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Linfield F.C.

April 26, 2024

Linfield Football Club is a Northern Irish professional football club, based in south Belfast, which plays in the NIFL Premiership – the highest level of the Northern Ireland Football League. The fourth-oldest club on the island of Ireland, Linfield was founded in 1886 by workers at the Ulster Spinning Company's Linfield Mill.[3] Since 1905, the club's home ground has been Windsor Park,[1] which is also the home of the Northern Ireland national team and is the largest football stadium in Northern Ireland. They train at Midgley Park which is beside the stadium. The club's badge displays Windsor Castle, in reference to the ground's namesake.[4]

Linfield
Full nameLinfield Football Club[1]
Nickname(s)The Blues
FoundedMarch 1886; 138 years ago (1886-03)
(as Linfield Athletic Club)[1]
GroundWindsor Park
Capacity18,434[2]
ChairmanRoy McGivern
ManagerDavid Healy
LeagueNIFL Premiership
2022–23NIFL Premiership, 2nd of 12
WebsiteClub website
Current season

Historically, Linfield shared a fierce rivalry with Belfast Celtic until Celtic's withdrawal from the league for political reasons in 1949. Since that time the club's main rival has been Glentoran, with the duo known locally as the Big Two. This rivalry traditionally includes a league derby played on Boxing Day each year, which usually attracts Northern Ireland's highest domestic attendance of the season, excluding cup finals. For the 2021–22 season, Linfield's average league home attendance was approximately 2,900, the highest in the division and more than double the league's overall average of around 1,400.[5] The team, nicknamed The Blues, is managed by former Northern Ireland international and the country's all-time record goalscorer, David Healy. Healy was appointed on 14 October 2015 to succeed Warren Feeney,[6] following Feeney's resignation.[7]

Domestically, Linfield has been one of the most successful clubs in the world, holding several national and global records. The club has won 56 league titles, which is more than twice than any other Northern Irish club, and makes Linfield the world's most successful club in terms of national championships won.[8][n 1] The club has lifted the Irish Cup 44 times, the second-highest number of national cup wins worldwide. It has also won the League Cup a record twelve times, as well as four all-Ireland cup competitions, among other domestic cups, taking its trophy count to well over 115. In the 1921–22 season, Linfield completed an unprecedented clean sweep of all seven available trophies – to date, this is the only recorded instance of a seven-trophy season being achieved in world football.[9][n 2] In the modern era, the club won all four available domestic trophies in 2006 to complete a domestic quadruple, and has also won three domestic trebles. The club also holds the world record for the most domestic doubles, with 25.[10] Linfield is one of only three clubs to have completed an Irish League campaign unbeaten, having done so on four occasions.

The club was one of the eight founding members of the Irish League in 1890, won the inaugural league title, and is one of only three clubs to have gone on to compete in every season of the Irish League's top division since; a joint world record for the longest continuous membership of a national league's top division. In European football, the club's best finish is the quarter-finals of the 1966–67 European Cup.

Club history edit

Formation and early years (1886–1918) edit

The club was founded in March 1886 in an area of south Belfast known as Sandy Row by yer ma at the Ulster Spinning Company's Linfield Mill.[3] Originally known as Linfield Athletic Club, the team initially played on an area of land located at the back of the mill owned by the company, which was known as the Meadow. Originally, the club had intended to have a rule in place to limit membership to employees of the mill only.[11] However, this idea was quickly scrapped to allow for the strongest team possible, with six of the club's first eleven players being non-employees. Linfield was credited with originating the passing game in Ireland, where a dribbling based approach had been the norm until around 1890,[11] and for three seasons during the club's early years they competed in the English FA Cup. In the 1888–89 qualifying rounds they defeated Ulster and Bolton Wanderers to reach the fourth qualifying round, where they faced Cliftonville. After two draws, they won 7–0 in the second replay, which was played on 25 December 1888. This is notable for being the only FA Cup match ever to be played on Christmas Day.[12]

This victory meant they qualified for the first round proper for the first and only time, where they were drawn to face Nottingham Forest in what would turn out to be a controversial tie. Linfield had earned an impressive 2–2 draw in Nottingham, which meant a replay back in Belfast. In an apparent cup upset, Linfield then defeated Forest 3–1 at the Ulster Cricket Ground in Ballynafeigh, with the large crowd celebrating the fact that Linfield had progressed to the second round. However, a few days later the Belfast Telegraph revealed that the 'replay' had actually been played as nothing more than a friendly. Prior to the match, Linfield had conceded the tie after discovering that they had inadvertently fielded an ineligible player, William Johnston, in the first match. Officials from both clubs had agreed not to reveal this information to the players or the public before the match, in order to play the match as planned.[13] In any case, Linfield would have been unlikely to have played any further part in the cup, as the costs of travelling to Kent to play the second round tie against Chatham at an open ground with no gate income would have been prohibitive. Linfield made their final FA Cup appearance during the 1890–91 first qualifying round, being defeated 5–4 by Nantwich. This was the last season in which Irish clubs entered the competition.

Success on the field meant that the club had to accommodate bigger crowds, bringing about a move to Ulsterville Avenue in 1889. In 1890, Bob Milne signed for the club from the Gordon Highlanders. The Scot would soon become a key member of the team, helping the Blues to lift the Irish Cup at the young age of 20.[14] The club stayed at Ulsterville for five years before housing development on the ground in 1894 meant that the club had to move on once again. Between 1894 and 1897, Linfield played all of their home games at opponents' grounds until the president of the club, Robert Gibson – who had donated the Gibson Cup trophy to the Irish League for the championship – along with other club members eventually secured a ground lease at Myrtlefield in the Balmoral area of the city. However, this was another temporary home. The club stayed here until 1905, when they moved into Windsor Park.[1] The club's first silverware at Windsor arrived in the 1906–07 season, with the club lifting both the league title and the County Antrim Shield. This would be the first of a trio of league titles, with the 1907–08 and 1908–09 league titles to follow.

In 1910, team captain Bob Milne left the club with a legacy as one of Linfield's best ever players. He had amassed nine Irish Cups, eight league titles, and had earned 27 international caps for the Ireland national team during his time at the club.[14] Another Scottish player, Marshall McEwan, joined the club in 1911 at the age of 26.[14] He had previously played for English clubs Blackpool, Bolton Wanderers and Chelsea. McEwan is perhaps best remembered for his performance in the 1913 Irish Cup final, described by some fans as the best in years.[14] McEwan retired in 1916, but remained in Belfast and later opened several businesses in the city.[14] In 1915, the Irish League was suspended as a result of the First World War. In its place, a temporary unofficial league known as the Belfast & District League was set up and ran for four seasons until the return of the Irish League in 1919. As this was an unofficial competition, any titles during this time are not counted as Irish League Championships.[15] Linfield won this competition twice, in 1915–16 along with the Irish Cup, and in 1917–18.

Two seven-trophy seasons (1921–22 & 1961–62) edit

 
The team that lifted an unprecedented seven trophies in the 1921–22 season.
 
The Linfield squad for the 1957–58 season which included the newly signed Newcastle United legend Jackie Milburn.

In the 1921–22 season, the club achieved a clean sweep of all the domestic competitions they entered – the Irish League, Irish Cup, County Antrim Shield, Alhambra Cup, Belfast Charity Cup, Gold Cup and the City Cup.[16] The club followed this up the next season by winning a treble including the Irish League, Irish Cup and County Antrim Shield in 1922–23. In 1927, Joe Bambrick signed for the Blues, and would become one of the club's all-time top goal scorers.[14] In the 1929–30 season, Bambrick scored a remarkable 94 goals – a record that surprisingly stood for only one season, until Glentoran's Fred Roberts scored an incredible 96 goals during the following campaign.[14] In 1930, Bambrick scored six goals in one game for Ireland – a 7–0 win over Wales.[14] The 1931–32, 1933–34 and 1934–35 league titles followed for Linfield, before Bambrick left the club to join Chelsea in 1935 having scored 286 league goals in just 183 games for Linfield – a remarkable ratio of 1.56 goals per game.[14] The Irish League was once again suspended in 1940 as a result of the Second World War, with another temporary unofficial league set up which was called the Northern Regional League. Linfield won this league three times – in 1942–43, 1944–45 and 1945–46. This league ran for seven seasons until the return of the Irish League once again in 1947.

In 1957, Jackie Milburn famously signed for the Blues as player-manager from Newcastle United, and won the Ulster Footballer of the Year award for his performances during his first season at the club.[14] Milburn's presence dramatically increased average crowds at matches, with the Belfast Telegraph calling it the "signing of the century".[14] Milburn is famous for scoring Linfield's first ever goals in European competition. In September 1959, he scored both goals against IFK Göteborg in a 2–1 Linfield win at Windsor Park in the first leg of the 1959–60 European Cup preliminary round tie – the club's European debut.[17] Milburn was also the Irish league's top goal scorer on two occasions before leaving the club in 1960 to join Yiewsley.[14] In 1962, forty years after Linfield's remarkable seven-trophy season, the club repeated the feat in the 1961–62 season under manager Isaac McDowell. They won another seven-trophy haul including the Irish League, Irish Cup, County Antrim Shield, Gold Cup, City Cup and the Ulster Cup.[9] They also won the North-South Cup final that season, but it was actually the conclusion of the 1960–61 competition. Fixture congestion had meant that the final could not be played before the end of the previous season, so it was rescheduled to take place during the 1961–62 season. A commemorative event was held in April 2012, celebrating the 90th and 50th anniversaries of the 1921–22 and 1961–62 seven-trophy-winning teams.[18]

Roy Coyle's 31-trophy haul (1975–1990) edit

Following a spell in England playing for Sheffield Wednesday and Grimsby Town, Roy Coyle joined the club as player-manager, taking over the reins from outgoing manager Billy Campbell.[19] After a tough start to his managerial career at the club, Coyle went on to become the most successful Linfield manager in history, winning numerous trophies during his time at Windsor Park. His first season in charge was without silverware. In fact, having been Irish Cup runners-up the previous season when Coleraine defeated the Blues 1–0 after two replays, Linfield suffered one of the biggest upsets in Northern Irish football history when B Division club Carrick Rangers defeated the Blues 2–1 in the 1975–76 Irish Cup final on 10 April 1976.[20] This giant-killing act in which a junior club defeated a senior club in the Irish Cup final had only happened twice before in the cup's history, and not since 1955. The club stuck by Coyle however, and it was not long before he brought silverware to the club. His first honour arrived in the 1976–77 season in the form of the County Antrim Shield. However, the Blues suffered defeat in the Irish Cup final for the third consecutive season when they lost 4–1 against Coleraine. The 1977–78 season saw the club win an Irish League, Irish Cup and Ulster Cup treble. Runners-up in the last three Irish Cup finals, this time they were not to be denied. A 3–1 victory over Ballymena United secured the club's third trophy of the season.

