, 1995–96, 1996–97, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2012–13, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20,[14] 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2024–25[8]
- Kerry District League Greyhound Bar KO Cup: 1977–78, 1984–85, 1995–96, 2002–03, 2005–06, 2009–10, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20,[14] 2021–22, 2022–23,[citation needed] 2023–24[15]
- Kerry District League Cup: 2012–13[14]
- Kerry District League Anchor Shield: 1978–79, 1979–80[14]