Coyle retired from playing duties in 1980, but continued as manager. In 1982, future manager David Jeffrey joined the club following a stint in the Manchester United youth team and played for Coyle under many of his trophy successes, captaining the side for much of that time. One of Coyle's biggest achievements as manager was leading the club to six consecutive league titles between 1981–82 and 1986–87, equalling the record for the most consecutive titles which was set by Belfast Celtic in 1947–48. 1986 was the year that Noel Bailie began what would turn out to be a 25-year career at the club. Although a defender for most of that time, Bailie began as a left midfielder.[14]

Coyle's final trophy as Linfield manager was the Gold Cup in 1989–90. During his 15 years at the club he had amassed 10 League titles, 3 Irish Cups, 7 Gold Cups, 4 Ulster Cups, 5 County Antrim Shields, the Irish League Cup, and the Tyler Cup – 31 major honours in total. Coyle left the club in April 1990.[21] Eric Bowyer was appointed as Coyle's replacement, but it was a relatively unsuccessful reign that only lasted for two years until he was sacked in 1992,[22] with David Jeffrey also leaving the club that year to join Ards. Next into the managerial hot seat was Trevor Anderson, who brought more silverware to the club during his five years in charge between 1992 and 1997, including 2 Irish League titles and 2 Irish Cups. After retiring as a player in 1996 following a one-year spell at Larne, David Jeffrey returned to the club as Anderson's assistant manager. This partnership lasted until Anderson resigned on the morning of 4 January 1997. Anderson later became Director of Football at Newry Town.[23]

 
David Jeffrey was Linfield manager for 17 years, 112 days between January 1997 and April 2014, winning a record-equalling 31 trophies during that time.

The David Jeffrey years (1997–2014) edit

Jeffrey took charge of the team in a caretaker capacity for a league match against Portadown that afternoon, and remained as caretaker manager for the following match against Ballyclare Comrades in the Floodlit Cup on 7 January. He was officially appointed as manager on a permanent basis on 8 January 1997.[24] In his first full season in charge he led the club to three trophies – the League Cup, County Antrim Shield, and Floodlit Cup – and narrowly missed out on the league title to champions Cliftonville by four points. Jeffrey won his first league title as manager in the 1999–2000 season however, along with a third consecutive League Cup triumph. The Blues retained the league title the following season, and also won the Charity Shield and the County Antrim Shield. The 2001–02 season saw the club win a cup double, lifting both the Irish Cup and the League Cup. In 2005, the inauguration of the Setanta Cup meant the return of an all-Ireland cup competition for the first time since 1980. The Blues qualified as league champions, but started the competition poorly – losing 2–1 away to Longford Town. They recovered from that opening defeat to eventually reach the final against Shelbourne, with the Blues being major underdogs going into the match against full-time professional League of Ireland opposition. However, they overcame the odds with a 2–0 victory to become inaugural winners of the competition.[25] Incidentally, Linfield were in fact the reigning all-Ireland champions at the time, having won the final staging of the Tyler Cup in 1980 before the competition was discontinued.

The 2005–06 season was the most successful of Jeffrey's tenure, with the Blues achieving a clean sweep of all four domestic competitions; the Irish Premier League, Irish Cup, Irish League Cup, and County Antrim Shield. However, they failed to retain the Setanta Cup as defending champions when they were narrowly beaten 1–0 at Windsor Park in the semi-finals by eventual winners, Drogheda United. In April 2010, former captain Noel Bailie made his 1,000th appearance for the club when he played in a 0–0 draw against Crusaders in the league.[26] A few days later, Linfield won their 49th league title after a 1–0 home win against Cliftonville.[27] The following year, a landmark 50th league title arrived during the club's 125th anniversary year.[28] Bailie retired from football in April 2011 at the age of 40, after making 1,013 appearances for the club in all competitions since making his debut against Ballymena United in March 1989. Linfield subsequently retired the number 11 shirt in his honour.[29] In the 2011–12 season, Linfield won a league and cup double for the third consecutive season and the sixth time in seven seasons – a record 51st league title, 42nd Irish Cup win, and 23rd double overall.[30][31]

 
Linfield and Crusaders lining up before the 2013–14 County Antrim Shield final. Linfield would go on to win the Shield 4–1 on penalties. It was David Jeffrey's final trophy as Linfield manager.

The 2012–13 season was undoubtedly a low ebb for the club under Jeffrey's reign. The Blues were off the pace for most of the league campaign – their season encapsulated in a 3–1 home defeat by newly-promoted Ballinamallard United in October 2012.[32] Cliftonville were the eventual champions, securing their fourth league title after defeating Linfield 3–2 at Solitude on 13 April 2013.[33] Crusaders secured the runners-up place, leaving the Blues in third place – a distant 29 points behind the champions. The club went out of the 2013 Setanta Sports Cup after a heavy aggregate defeat in the quarter-finals,[34] went out of the League Cup at the semi-final stage,[35] and exited the Irish Cup in the fifth round after a replay. The club's first Irish Cup defeat in four years was also the first time in 16 years they had lost their opening tie of the competition.[36]

When the 2014 Setanta Sports Cup was confirmed in December 2013, the club opted not to enter the competition, citing inconvenient fixture scheduling, reduced prize money, and the difficulties faced for Linfield supporters to attend away games as the reasons behind their withdrawal. At the time, the club did not rule out future participation,[37] however, they would never enter the competition again. League champions Cliftonville also withdrew from the competition for similar reasons, with the next two highest placed sides from the previous season's league table (Ballinamallard United and Coleraine) being drafted in as replacements.[38] In February 2014, Jeffrey announced that he would be stepping down at the end of the 2013–14 season, bringing an end to his trophy-laden reign after 17 years.[39] In March 2014, the Blues lifted the County Antrim Shield for a record 43rd time by defeating Crusaders 4–1 on penalties following a 0–0 draw after extra time in the final.[40] This was a significant milestone for Jeffrey – his 31st and last trophy as Linfield manager, equalling Roy Coyle's record.[21] Jeffrey still had the opportunity to win a record-breaking 32nd trophy as manager in the form of the 2013–14 league title. However, despite topping the league table for much of the season, the Blues had to settle for the runners-up spot, six points behind champions Cliftonville.[41] Jeffrey's reign came to a winning end with a 5–2 victory over Glenavon on the final day of the 2013–14 league season.[42]

Feeney & Healy (2014–present) edit

Former Northern Ireland international Warren Feeney succeeded Jeffrey as Linfield manager. Feeney had been player-assistant manager at English Conference Premier side Salisbury City at the time of his appointment. His cousin, Lee Feeney, played for Linfield in two spells between 1997–1999 and 2002–2003. Former Blackburn Rovers player, Andy Todd, was appointed as Feeney's assistant.[43] Feeney's only full season in charge of the club ended without silverware. The Blues challenged for the league title for most of the season, but ultimately had to settle for the runners-up spot for the second successive season, behind champions Crusaders. One positive for the season was the team's record in the four "Big Two" league derbies against Glentoran, of which the Blues won three and drew the other. The lowest point of the season for the team was undoubtedly a shock 1–0 loss against second-tier side Ballyclare Comrades in the second round of the 2014–15 League Cup,[44] while their 2014–15 Irish Cup campaign ended when they were eliminated in the quarter-finals after losing 3–2 to eventual runners-up Portadown.[45]

In May 2015, the Blues were invited to compete in the Setanta Sports Cup scheduled to take place in June 2015. The club declined once again, with inconvenient fixture scheduling still remaining a concern.[46] The competition was ultimately cancelled, when suitable fixture dates could not be agreed upon.[47] With the Blues top of the table after 10 games of the 2015–16 NIFL Premiership season, Feeney's reign came to an end in October 2015, when he resigned to become assistant manager (and subsequently the manager) of English Football League Two side Newport County.[7]

Former Northern Ireland striker and the country's all-time record international goalscorer David Healy was appointed as Feeney's successor,[6] with Andy Todd staying on as Healy's assistant manager. However, in January 2016 Todd also departed the club to join Newport County and reunite with Warren Feeney, who had subsequently been promoted to County's manager following the departure of John Sheridan. Todd once again became Feeney's assistant manager.[48]

Linfield Football Club has scripted a captivating saga in the Northern Irish football scene during the reign of David Healy.

Linfield lifted the 2016/17 Irish League title by a marginal 2 points, with Crusaders F.C. coming second. The Blues also won the Irish Cup.

In the 2018/19 season, Linfield reclaimed the Irish League title after finishing fourth in the previous season.

The curtailed 2019/20 season saw Linfield win the title for a second consecutive season. In the same season, Linfield embarked on a memorable European campaign, marginally losing to Qarabag FK in the UEFA Europa League qualification finals after impressive victories over FK Sutjeska Niksic and Havnar Boltfelag in the semi-finals and quarter-finals respectively.

The 2020/21 season (in which Northern Irish football fully returned from Covid-19), saw Coleraine and Glentoran emerge as their primary rivals for the title. In the end, Linfield acquired their third title in a row. They also secured their forty-fourth Irish Cup.

In the 2021/22 season Cliftonville stood as formidable adversaries for the championship, and it all came down to the wire. The Blues clinched the title by a razor-thin one-point margin and remained champions for the fourth season in a row.

Linfield came agonisingly close to reaching the UEFA Conference League proper in the 2022/23 season after losing to FK RFS in the qualification finals. However, the team exhibited a commendable performance throughout this European campaign. In the domestic league a revamped Larne squad beat Linfield to the NIFL Premiership 2022/23 title after a tight title race between the two teams.

League and cup history edit

Recent seasons edit

Season League Irish Cup League Cup Europe Notes
Pos. P W D L GF GA Pts. Result Result Competition Result
2012–13 3rd 38 17 11 10 69 48 62 Last 32 SF UEFA Champions League 2QR  –
2013–14 2nd 38 24 7 7 81 46 79 Last 16 QF UEFA Europa League 2QR [A]
2014–15 2nd 38 21 9 8 67 46 72 QF 2R UEFA Europa League 2QR  –
2015–16 2nd 38 26 5 7 91 35 83 RU 3R UEFA Europa League 2QR  –
2016–17 1st 38 27 8 3 87 24 89 W 3R UEFA Europa League 1QR [A]
2017–18 4th 38 20 7 11 72 45 67 QF QF UEFA Champions League 2QR [B]
2018–19 1st 38 26 7 5 77 27 85 Last 16 W did not qualify  –  –
2019–20 1st 31 22 3 6 71 24 69 Last 32 SF UEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa League 		1QR
POR 		[C]
2020–21 1st 38 24 6 8 83 38 78 W  – UEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa League 		1QR
2QR 		[D]
2021–22 1st 38 24 11 3 67 24 83 Last 16 QF UEFA Champions League
UEFA Europa Conference League 		1QR
3QR 		 –
2022-23 2nd 38 23 8 7 75 27 77 Last 16 W UEFA Champions League

UEFA Europa League UEFA Europa Conference League

2QR

3QR POR

A. ^ County Antrim Shield winners.
B. ^ NIFL Charity Shield winners.
C. ^ League was curtailed after 31 games and awarded on points per game average as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland.
D. ^ League Cup competition was not held as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic in Northern Ireland.

Stadium edit

Main article: Windsor Park
 
Windsor Park prior to the 2014 redevelopment. The ground has been the club's home since 1905.

Since 1905, Windsor Park in south Belfast has been Linfield's home ground. In the initial years after the club was formed in 1886, Linfield had to change grounds several times for various reasons such as housing development. The numerous ground changes and the club's desire to have a permanent home with which to build an identity resulted in the purchase of a piece of land known as the 'bog meadows' just off lower Windsor Avenue on 1 October 1904. Later known as Windsor Park,[1] this became the club's permanent home as well as the venue for international matches. The first game at Windsor took place on 29 August 1905, with Linfield playing out a 0–0 draw against Distillery in a friendly match arranged to officially commemorate the opening of the stadium.[49] The first competitive game played at the stadium took place just a few days later on 2 September 1905, and ended with a 1–0 win for Linfield over Glentoran – the other half of the "Big Two" Belfast teams – though Belfast Celtic were Linfield's main rivals at the time.[50]

Windsor Park is the largest Association football stadium in Northern Ireland, with Glentoran's ground, the Oval, being the next largest. The governing body of Northern Irish football, the Irish Football Association, manages the stadium, while Linfield retains ownership of the land. In 2012, Linfield and the IFA were in talks to agree a new 51-year contract for the use of Windsor Park. The club would receive an annual payment as rent for the IFA to use the ground for the Northern Ireland national football team, but would no longer receive 15% of the ticket sales, TV rights, and commercial rights from international matches as they did under the old agreement.[51] The 51-year agreement took effect from May 2014, with Linfield receiving an annual payment of £200,000 - subject to review (being adjusted for inflation etc.) every four years. This was increased to £214,000 per year in 2018, and due to increase again in 2022.[needs update] The contract will expire in 2065.[52]

In 2010, UEFA provided €500,000 towards substantial refurbishment of the stadium, to increase capacity and improve safety.[53] The following year, the Northern Ireland Executive allocated £138 million for a major programme of stadium redevelopment throughout Northern Ireland, with £28 million allocated to the redevelopment of Windsor Park.[54] In June 2012, further details of the stadium's redevelopment were released. The plan was to redevelop Windsor Park into an 18,000 all-seater stadium with a series of phased works originally intended to begin in the middle of 2013. The redevelopment would include the demolition of the existing East and South Stand structures, to be replaced by new purpose built stands that would partially enclose the stadium; complete renovation of the existing North and West Stands; and construction of both new conferencing facilities and a new headquarters facility for the IFA.[55]

In February 2013, planning permission for the redevelopment was granted. The cost of the project was estimated to be around £29.2 million, of which £25.2 million would come from government funding. It was initially planned for the work to begin in September 2013.[56] Two months later however, Crusaders began legal proceedings against the redevelopment. The club called for the process to be judicially reviewed, believing it to be against European Union competition laws and also a form of State aid towards Linfield. They, along with other Irish League clubs, felt that this gives Linfield an unfair advantage by allowing them to offer more attractive wages and have a larger squad than all of the other clubs.[57] When Crusaders played Linfield at Windsor Park at the end of April, their club officials were allegedly informed that they would not be welcome in the directors box or the boardroom during the game – an apparent reaction to Crusaders' legal challenge of the stadium redevelopment.[58] In a hearing that took place on 22 May 2013, Crusaders' request was granted. It was ruled that it was a possibility for the redevelopment to be classed as state aid towards Linfield. The aspect of the challenge concerning competition law however, was dismissed.[59]

In July 2013, Crusaders agreed to a possible settlement brought forward by the judicial review. The details of the settlement were not made public, but Crusaders said that it had the "potential to benefit the entirety of the football family".[60] In September 2013, sports minister Carál Ní Chuilín said that she was still committed to making sure the redevelopment went ahead as scheduled, after previously stating that she would not sign off on the funding until the IFA resolved "governance issues" surrounding David Martin's return to the role of deputy president.[61]

In December 2013, three months after the work was originally scheduled to begin, the redevelopment was finally given the green light. The sports minister signed off on £31 million to complete the project. The redevelopment finally got under way on 6 May 2014 after the 2013–14 domestic season had finished, eight months later than originally planned.[62] On 31 March 2015, the West Stand of the stadium was sealed off after cracks in the structure were discovered. Construction work related to the stadium redevelopment had been ongoing behind the stand in the weeks prior to the damage, but it was not known if that was directly related.[63] Originally planned for refurbishment as part of the redevelopment, the West Stand was demolished and rebuilt.[64] The redevelopment was completed in October 2016,[65] with an official capacity of 18,434.

Supporters and rivalry edit

Big Two rivalry edit

Main article: Big Two derby

Linfield's main rival is Glentoran from east Belfast – a rivalry which is commonly referred to as the Big Two. However, this term did not always refer to Linfield and Glentoran; until 1949, the Big Two consisted of Linfield and Belfast Celtic, for they had traditionally, up to that point, been the two most successful clubs in Northern Irish football. However, after Belfast Celtic withdrew from the league in 1949, Glentoran gradually established itself as Linfield's biggest rival.[66] The earliest recorded match between the two clubs was played on 1 October 1887 – just over a year after Linfield's formation. A friendly match played at King's Field, Westbourne in Ballymacarrett was won 3–1 by Linfield (then known as Linfield Athletic).[67] In 1890, the two teams played each other competitively for the first time, during the inaugural Irish League season. Linfield won 7–0 at Musgrave Park on 18 October, and 6–0 at Ulsterville Avenue on 21 March 1891. The first meeting at the Oval took place on 8 October 1892, and the first meeting at Windsor Park took place 13 years later on 2 September 1905.

During the second World War in 1941, the Oval – including most of Glentoran's assets – was severely damaged in a German aerial bombing raid on the nearby Harland & Wolff shipyard.[68][69] Glentoran approached Distillery F.C to play at Grosvenor Park, which they did until the Oval was rebuilt with help from other clubs. During this time, Glentoran considered resigning from senior football to become a junior club, but after borrowing kits from Distillery and Crusaders they continued to compete at Grosvenor until 1949.[70] Out of 14 league games at Grosvenor Park however, they were only victorious over Linfield on one occasion.

Traditionally, the two clubs play each other in the league on Boxing Day every year, with the match usually attracting the largest attendance of any league match that season. In 2009, the Irish Football Association initially banned the fixture from taking place on Boxing Day for two years due to crowd trouble at Windsor Park.[71] However, this decision was later reversed on appeal, and the fixture returned to the calendar.[72] Ultimately, however, the 2009 and 2010 fixtures did not take place in the end anyway, as they were both postponed due to bad weather. The fixture returned to the fixture list in 2011, with each club hosting the match in alternate years.

Trophy dominance edit

Linfield and Glentoran have been the two most successful clubs in Northern Irish football to date, regularly being the two main contenders for the major domestic honours. They have won more league titles, Irish Cups, and League Cups than any other clubs. Linfield hold the record for the most League titles (56), Irish Cups (44), and League Cups (10). In comparison, Glentoran have won 23 league titles, 23 Irish Cups, and 7 League Cups. Almost half (47.2%) of the 142 Irish Cup competitions to date have been won by one of the two clubs, with at least one of the clubs reaching the final on 92 occasions (64.8% of all finals), winning the cup a combined 67 times. Of those 92 finals, the two clubs have met in 15 of them – making it the most common final. Linfield have won eight of the head-to-head final meetings compared to Glentoran's seven wins, with the most recent meeting between the two clubs in the final occurring in 2006, when Linfield won 2–1 to lift the Cup for the 37th time. Almost two-thirds (65.3%) of all Irish League titles have been won by one of the Big Two. Of the 121 completed league seasons, the title has been won by either club on 79 occasions. The duo also make up two of the three clubs that have appeared in every season of the Irish League since its inception in 1890; the other club being Cliftonville.

Up to and including the 2021–22 season, the two clubs have played each other 281 times[n 3] in the Irish League since its formation in 1890. Linfield have won 126 of the meetings, with 77 Glentoran victories and 78 drawn matches. Linfield's record victory over their rivals is 8–0. This occurred on 21 November 1891, during the 1891–92 Irish League season. Linfield's record post-war win over Glentoran in all competitions is by a six-goal margin – a 7–1 win over the Glens at Grosvenor Park in the 1961–62 North-South Cup, and a 6–0 victory at Windsor Park in the 2006 Setanta Sports Cup group stage.

Since 2009, the rivalry has not been as intense as it once was, with the Big Two's domination of the domestic game decreasing as competitiveness across the league has improved. This is partly due to the resurgence of North Belfast derby rivals Cliftonville and Crusaders, and to a lesser extent Coleraine and Glenavon. In 2013, Cliftonville became the first club other than Linfield or Glentoran to win the league title since Portadown in 2002. In 2014, Cliftonville went on to retain the title for the first time in their history, with Crusaders then winning the 2014–15 title in convincing fashion, finishing 10 points ahead of runners-up Linfield. During this time, Glentoran lifted the Irish Cup in 2013, 2015 and 2020, however the club has gone 13 years without a league title, winning only three titles since the turn of the 21st century; in 2002–03, 2004–05 and 2008–09. Since then, they have finished as low as ninth place in the 2016–17 season. The last season in which the two clubs finished as champions and runners-up in either order was 2008–09, and they have not met in a major domestic cup final since 2006, when they contested both the Irish Cup and the League Cup finals.

 
Action from a Big Two Derby played at the Oval in February 2014. Linfield won the match 1–0.

Sectarianism and violence edit

Linfield are regarded as a 'Protestant club'[73] due to them drawing the vast majority of their support from that side of the community. The club has also been regarded as sectarian in the past, both in respect of its alleged employment policy and of the repeated behaviour of its fans.[74] This sectarian reputation is partly the result of the actions of fans who have a history of anti-Catholic behaviour ranging from sectarian chanting on the terraces to outright physical violence.[75] Part of the problem has been attributed to Windsor Park's location in a part of Belfast that was once predominantly Protestant.[76] A relatively small number of local Catholics played for the club during the Troubles,[77] which led to a widespread accusation that the club held a historical policy of not signing Catholic players.[78] However, the existence of such a policy has been continually refuted:

"Linfield's following has historically been drawn from the Protestant loyalist community, particularly in the greater Belfast area. That is a fact of life which cannot be disputed and, although in the past there have been accusations of sectarian bias such as not signing Roman Catholic players, contrary to opinion and myth, no ban was ever imposed. That even applied in the early stages, during the Second World War and from then there has been a plethora of all creeds and classes wearing the Blue jersey."

Malcolm Brodie[79]

Sectarian tensions have long been a cause of conflict at football matches in Northern Ireland since the 1920s, and crowd trouble occasionally marred games involving Linfield throughout the twentieth century.[80] One of the most notable such instances occurred in 1948, at a Boxing Day match between Linfield and Belfast Celtic (a team whose support was largely composed of Catholics and Irish nationalists). Immediately following a 1–1 draw in which Linfield scored in the last minute, there was a pitch invasion by Linfield supporters. In the ensuing violence, three Belfast Celtic players were seriously injured, including Protestant striker Jimmy Jones, who was left unconscious and suffered a broken leg. Belfast Celtic subsequently withdrew from the league in protest at the end of the 1948–49 season.[81]

In the 1979–80 European Cup, Linfield were drawn to face Dundalk from the Republic of Ireland. In the first leg, which was played in Dundalk and ended in a 1–1 draw, crowd disturbance prompted UEFA to switch the second leg to the Haarlem Stadion, Netherlands. Linfield were held almost entirely accountable for the events, and were forced to pay Dundalk's costs to travel to the Netherlands as well as an additional £5,000 for damage sustained to Oriel Park. Dundalk were fined £870 for providing insufficient security at the match. Dundalk eventually won the match 2–0 to progress 3–1 on aggregate.[82] In the 1987–88 campaign, Linfield's home game against Lillestrøm was marred by missile throwing, resulting in UEFA sanctions which meant that the club had to play their next two home games in European competitions at Welsh club Wrexham in 1988–89 and 1989–90.

A 1997 match against Coleraine was abandoned when Linfield fans hurled bottles onto the pitch after two Linfield players were sent off.[83] In May 2005 there were disturbances in Dublin at the Setanta Cup final between Linfield and Shelbourne.[84] In the same month, Linfield fans were banned from travelling to the Oval for a match against Glentoran, allegedly as a result of disturbances involving both sets of fans the previous month. However, Glentoran denied this was the reason behind the ban, citing health and safety regulations that forced them to close the away stand.[85] In 2008, three Linfield fans were charged in a Dublin court with public order offences at a Setanta Cup match against St Patrick's Athletic,[86] but were released.

The management of Linfield has continually attempted to reverse the stigma of negative press attached to the club. The club has moved forward in co-operation with the Irish Football Association, which has launched a campaign called "Give sectarianism the boot." It assisted a local Camogie team who needed space to train in 2005, and also built links with the Gaelic Athletic Association which has traditionally had little support from the Protestant community in Northern Ireland.[87] In 2006 FIFA officially commended Linfield for their anti-racism initiatives.[88] A play dealing with the conflict between Linfield and Belfast Celtic, Lish and Gerry at the Shrine, was staged by the IFA at Windsor Park in October 2010, with the co-operation of the Linfield management.[89]

Since 2008, the number of incidents has significantly decreased. However, in February 2014, Linfield were fined £3,000 and Cliftonville were fined £3,250 by the IFA following sectarian chanting from sections of both sets of supporters during a County Antrim Shield semi-final at Windsor Park in October 2013. Cliftonville's fine of an extra £250 came as a result of their fans causing a big bang during the game.[90] Both clubs criticised the decision, and expressed their intent to appeal against the fines.[91] In April 2014, the punishments were rescinded on appeal.[92] There was also crowd trouble at a league fixture between the clubs at Windsor Park in March 2014, with reports of missiles being thrown after the game. The Northern Ireland Football League condemned the actions of a "small minority" of supporters.[93]

In May 2014, Linfield were fined £1,200 by the Irish Football Association over the singing of sectarian songs by supporters, ruling that Linfield fans had been guilty of breaching the code of conduct during a league game at Coleraine.[94]

In a Champions League qualifier match on 14 July 2017, some Linfield supporters threw bottles and coins at Celtic players. Although both a section of Linfield fans and the small group of visiting fans sang sectarian songs, it was noted that a much larger section of Linfield fans booed and drowned out these songs.[95]

In 2022, the club reportedly "ended its voluntary association" with one of the coaches of its girls' academy after the man admitted being involved in singing a chant, which was described as "gratuitous[ly] sectarian" and condemned by senior members of the Orange Order, Ulster Unionists, DUP, Sinn Féin, Alliance Party and the Northern Ireland Secretary of State.[96]

European record edit

Main article: Northern Irish football clubs in European competitions

As Northern Ireland's most dominant club side, Linfield have been regular competitors in European football. The club first participated in European competition in 1959 against Göteborg in the 1959–60 European Cup.[97] In the first round of the 1961–62 European Cup, Linfield were drawn to face an East German team, Vorwärts. The away leg was played, which Linfield lost 3–0. However, Vorwärts were denied visas to enter the UK to play the second leg, and (similarly to Glenavon the previous season) travelling to play the second leg in a neutral country was not financially viable for Linfield. They were therefore forced to withdraw from the competition.[98]

Linfield's most notable achievement in European competition to date is reaching the quarter-finals of the 1966–67 European Cup.[97] After beating Aris of Luxembourg and Vålerenga of Norway they faced CSKA Red Flag of Bulgaria in the last eight. This resulted in a 2–2 draw at home and 1–0 defeat away.[99] In the 1984–85 season, after overcoming Shamrock Rovers on away goals (the first and so far only series of meetings between the two Irish superpowers outside all-Ireland tournaments),[100] Linfield faced eventual semi-finalists Panathinaikos in the second round. After a 2–1 defeat in Greece, Linfield raced into a 3–0 lead at half-time in the second leg at Windsor Park.[97] However, Panathinaikos staged a remarkable comeback in the second half to level the match at 3–3 and eliminate Linfield 5–4 on aggregate.[97]

The 1993–94 UEFA Champions League saw Linfield drawn with Dinamo Tbilisi of Georgia. After losing 3–2 on aggregate, they were later reinstated when the Georgian side were expelled from the competition for alleged match fixing and bribing officials. Linfield faced Copenhagen in the first round proper.[97] They won the first leg 3–0, but lost the second leg 4–0 after extra time. This proved costly, as victory would have meant a financially lucrative tie against eventual champions A.C. Milan in the next round.[97] The club then had to wait seven years to participate in the competition again, due to the format of the two European competitions being altered. The league's relatively low ranking in the UEFA coefficient system has meant that the club has entered in the early qualifying rounds of either the UEFA Champions League or the UEFA Cup/Europa League,[97] with the Blues becoming the first Irish League side to reach the play-off round of the Europa League in 2019. In the 2012–13 UEFA Champions League, the Blues entered the competition in the first qualifying round, and defeated B36 Tórshavn 4–3 on penalties to progress to the second qualifying round, after both legs ended as 0–0 draws.[101] This was the first time since the 1984–85 season (excluding their opponent's expulsion in 1993–94) that the club had won a tie in the competition. However, they were defeated 3–0 on aggregate in the next round by AEL Limassol.[102]

The 2013–14 UEFA Europa League campaign started in record-breaking fashion. In July 2013, the club won 2–0 away from home against ÍF Fuglafjørður of the Faroe Islands in the first qualifying round. This was the Blues' first win in Europe since 2005, and their first away win in Europe since 1966, when they defeated Vålerenga 4–1 during their run to the quarter-finals of the 1966–67 European Cup.[103] In the second leg at Windsor Park, the Blues won 3–0 to go through to the next round 5–0 on aggregate.[104] This was the club's largest aggregate victory in a European tie since defeating Aris Bonnevoie 9–4 on aggregate in the first round of the 1966–67 European Cup. It was also the first time that a Northern Irish club had won both legs of a European tie in any competition. They followed this up in the next round by winning away from home again. Despite being massive underdogs for the tie, a 1–0 victory away to Xanthi of Greece made it three consecutive victories in Europe, without conceding a goal in the process – another first for the club.[105] However, in the second leg at home they went down 2–1 after extra time, which eliminated them on the away goals rule.[106]

The following season, Linfield's first venture into Europe under new manager Warren Feeney was in the Faroe Islands against B36 Tórshavn in the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round, which was also Feeney's first competitive game in charge of the club. Linfield came out 2–1 victors with goals coming from Jamie Mulgrew and Michael Carvill.[107] The return leg was played at Glenavon's ground, Mourneview Park, due to the redevelopment of Windsor Park. Linfield had to settle for a 1–1 draw, but that was enough to secure passage into the second qualifying round for the second successive season, where they were drawn to face AIK from Sweden.[108] An 87th-minute Andrew Waterworth goal in the home leg at Mourneview Park ensured a 1–0 win for Linfield in their 100th competitive European match since their debut in 1959.[109] However, the Blues fell to a 2–0 defeat in the away leg, which meant they were eliminated 2–1 on aggregate.

 
Linfield playing against Allsvenskan side AIK in the second leg of the 2014–15 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round. The match was played at the Friends Arena, Solna on 24 July 2014.

As 2018–19 NIFL Premiership champions, Linfield initially entered the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League first qualifying round, where they were drawn to face Rosenborg. In naming Charlie Allen to the final 25-man squad for this match,[110] the Blues set a new record for the youngest UK player named to a final squad for a match in the Champions League. The Norwegian champions had eliminated the Blues from the competition back in the 2010–11 season, and again they proved to be too strong. A 6–0 aggregate defeat saw the Blues drop down into the UEFA Europa League second qualifying round Champions Path, where they faced Faroese champions HB Tórshavn – the fifth occasion since 2012 that they had faced Faroese opposition in Europe. A 3–2 win on aggregate secured a place in the third qualifying round of the Europa League for the first time, and the third stage of any European competition since a 5–2 aggregate win over Vålerenga in November 1966.[citation needed]

In the next round of the Europa League Linfield faced Montenegro champions Sutjeska. A 2–1 win in the away leg was followed up with a 3–2 win in the second leg at Windsor Park, with the Blues winning 5–3 on aggregate to become the first Irish League side to reach the play-off round of the Europa League. It was only the second time that the club had won both legs of a European tie – the first being in 2013 against ÍF. Additionally, it was only the second time that the club had ever progressed through back-to-back rounds in Europe, again the first time since November 1966. In the play-off round, Linfield were drawn to face Azerbaijan champions Qarabağ, with the winners qualifying for the Europa League group stage.[citation needed]

Summary edit

As of 3 August 2023
Competition P W D L GF GA GD Win %
European Cup / UEFA Champions League 78 11 23 44 66 139 −73 14.10%
UEFA Cup / UEFA Europa League 43 13 9 21 49 78 −29 30.23%
UEFA Europa Conference League 10 2 3 5 16 17 –1 20.00%
European Cup Winner's Cup / UEFA Cup Winner's Cup 6 2 0 4 6 11 −5 33.33%
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 4 1 0 3 3 11 −8 25.00%
Total 141 29 35 77 140 256 –116 20.57%

Matches (1959–1999) edit

Season Competition Round Opponent Home[A] Away[A] Agg[A]
1959–60 European Cup PR   Göteborg 2–1 1–6 3–7  
1961–62 PR   Vorwärts Berlin w/o[B] 0–3 0–3  
1962–63 1R   Esbjerg 1–2 0–0 1–2  
1963–64 European Cup Winners' Cup 2R   Fenerbahçe 2–0 1–4 3–4  
1966–67 European Cup 1R   Aris 6–1 3–3 9–4  
2R   Vålerenga 1–1 4–1 5–2  
QF   CSKA Red Flag 2–2 0–1 2–3  
1967–68 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup 1R   Lokomotive Leipzig 1–0 1–5 2–5  
1968–69 1R   Vitória de Setúbal 1–3 0–3 1–6  
1969–70 European Cup 1R   Red Star Belgrade 2–4 0–8 2–12  
1970–71 European Cup Winners' Cup 1R   Manchester City 2–1 0–1 2–2(a)  
1971–72 European Cup 1R   Standard Liège 2–3 0–2 2–5  
1975–76 1R   PSV Eindhoven 1–2 0–8 1–10  
1978–79 1R   Lillestrøm 0–0 0–1 0–1  
1979–80 PR   Dundalk 0–2[D] 1–1 1–3  
1980–81 1R   Nantes 0–1[D] 0–2 0–3  
1981–82 UEFA Cup 1R   Beveren 0–5 0–3 0–8  
1982–83 European Cup 1R   17 Nëntori 2–1 0–1 2–2(a)  
1983–84 1R   Benfica 2–3 0–3 2–6  
1984–85 1R   Shamrock Rovers 0–0 1–1 1–1(a)  
2R   Panathinaikos 3–3 1–2 4–5  
1985–86 1R   Servette 2–2 1–2 3–4  
1986–87 1R   Rosenborg 1–1 0–1 1–2  
1987–88 1R   Lillestrøm 2–4 1–1 3–5  
1988–89 UEFA Cup 1R   TPS 1–1[E] 0–0 1–1(a)  
1989–90 European Cup 1R   Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 1–2[E] 0–1 1–3  
1993–94 UEFA Champions League PR   Dinamo Tbilisi 1–1 1–2 2–3[C]  
1R   Copenhagen 3–0 0–4 (a.e.t.) 3–4  
1994–95 UEFA Cup[F] PR   FH 3–1 0–1 3–2  
1R   Odense 1–1 0–5 1–6  
1995–96 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup QR   Shakhtar Donetsk 0–1 1–4 1–5  
1998–99 UEFA Cup 1QR   Omonia 5–3 1–5 6–8  
1999–2000 QR   Locomotive Tbilisi 1–1 0–1 1–2  

Matches (2000–) edit

Season Competition Round Opponent Home[A] Away[A] Agg[A]
2000–01 UEFA Champions League 1QR   Haka 2–1 0–1 2–2(a)  
2001–02 1QR   Torpedo Kutaisi 0–0 0–1 0–1  
2002–03 UEFA Cup QR   Stabæk 1–1 0–4 1–5  
2004–05 UEFA Champions League 1QR   HJK 0–1 0–1 0–2  
2005–06 UEFA Cup 1QR   Ventspils 1–0 1–2 2–2(a)  
2QR   Halmstad 2–4 1–1 3–5  
2006–07 UEFA Champions League 1QR   Gorica 1–3 2–2 3–5  
2007–08 1QR   Elfsborg 0–0 0–1 0–1  
2008–09 1QR   Dinamo Zagreb 0–2 1–1 1–3  
2009–10 UEFA Europa League 1QR   Randers 0–3 0–4 0–7  
2010–11 UEFA Champions League 2QR   Rosenborg 0–0 0–2 0–2  
2011–12 2QR   BATE Borisov 1–1 0–2 1–3  
2012–13 1QR   B36 Tórshavn 0–0 0–0 (a.e.t.) 0–0 (4–3 p)  
2QR   AEL Limassol 0–0 0–3 0–3  
2013–14 UEFA Europa League 1QR   ÍF 3–0 2–0 5–0  
2QR   Xanthi 1–2 (a.e.t.) 1–0 2–2(a)  
2014–15 1QR   B36 Tórshavn 1–1 2–1 3–2  
2QR   AIK 1–0 0–2 1–2  
2015–16 1QR   NSÍ Runavík 2–0 3–4 5–4  
2QR   Spartak Trnava 1–3 1–2 2–5  
2016–17 1QR   Cork City 0–1 1–1 1–2  
2017–18 UEFA Champions League 1QR   La Fiorita 1–0 0–0 1–0  
2QR   Celtic 0–2 0–4 0–6  
2019–20
(UCL · UEL) 		1QR   Rosenborg 0–2 0–4 0–6  
UEFA Europa League[G] 2QR   HB Tórshavn 1–0 2–2 3–2  
3QR   Sutjeska 3–2 2–1 5–3  
POR   Qarabağ 3–2 1–2 4–4(a)  
2020–21
(UCL · UEL) 		UEFA Champions League PR (SF)   Tre Fiori 2–0[H]  
PR (F)   Drita 3–0[H][I]  
1QR   Legia Warsaw 0–1[J]  
UEFA Europa League[G] 2QR   Floriana 0–1[J]  
2021–22
(UCL · UECL) 		UEFA Champions League 1QR   Žalgiris 1–2 1–3 2–5  
UEFA Europa Conference League[K] 2QR   Borac Banja Luka 4–0 0–0 4–0  
3QR   Fola Esch 1–2 1–2 2–4  
2022–23
(UCL · UEL · UECL) 		UEFA Champions League 1QR   The New Saints 2–0 (a.e.t.) 0–1 2–1  
2QR   Bodø/Glimt 1–0 0–8 1–8  
UEFA Europa League 3QR   Zürich 0–2 0–3 0–5  
UEFA Europa Conference League POR   RFS 1–1 2–2 3–3 (2–4 p)  
2023–24 1QR   Vllaznia 3–1 0–1 3–2  
2QR   Pogoń Szczecin 2–5 2–3 4–8  

Key: PR – Preliminary round; QR – Qualifying round; 1/2/3QR – First/Second/Third qualifying round; POR – Play-off round; 1R/2R – First/Second round; QF – Quarter-final; SF – Semi-final; F – Final;

Notes
  1. ^ a b c
    Linfield goals are listed first.
  2. ^
    Linfield were forced to withdraw from the competition when the second leg could not be played. UK officials refused to issue visas for the Vorwärts team to enter the country, and Linfield failed to find an alternative venue outside the UK to host the match.
  3. ^
    Dinamo Tbilisi were later expelled from the competition, and Linfield were reinstated.
  4. ^ a b
    Home leg switched to Haarlem Stadion, Netherlands as a result of a UEFA sanction following crowd trouble in the away leg against Dundalk in the 1979–80 European Cup.
  5. ^ a b
    Home leg switched to the Racecourse Ground, Wales as a result of a UEFA sanction following crowd trouble against Lillestrøm in the 1987–88 European Cup.
  6. ^
    In the three seasons between 1994–95 and 1996–97, UEFA Champions League entry was limited to clubs from the continent's top 24 countries. This meant that as 1993–94 Irish League champions, Linfield entered the UEFA Cup instead.
  7. ^ a b
    Transferred to the UEFA Europa League Champions Path after being eliminated in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds.
  8. ^ a b
    The preliminary round saw four clubs compete for one place in the first qualifying round, with two semi-finals and a final as single knockout matches hosted at a neutral venue, the Colovray Sports Centre in Nyon, Switzerland.
  9. ^
    Linfield were awarded a 3–0 win by UEFA after the preliminary round final did not take place when two Drita players tested positive for COVID-19, resulting in their squad being quarantined by the Swiss authorities.
  10. ^ a b
    As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the qualifying round ties were played as single knockout matches instead of two legs, with the team that was drawn first hosting the match.
  11. ^
    Transferred to the UEFA Europa Conference League Champions Path after being eliminated in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds.

UEFA club ranking edit

Current ranking

As of 7 May 2023[111]

Rank Team Points
157   TNS 9.000
158   Olimpija Ljubjana 9.000
159   Linfield 8.500
160   FC Vaduz 8.500
161   HŠK Zrinjski Mostar 8.500

Ranking since 2018

Year Rank Points
2018   305 2.750
2019   336 2.250
2020   250 4.250
2021   226 5.250
2022   167 7.000
2023 159 8.500

Current squad edit

See also: List of Linfield F.C. players

[112] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK   NIR Chris Johns
2 DF   NIR Daniel Finlayson
3 DF   SCO Euan East
4 DF   ENG Michael Newberry
5 MF   IRL Chris Shields
7 MF   NIR Kirk Millar
8 MF   NIR Kyle McClean
9 MF   NIR Joel Cooper
10 MF   NIR Jordan Stewart
12 FW   NIR Darragh McBrien
14 FW   NIR Robbie McDaid
15 DF   NIR Ben Hall
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 DF   NIR Matthew Clarke
17 FW   NIR Chris McKee
19 FW   NIR Ethan Devine
20 MF   NIR Stephen Fallon
22 MF   NIR Jamie Mulgrew (captain)
27 DF   NIR Ethan McGee
29 FW   NIR Matthew Fitzpatrick
34 DF   NIR Dane McCullough
36 FW   NIR Rhys Annett
37 DF   NIR Ryan McKay
51 GK   NIR David Walsh
53 MF   NIR Joshua Archer

Linfield Swifts players with first team squad appearances edit

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
55 FW   NIR Jack Montgomery
60 FW   NIR Aodhan Doherty

Retired numbers
Numbers retired in June 2011.[113]

11 – In honour of Noel Bailie MBE (1986–2011)
13 – Unlucky number

Player of the Year edit

Linfield's Player of the Year award is voted for by the club's supporters.[114]

Managerial history edit

Below is a list of the managers Linfield have appointed during the club's history. In the early years after the club was formed in 1886, the team was selected by the club committee, a standard practice by football clubs at the time. Since then, 25 different men have held the position of Linfield first team coach/manager. However, only six have been appointed since Billy Campbell's departure in 1975. David Jeffrey holds the record for the longest reign as manager, having been in charge for 17 years and 16 weeks between 4 January 1997 and 26 April 2014. Jeffrey and Roy Coyle jointly hold the record for the most trophies won as manager, having led the club to 31 major honours each.[115] Former Northern Ireland international Warren Feeney is the club's previous manager, having been appointed in May 2014.[43] He resigned in October 2015 to become assistant manager of Newport County,[7] with current manager David Healy appointed as his successor.

Dates Name Notes
1886–? Team Committee A committee was responsible for the first team.
Unknown Lincoln Hyde Manager for at least the 1932–33 season, possibly for longer.
1937–38[116] Tommy Sloan
1939–1940 Billy McCleery Resigned due to World War II, and concentrated on his Cricket career. Would later manage the Irish League XI team which defeated the Football League 5–2 at Windsor Park in 1956.
1940–1943 Tommy Brolly
Unknown Jack Challinor
Unknown John Hutton
1952–1953 Tully Craig
Unknown Gibby Mackenzie
1957–1960 Jackie Milburn Joined as player-manager from Newcastle United.
1960–1962 Isaac McDowell Guided the club to seven trophies in the 1961–62 season, before leaving to manage Glentoran the following season.
1962–1965 Tommy Dickson Captain of the Linfield team which famously won seven trophies in the 1961–62 season.
1965–1967 Tommy Leishman Joined as player-manager from Hibernian, before returning to Scotland two years later. Was named Ulster Footballer of the Year for 1965–66.
1967–1970 Ewan Fenton Joined from Limerick, before returning to the club after his departure in 1970.
1969–1970 Dennis Viollet The former Manchester United forward joined Linfield in 1969 as a player-coach, and picked up an Irish Cup winner's medal after the Blues won the 1969–70 final.
1970–1971 Billy Bingham Managed Northern Ireland and Linfield simultaneously until leaving both posts in 1971. Would later return for a second spell as Northern Ireland manager in 1980.
1971–1972 Jimmy Hill
1972–1973 Sammy Hatton A member of the Linfield squad which famously won seven trophies in the 1961–62 season.
1973–1974 Billy Sinclair
1974–1975 Billy Campbell The club's eighth different manager in ten years.
1975–1990 Roy Coyle Won a record-equalling six consecutive Irish League Championships. Most successful Linfield manager of all time alongside David Jeffrey with 31 major honours as manager.
1990–1992 Eric Bowyer Won three league titles as a player at the club from 1967 to 1978, before joining Glenavon.
1992–1997 Trevor Anderson Later became Director of Football at Newry Town.
1997–2014 David Jeffrey Longest-serving manager in the club's history. Won 31 major honours as Linfield manager – a record shared with Roy Coyle. Would later manage Ballymena United.
2014–2015 Warren Feeney Only the club's fifth different manager since 1975, and the shortest reign of any Linfield manager since then. Resigned in October 2015 to become assistant manager of Newport County.
2015– David Healy Only the club's sixth different manager since 1975. Former Northern Ireland international, and record goalscorer. Healy's first managerial position.

Honours edit

Senior honours edit

All-Ireland honours edit

Intermediate honours edit

Honours won by Linfield Swifts

Honours won by Linfield Rangers

Junior honours edit

  • Irish Junior League: 4
    • 1898–99‡, 1899–1900‡, 1900–01‡, 1903–04‡
  • Irish Junior Cup: 3
    • 1890–91†, 1893–94‡, 1905–06ƒ
  • County Antrim Junior Shield: 1
    • 1904–05ƒ
  • Harry Cavan Youth Cup: 5
    • 2003–04¤, 2004–05¤, 2006–07¤, 2009–10¤, 2016–17
  • Belfast Youth Cup:2
    • 2009–10¤, 2010–11¤
  • Lisburn League Shield: 1
    • 2016–17¤
  • IFA Youth Premier League: 4
    • 2005–06¤, 2006–07¤, 2008–09¤, 2012–13¤
  • IFA Youth League Cup/NIFL Youth League Cup:5
    • 2008–09¤, 2012–13¤, 2013–14¤, 2014–15¤, 2015–16¤

† Won by Linfield II (reserve team)

‡ Won by Linfield Swifts (reserve team)

ƒ Won by Linfield Pirates (reserve team)

¤ Won by Linfield Rangers (reserve team)

Records edit

Doubles and trebles edit

The club has achieved the double of winning the League title and the national cup in the same season on 25 occasions – more than any other club in the world.[10] The club has also achieved the domestic treble of the League, national cup and League Cup in the same season on three occasions, and a domestic quadruple of those three trophies plus the regional County Antrim Shield in the same season once – in 2005–06. Most notably absent from the list are the seven-trophy hauls in the 1921–22 and 1961–62 seasons[n 8]– achieved prior to the inauguration of the League Cup in 1987.[16][18]

  • Doubles:
    • League and Irish Cup: 25
      • 1890–91, 1891–92, 1892–93, 1894–95, 1897–98, 1901–02, 1903–04B, 1921–22B, 1922–23B, 1929–30B, 1933–34B, 1949–50, 1961–62B, 1977–78, 1979–80, 1981–82B, 1993–94A, 2005–06C, 2006–07, 2007–08A, 2009–10, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2016–17B, 2020–21
    • League and League Cup: 6[n 9]
      • 1986–87, 1993–94A, 1999–2000, 2005–06C, 2007–08A, 2018–19
  • Trebles:

AAs part of a domestic treble.
BAs part of a domestic treble (including the County Antrim Shield).
CAs part of a domestic quadruple (including the County Antrim Shield).

See also edit

Linfield F.C. Women

Notes edit

  1. ^ Brazil's ABC has 57 titles from the Campeonato Potiguar, a state league.
  2. ^ Linfield also won seven trophies during the 1961–62 season, however, one of those trophies (the North-South Cup) was actually the previous season's competition. Due to fixture congestion the 1960–61 final was postponed until February 1962.
  3. ^ Excluding unofficial wartime results between 1915 and 1919 (first World War) and 1940–1947 (second World War).
  4. ^ An unofficial league which ran for four seasons between 1915 and 1919. It was set up while the Irish League was suspended during World War I.
  5. ^ A temporary competition set up to replace the City Cup while it was suspended during World War I.
  6. ^ An unofficial league which ran for seven seasons between 1940 and 1947. It was set up while the Irish League was suspended during World War II.
  7. ^ A temporary competition set up to replace the Gold Cup while it was suspended during World War II.
  8. ^ a b Linfield won the North-South Cup during the 1961–62 season, but it was actually the 1960–61 final. Due to fixture congestion the 1960–61 final was postponed until February 1962. Similarly, the 1961–62 competition was not completed until the 1962–63 season, and was won by Glenavon.
  9. ^ a b Although the Irish Cup was inaugurated in 1881 and the Irish League was formed in 1890, the League Cup was not introduced until 1987.

References edit

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External links edit

 
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54°34′57.45″N 5°57′18.68″W / 54.5826250°N 5.9551889°W / 54.5826250; -5.9551889

April 26, 2024
linfield, linfield, football, club, northern, irish, professional, football, club, based, south, belfast, which, plays, nifl, premiership, highest, level, northern, ireland, football, league, fourth, oldest, club, island, ireland, linfield, founded, 1886, work. Linfield Football Club is a Northern Irish professional football club based in south Belfast which plays in the NIFL Premiership the highest level of the Northern Ireland Football League The fourth oldest club on the island of Ireland Linfield was founded in 1886 by workers at the Ulster Spinning Company s Linfield Mill 3 Since 1905 the club s home ground has been Windsor Park 1 which is also the home of the Northern Ireland national team and is the largest football stadium in Northern Ireland They train at Midgley Park which is beside the stadium The club s badge displays Windsor Castle in reference to the ground s namesake 4 LinfieldFull nameLinfield Football Club 1 Nickname s The BluesFoundedMarch 1886 138 years ago 1886 03 as Linfield Athletic Club 1 GroundWindsor ParkCapacity18 434 2 ChairmanRoy McGivernManagerDavid HealyLeagueNIFL Premiership2022 23NIFL Premiership 2nd of 12WebsiteClub websiteHome coloursAway coloursCurrent season Historically Linfield shared a fierce rivalry with Belfast Celtic until Celtic s withdrawal from the league for political reasons in 1949 Since that time the club s main rival has been Glentoran with the duo known locally as the Big Two This rivalry traditionally includes a league derby played on Boxing Day each year which usually attracts Northern Ireland s highest domestic attendance of the season excluding cup finals For the 2021 22 season Linfield s average league home attendance was approximately 2 900 the highest in the division and more than double the league s overall average of around 1 400 5 The team nicknamed The Blues is managed by former Northern Ireland international and the country s all time record goalscorer David Healy Healy was appointed on 14 October 2015 to succeed Warren Feeney 6 following Feeney s resignation 7 Domestically Linfield has been one of the most successful clubs in the world holding several national and global records The club has won 56 league titles which is more than twice than any other Northern Irish club and makes Linfield the world s most successful club in terms of national championships won 8 n 1 The club has lifted the Irish Cup 44 times the second highest number of national cup wins worldwide It has also won the League Cup a record twelve times as well as four all Ireland cup competitions among other domestic cups taking its trophy count to well over 115 In the 1921 22 season Linfield completed an unprecedented clean sweep of all seven available trophies to date this is the only recorded instance of a seven trophy season being achieved in world football 9 n 2 In the modern era the club won all four available domestic trophies in 2006 to complete a domestic quadruple and has also won three domestic trebles The club also holds the world record for the most domestic doubles with 25 10 Linfield is one of only three clubs to have completed an Irish League campaign unbeaten having done so on four occasions The club was one of the eight founding members of the Irish League in 1890 won the inaugural league title and is one of only three clubs to have gone on to compete in every season of the Irish League s top division since a joint world record for the longest continuous membership of a national league s top division In European football the club s best finish is the quarter finals of the 1966 67 European Cup Contents 1 Club history 1 1 Formation and early years 1886 1918 1 2 Two seven trophy seasons 1921 22 amp 1961 62 1 3 Roy Coyle s 31 trophy haul 1975 1990 1 4 The David Jeffrey years 1997 2014 1 5 Feeney amp Healy 2014 present 2 League and cup history 2 1 Recent seasons 3 Stadium 4 Supporters and rivalry 4 1 Big Two rivalry 4 2 Trophy dominance 4 3 Sectarianism and violence 5 European record 5 1 Summary 5 2 Matches 1959 1999 5 3 Matches 2000 5 4 UEFA club ranking 6 Current squad 6 1 Linfield Swifts players with first team squad appearances 7 Player of the Year 8 Managerial history 9 Honours 9 1 Senior honours 9 2 All Ireland honours 9 3 Intermediate honours 9 4 Junior honours 10 Records 10 1 Doubles and trebles 11 See also 12 Notes 13 References 14 External linksClub history editFormation and early years 1886 1918 edit The club was founded in March 1886 in an area of south Belfast known as Sandy Row by yer ma at the Ulster Spinning Company s Linfield Mill 3 Originally known as Linfield Athletic Club the team initially played on an area of land located at the back of the mill owned by the company which was known as the Meadow Originally the club had intended to have a rule in place to limit membership to employees of the mill only 11 However this idea was quickly scrapped to allow for the strongest team possible with six of the club s first eleven players being non employees Linfield was credited with originating the passing game in Ireland where a dribbling based approach had been the norm until around 1890 11 and for three seasons during the club s early years they competed in the English FA Cup In the 1888 89 qualifying rounds they defeated Ulster and Bolton Wanderers to reach the fourth qualifying round where they faced Cliftonville After two draws they won 7 0 in the second replay which was played on 25 December 1888 This is notable for being the only FA Cup match ever to be played on Christmas Day 12 This victory meant they qualified for the first round proper for the first and only time where they were drawn to face Nottingham Forest in what would turn out to be a controversial tie Linfield had earned an impressive 2 2 draw in Nottingham which meant a replay back in Belfast In an apparent cup upset Linfield then defeated Forest 3 1 at the Ulster Cricket Ground in Ballynafeigh with the large crowd celebrating the fact that Linfield had progressed to the second round However a few days later the Belfast Telegraph revealed that the replay had actually been played as nothing more than a friendly Prior to the match Linfield had conceded the tie after discovering that they had inadvertently fielded an ineligible player William Johnston in the first match Officials from both clubs had agreed not to reveal this information to the players or the public before the match in order to play the match as planned 13 In any case Linfield would have been unlikely to have played any further part in the cup as the costs of travelling to Kent to play the second round tie against Chatham at an open ground with no gate income would have been prohibitive Linfield made their final FA Cup appearance during the 1890 91 first qualifying round being defeated 5 4 by Nantwich This was the last season in which Irish clubs entered the competition Success on the field meant that the club had to accommodate bigger crowds bringing about a move to Ulsterville Avenue in 1889 In 1890 Bob Milne signed for the club from the Gordon Highlanders The Scot would soon become a key member of the team helping the Blues to lift the Irish Cup at the young age of 20 14 The club stayed at Ulsterville for five years before housing development on the ground in 1894 meant that the club had to move on once again Between 1894 and 1897 Linfield played all of their home games at opponents grounds until the president of the club Robert Gibson who had donated the Gibson Cup trophy to the Irish League for the championship along with other club members eventually secured a ground lease at Myrtlefield in the Balmoral area of the city However this was another temporary home The club stayed here until 1905 when they moved into Windsor Park 1 The club s first silverware at Windsor arrived in the 1906 07 season with the club lifting both the league title and the County Antrim Shield This would be the first of a trio of league titles with the 1907 08 and 1908 09 league titles to follow In 1910 team captain Bob Milne left the club with a legacy as one of Linfield s best ever players He had amassed nine Irish Cups eight league titles and had earned 27 international caps for the Ireland national team during his time at the club 14 Another Scottish player Marshall McEwan joined the club in 1911 at the age of 26 14 He had previously played for English clubs Blackpool Bolton Wanderers and Chelsea McEwan is perhaps best remembered for his performance in the 1913 Irish Cup final described by some fans as the best in years 14 McEwan retired in 1916 but remained in Belfast and later opened several businesses in the city 14 In 1915 the Irish League was suspended as a result of the First World War In its place a temporary unofficial league known as the Belfast amp District League was set up and ran for four seasons until the return of the Irish League in 1919 As this was an unofficial competition any titles during this time are not counted as Irish League Championships 15 Linfield won this competition twice in 1915 16 along with the Irish Cup and in 1917 18 Two seven trophy seasons 1921 22 amp 1961 62 edit nbsp The team that lifted an unprecedented seven trophies in the 1921 22 season nbsp The Linfield squad for the 1957 58 season which included the newly signed Newcastle United legend Jackie Milburn In the 1921 22 season the club achieved a clean sweep of all the domestic competitions they entered the Irish League Irish Cup County Antrim Shield Alhambra Cup Belfast Charity Cup Gold Cup and the City Cup 16 The club followed this up the next season by winning a treble including the Irish League Irish Cup and County Antrim Shield in 1922 23 In 1927 Joe Bambrick signed for the Blues and would become one of the club s all time top goal scorers 14 In the 1929 30 season Bambrick scored a remarkable 94 goals a record that surprisingly stood for only one season until Glentoran s Fred Roberts scored an incredible 96 goals during the following campaign 14 In 1930 Bambrick scored six goals in one game for Ireland a 7 0 win over Wales 14 The 1931 32 1933 34 and 1934 35 league titles followed for Linfield before Bambrick left the club to join Chelsea in 1935 having scored 286 league goals in just 183 games for Linfield a remarkable ratio of 1 56 goals per game 14 The Irish League was once again suspended in 1940 as a result of the Second World War with another temporary unofficial league set up which was called the Northern Regional League Linfield won this league three times in 1942 43 1944 45 and 1945 46 This league ran for seven seasons until the return of the Irish League once again in 1947 In 1957 Jackie Milburn famously signed for the Blues as player manager from Newcastle United and won the Ulster Footballer of the Year award for his performances during his first season at the club 14 Milburn s presence dramatically increased average crowds at matches with the Belfast Telegraph calling it the signing of the century 14 Milburn is famous for scoring Linfield s first ever goals in European competition In September 1959 he scored both goals against IFK Goteborg in a 2 1 Linfield win at Windsor Park in the first leg of the 1959 60 European Cup preliminary round tie the club s European debut 17 Milburn was also the Irish league s top goal scorer on two occasions before leaving the club in 1960 to join Yiewsley 14 In 1962 forty years after Linfield s remarkable seven trophy season the club repeated the feat in the 1961 62 season under manager Isaac McDowell They won another seven trophy haul including the Irish League Irish Cup County Antrim Shield Gold Cup City Cup and the Ulster Cup 9 They also won the North South Cup final that season but it was actually the conclusion of the 1960 61 competition Fixture congestion had meant that the final could not be played before the end of the previous season so it was rescheduled to take place during the 1961 62 season A commemorative event was held in April 2012 celebrating the 90th and 50th anniversaries of the 1921 22 and 1961 62 seven trophy winning teams 18 Roy Coyle s 31 trophy haul 1975 1990 edit Following a spell in England playing for Sheffield Wednesday and Grimsby Town Roy Coyle joined the club as player manager taking over the reins from outgoing manager Billy Campbell 19 After a tough start to his managerial career at the club Coyle went on to become the most successful Linfield manager in history winning numerous trophies during his time at Windsor Park His first season in charge was without silverware In fact having been Irish Cup runners up the previous season when Coleraine defeated the Blues 1 0 after two replays Linfield suffered one of the biggest upsets in Northern Irish football history when B Division club Carrick Rangers defeated the Blues 2 1 in the 1975 76 Irish Cup final on 10 April 1976 20 This giant killing act in which a junior club defeated a senior club in the Irish Cup final had only happened twice before in the cup s history and not since 1955 The club stuck by Coyle however and it was not long before he brought silverware to the club His first honour arrived in the 1976 77 season in the form of the County Antrim Shield However the Blues suffered defeat in the Irish Cup final for the third consecutive season when they lost 4 1 against Coleraine The 1977 78 season saw the club win an Irish League Irish Cup and Ulster Cup treble Runners up in the last three Irish Cup finals this time they were not to be denied A 3 1 victory over Ballymena United secured the club s third trophy of the season Coyle retired from playing duties in 1980 but continued as manager In 1982 future manager David Jeffrey joined the club following a stint in the Manchester United youth team and played for Coyle under many of his trophy successes captaining the side for much of that time One of Coyle s biggest achievements as manager was leading the club to six consecutive league titles between 1981 82 and 1986 87 equalling the record for the most consecutive titles which was set by Belfast Celtic in 1947 48 1986 was the year that Noel Bailie began what would turn out to be a 25 year career at the club Although a defender for most of that time Bailie began as a left midfielder 14 Coyle s final trophy as Linfield manager was the Gold Cup in 1989 90 During his 15 years at the club he had amassed 10 League titles 3 Irish Cups 7 Gold Cups 4 Ulster Cups 5 County Antrim Shields the Irish League Cup and the Tyler Cup 31 major honours in total Coyle left the club in April 1990 21 Eric Bowyer was appointed as Coyle s replacement but it was a relatively unsuccessful reign that only lasted for two years until he was sacked in 1992 22 with David Jeffrey also leaving the club that year to join Ards Next into the managerial hot seat was Trevor Anderson who brought more silverware to the club during his five years in charge between 1992 and 1997 including 2 Irish League titles and 2 Irish Cups After retiring as a player in 1996 following a one year spell at Larne David Jeffrey returned to the club as Anderson s assistant manager This partnership lasted until Anderson resigned on the morning of 4 January 1997 Anderson later became Director of Football at Newry Town 23 nbsp David Jeffrey was Linfield manager for 17 years 112 days between January 1997 and April 2014 winning a record equalling 31 trophies during that time The David Jeffrey years 1997 2014 edit Jeffrey took charge of the team in a caretaker capacity for a league match against Portadown that afternoon and remained as caretaker manager for the following match against Ballyclare Comrades in the Floodlit Cup on 7 January He was officially appointed as manager on a permanent basis on 8 January 1997 24 In his first full season in charge he led the club to three trophies the League Cup County Antrim Shield and Floodlit Cup and narrowly missed out on the league title to champions Cliftonville by four points Jeffrey won his first league title as manager in the 1999 2000 season however along with a third consecutive League Cup triumph The Blues retained the league title the following season and also won the Charity Shield and the County Antrim Shield The 2001 02 season saw the club win a cup double lifting both the Irish Cup and the League Cup In 2005 the inauguration of the Setanta Cup meant the return of an all Ireland cup competition for the first time since 1980 The Blues qualified as league champions but started the competition poorly losing 2 1 away to Longford Town They recovered from that opening defeat to eventually reach the final against Shelbourne with the Blues being major underdogs going into the match against full time professional League of Ireland opposition However they overcame the odds with a 2 0 victory to become inaugural winners of the competition 25 Incidentally Linfield were in fact the reigning all Ireland champions at the time having won the final staging of the Tyler Cup in 1980 before the competition was discontinued The 2005 06 season was the most successful of Jeffrey s tenure with the Blues achieving a clean sweep of all four domestic competitions the Irish Premier League Irish Cup Irish League Cup and County Antrim Shield However they failed to retain the Setanta Cup as defending champions when they were narrowly beaten 1 0 at Windsor Park in the semi finals by eventual winners Drogheda United In April 2010 former captain Noel Bailie made his 1 000th appearance for the club when he played in a 0 0 draw against Crusaders in the league 26 A few days later Linfield won their 49th league title after a 1 0 home win against Cliftonville 27 The following year a landmark 50th league title arrived during the club s 125th anniversary year 28 Bailie retired from football in April 2011 at the age of 40 after making 1 013 appearances for the club in all competitions since making his debut against Ballymena United in March 1989 Linfield subsequently retired the number 11 shirt in his honour 29 In the 2011 12 season Linfield won a league and cup double for the third consecutive season and the sixth time in seven seasons a record 51st league title 42nd Irish Cup win and 23rd double overall 30 31 nbsp Linfield and Crusaders lining up before the 2013 14 County Antrim Shield final Linfield would go on to win the Shield 4 1 on penalties It was David Jeffrey s final trophy as Linfield manager The 2012 13 season was undoubtedly a low ebb for the club under Jeffrey s reign The Blues were off the pace for most of the league campaign their season encapsulated in a 3 1 home defeat by newly promoted Ballinamallard United in October 2012 32 Cliftonville were the eventual champions securing their fourth league title after defeating Linfield 3 2 at Solitude on 13 April 2013 33 Crusaders secured the runners up place leaving the Blues in third place a distant 29 points behind the champions The club went out of the 2013 Setanta Sports Cup after a heavy aggregate defeat in the quarter finals 34 went out of the League Cup at the semi final stage 35 and exited the Irish Cup in the fifth round after a replay The club s first Irish Cup defeat in four years was also the first time in 16 years they had lost their opening tie of the competition 36 When the 2014 Setanta Sports Cup was confirmed in December 2013 the club opted not to enter the competition citing inconvenient fixture scheduling reduced prize money and the difficulties faced for Linfield supporters to attend away games as the reasons behind their withdrawal At the time the club did not rule out future participation 37 however they would never enter the competition again League champions Cliftonville also withdrew from the competition for similar reasons with the next two highest placed sides from the previous season s league table Ballinamallard United and Coleraine being drafted in as replacements 38 In February 2014 Jeffrey announced that he would be stepping down at the end of the 2013 14 season bringing an end to his trophy laden reign after 17 years 39 In March 2014 the Blues lifted the County Antrim Shield for a record 43rd time by defeating Crusaders 4 1 on penalties following a 0 0 draw after extra time in the final 40 This was a significant milestone for Jeffrey his 31st and last trophy as Linfield manager equalling Roy Coyle s record 21 Jeffrey still had the opportunity to win a record breaking 32nd trophy as manager in the form of the 2013 14 league title However despite topping the league table for much of the season the Blues had to settle for the runners up spot six points behind champions Cliftonville 41 Jeffrey s reign came to a winning end with a 5 2 victory over Glenavon on the final day of the 2013 14 league season 42 Feeney amp Healy 2014 present edit Former Northern Ireland international Warren Feeney succeeded Jeffrey as Linfield manager Feeney had been player assistant manager at English Conference Premier side Salisbury City at the time of his appointment His cousin Lee Feeney played for Linfield in two spells between 1997 1999 and 2002 2003 Former Blackburn Rovers player Andy Todd was appointed as Feeney s assistant 43 Feeney s only full season in charge of the club ended without silverware The Blues challenged for the league title for most of the season but ultimately had to settle for the runners up spot for the second successive season behind champions Crusaders One positive for the season was the team s record in the four Big Two league derbies against Glentoran of which the Blues won three and drew the other The lowest point of the season for the team was undoubtedly a shock 1 0 loss against second tier side Ballyclare Comrades in the second round of the 2014 15 League Cup 44 while their 2014 15 Irish Cup campaign ended when they were eliminated in the quarter finals after losing 3 2 to eventual runners up Portadown 45 In May 2015 the Blues were invited to compete in the Setanta Sports Cup scheduled to take place in June 2015 The club declined once again with inconvenient fixture scheduling still remaining a concern 46 The competition was ultimately cancelled when suitable fixture dates could not be agreed upon 47 With the Blues top of the table after 10 games of the 2015 16 NIFL Premiership season Feeney s reign came to an end in October 2015 when he resigned to become assistant manager and subsequently the manager of English Football League Two side Newport County 7 Former Northern Ireland striker and the country s all time record international goalscorer David Healy was appointed as Feeney s successor 6 with Andy Todd staying on as Healy s assistant manager However in January 2016 Todd also departed the club to join Newport County and reunite with Warren Feeney who had subsequently been promoted to County s manager following the departure of John Sheridan Todd once again became Feeney s assistant manager 48 Linfield Football Club has scripted a captivating saga in the Northern Irish football scene during the reign of David Healy Linfield lifted the 2016 17 Irish League title by a marginal 2 points with Crusaders F C coming second The Blues also won the Irish Cup In the 2018 19 season Linfield reclaimed the Irish League title after finishing fourth in the previous season The curtailed 2019 20 season saw Linfield win the title for a second consecutive season In the same season Linfield embarked on a memorable European campaign marginally losing to Qarabag FK in the UEFA Europa League qualification finals after impressive victories over FK Sutjeska Niksic and Havnar Boltfelag in the semi finals and quarter finals respectively The 2020 21 season in which Northern Irish football fully returned from Covid 19 saw Coleraine and Glentoran emerge as their primary rivals for the title In the end Linfield acquired their third title in a row They also secured their forty fourth Irish Cup In the 2021 22 season Cliftonville stood as formidable adversaries for the championship and it all came down to the wire The Blues clinched the title by a razor thin one point margin and remained champions for the fourth season in a row Linfield came agonisingly close to reaching the UEFA Conference League proper in the 2022 23 season after losing to FK RFS in the qualification finals However the team exhibited a commendable performance throughout this European campaign In the domestic league a revamped Larne squad beat Linfield to the NIFL Premiership 2022 23 title after a tight title race between the two teams League and cup history editRecent seasons edit Season League Irish Cup League Cup Europe Notes Pos P W D L GF GA Pts Result Result Competition Result 2012 13 3rd 38 17 11 10 69 48 62 Last 32 SF UEFA Champions League 2QR 2013 14 2nd 38 24 7 7 81 46 79 Last 16 QF UEFA Europa League 2QR A 2014 15 2nd 38 21 9 8 67 46 72 QF 2R UEFA Europa League 2QR 2015 16 2nd 38 26 5 7 91 35 83 RU 3R UEFA Europa League 2QR 2016 17 1st 38 27 8 3 87 24 89 W 3R UEFA Europa League 1QR A 2017 18 4th 38 20 7 11 72 45 67 QF QF UEFA Champions League 2QR B 2018 19 1st 38 26 7 5 77 27 85 Last 16 W did not qualify 2019 20 1st 31 22 3 6 71 24 69 Last 32 SF UEFA Champions LeagueUEFA Europa League 1QRPOR C 2020 21 1st 38 24 6 8 83 38 78 W UEFA Champions LeagueUEFA Europa League 1QR2QR D 2021 22 1st 38 24 11 3 67 24 83 Last 16 QF UEFA Champions LeagueUEFA Europa Conference League 1QR3QR 2022 23 2nd 38 23 8 7 75 27 77 Last 16 W UEFA Champions League UEFA Europa League UEFA Europa Conference League 2QR 3QR POR A County Antrim Shield winners B NIFL Charity Shield winners C League was curtailed after 31 games and awarded on points per game average as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic in Northern Ireland D League Cup competition was not held as a result of the COVID 19 pandemic in Northern Ireland Stadium editMain article Windsor Park nbsp Windsor Park prior to the 2014 redevelopment The ground has been the club s home since 1905 Since 1905 Windsor Park in south Belfast has been Linfield s home ground In the initial years after the club was formed in 1886 Linfield had to change grounds several times for various reasons such as housing development The numerous ground changes and the club s desire to have a permanent home with which to build an identity resulted in the purchase of a piece of land known as the bog meadows just off lower Windsor Avenue on 1 October 1904 Later known as Windsor Park 1 this became the club s permanent home as well as the venue for international matches The first game at Windsor took place on 29 August 1905 with Linfield playing out a 0 0 draw against Distillery in a friendly match arranged to officially commemorate the opening of the stadium 49 The first competitive game played at the stadium took place just a few days later on 2 September 1905 and ended with a 1 0 win for Linfield over Glentoran the other half of the Big Two Belfast teams though Belfast Celtic were Linfield s main rivals at the time 50 Windsor Park is the largest Association football stadium in Northern Ireland with Glentoran s ground the Oval being the next largest The governing body of Northern Irish football the Irish Football Association manages the stadium while Linfield retains ownership of the land In 2012 Linfield and the IFA were in talks to agree a new 51 year contract for the use of Windsor Park The club would receive an annual payment as rent for the IFA to use the ground for the Northern Ireland national football team but would no longer receive 15 of the ticket sales TV rights and commercial rights from international matches as they did under the old agreement 51 The 51 year agreement took effect from May 2014 with Linfield receiving an annual payment of 200 000 subject to review being adjusted for inflation etc every four years This was increased to 214 000 per year in 2018 and due to increase again in 2022 needs update The contract will expire in 2065 52 In 2010 UEFA provided 500 000 towards substantial refurbishment of the stadium to increase capacity and improve safety 53 The following year the Northern Ireland Executive allocated 138 million for a major programme of stadium redevelopment throughout Northern Ireland with 28 million allocated to the redevelopment of Windsor Park 54 In June 2012 further details of the stadium s redevelopment were released The plan was to redevelop Windsor Park into an 18 000 all seater stadium with a series of phased works originally intended to begin in the middle of 2013 The redevelopment would include the demolition of the existing East and South Stand structures to be replaced by new purpose built stands that would partially enclose the stadium complete renovation of the existing North and West Stands and construction of both new conferencing facilities and a new headquarters facility for the IFA 55 In February 2013 planning permission for the redevelopment was granted The cost of the project was estimated to be around 29 2 million of which 25 2 million would come from government funding It was initially planned for the work to begin in September 2013 56 Two months later however Crusaders began legal proceedings against the redevelopment The club called for the process to be judicially reviewed believing it to be against European Union competition laws and also a form of State aid towards Linfield They along with other Irish League clubs felt that this gives Linfield an unfair advantage by allowing them to offer more attractive wages and have a larger squad than all of the other clubs 57 When Crusaders played Linfield at Windsor Park at the end of April their club officials were allegedly informed that they would not be welcome in the directors box or the boardroom during the game an apparent reaction to Crusaders legal challenge of the stadium redevelopment 58 In a hearing that took place on 22 May 2013 Crusaders request was granted It was ruled that it was a possibility for the redevelopment to be classed as state aid towards Linfield The aspect of the challenge concerning competition law however was dismissed 59 In July 2013 Crusaders agreed to a possible settlement brought forward by the judicial review The details of the settlement were not made public but Crusaders said that it had the potential to benefit the entirety of the football family 60 In September 2013 sports minister Caral Ni Chuilin said that she was still committed to making sure the redevelopment went ahead as scheduled after previously stating that she would not sign off on the funding until the IFA resolved governance issues surrounding David Martin s return to the role of deputy president 61 In December 2013 three months after the work was originally scheduled to begin the redevelopment was finally given the green light The sports minister signed off on 31 million to complete the project The redevelopment finally got under way on 6 May 2014 after the 2013 14 domestic season had finished eight months later than originally planned 62 On 31 March 2015 the West Stand of the stadium was sealed off after cracks in the structure were discovered Construction work related to the stadium redevelopment had been ongoing behind the stand in the weeks prior to the damage but it was not known if that was directly related 63 Originally planned for refurbishment as part of the redevelopment the West Stand was demolished and rebuilt 64 The redevelopment was completed in October 2016 65 with an official capacity of 18 434 Supporters and rivalry editBig Two rivalry edit Main article Big Two derby Linfield s main rival is Glentoran from east Belfast a rivalry which is commonly referred to as the Big Two However this term did not always refer to Linfield and Glentoran until 1949 the Big Two consisted of Linfield and Belfast Celtic for they had traditionally up to that point been the two most successful clubs in Northern Irish football However after Belfast Celtic withdrew from the league in 1949 Glentoran gradually established itself as Linfield s biggest rival 66 The earliest recorded match between the two clubs was played on 1 October 1887 just over a year after Linfield s formation A friendly match played at King s Field Westbourne in Ballymacarrett was won 3 1 by Linfield then known as Linfield Athletic 67 In 1890 the two teams played each other competitively for the first time during the inaugural Irish League season Linfield won 7 0 at Musgrave Park on 18 October and 6 0 at Ulsterville Avenue on 21 March 1891 The first meeting at the Oval took place on 8 October 1892 and the first meeting at Windsor Park took place 13 years later on 2 September 1905 During the second World War in 1941 the Oval including most of Glentoran s assets was severely damaged in a German aerial bombing raid on the nearby Harland amp Wolff shipyard 68 69 Glentoran approached Distillery F C to play at Grosvenor Park which they did until the Oval was rebuilt with help from other clubs During this time Glentoran considered resigning from senior football to become a junior club but after borrowing kits from Distillery and Crusaders they continued to compete at Grosvenor until 1949 70 Out of 14 league games at Grosvenor Park however they were only victorious over Linfield on one occasion Traditionally the two clubs play each other in the league on Boxing Day every year with the match usually attracting the largest attendance of any league match that season In 2009 the Irish Football Association initially banned the fixture from taking place on Boxing Day for two years due to crowd trouble at Windsor Park 71 However this decision was later reversed on appeal and the fixture returned to the calendar 72 Ultimately however the 2009 and 2010 fixtures did not take place in the end anyway as they were both postponed due to bad weather The fixture returned to the fixture list in 2011 with each club hosting the match in alternate years Trophy dominance edit Linfield and Glentoran have been the two most successful clubs in Northern Irish football to date regularly being the two main contenders for the major domestic honours They have won more league titles Irish Cups and League Cups than any other clubs Linfield hold the record for the most League titles 56 Irish Cups 44 and League Cups 10 In comparison Glentoran have won 23 league titles 23 Irish Cups and 7 League Cups Almost half 47 2 of the 142 Irish Cup competitions to date have been won by one of the two clubs with at least one of the clubs reaching the final on 92 occasions 64 8 of all finals winning the cup a combined 67 times Of those 92 finals the two clubs have met in 15 of them making it the most common final Linfield have won eight of the head to head final meetings compared to Glentoran s seven wins with the most recent meeting between the two clubs in the final occurring in 2006 when Linfield won 2 1 to lift the Cup for the 37th time Almost two thirds 65 3 of all Irish League titles have been won by one of the Big Two Of the 121 completed league seasons the title has been won by either club on 79 occasions The duo also make up two of the three clubs that have appeared in every season of the Irish League since its inception in 1890 the other club being Cliftonville Up to and including the 2021 22 season the two clubs have played each other 281 times n 3 in the Irish League since its formation in 1890 Linfield have won 126 of the meetings with 77 Glentoran victories and 78 drawn matches Linfield s record victory over their rivals is 8 0 This occurred on 21 November 1891 during the 1891 92 Irish League season Linfield s record post war win over Glentoran in all competitions is by a six goal margin a 7 1 win over the Glens at Grosvenor Park in the 1961 62 North South Cup and a 6 0 victory at Windsor Park in the 2006 Setanta Sports Cup group stage Since 2009 the rivalry has not been as intense as it once was with the Big Two s domination of the domestic game decreasing as competitiveness across the league has improved This is partly due to the resurgence of North Belfast derby rivals Cliftonville and Crusaders and to a lesser extent Coleraine and Glenavon In 2013 Cliftonville became the first club other than Linfield or Glentoran to win the league title since Portadown in 2002 In 2014 Cliftonville went on to retain the title for the first time in their history with Crusaders then winning the 2014 15 title in convincing fashion finishing 10 points ahead of runners up Linfield During this time Glentoran lifted the Irish Cup in 2013 2015 and 2020 however the club has gone 13 years without a league title winning only three titles since the turn of the 21st century in 2002 03 2004 05 and 2008 09 Since then they have finished as low as ninth place in the 2016 17 season The last season in which the two clubs finished as champions and runners up in either order was 2008 09 and they have not met in a major domestic cup final since 2006 when they contested both the Irish Cup and the League Cup finals nbsp Action from a Big Two Derby played at the Oval in February 2014 Linfield won the match 1 0 Sectarianism and violence edit Linfield are regarded as a Protestant club 73 due to them drawing the vast majority of their support from that side of the community The club has also been regarded as sectarian in the past both in respect of its alleged employment policy and of the repeated behaviour of its fans 74 This sectarian reputation is partly the result of the actions of fans who have a history of anti Catholic behaviour ranging from sectarian chanting on the terraces to outright physical violence 75 Part of the problem has been attributed to Windsor Park s location in a part of Belfast that was once predominantly Protestant 76 A relatively small number of local Catholics played for the club during the Troubles 77 which led to a widespread accusation that the club held a historical policy of not signing Catholic players 78 However the existence of such a policy has been continually refuted Linfield s following has historically been drawn from the Protestant loyalist community particularly in the greater Belfast area That is a fact of life which cannot be disputed and although in the past there have been accusations of sectarian bias such as not signing Roman Catholic players contrary to opinion and myth no ban was ever imposed That even applied in the early stages during the Second World War and from then there has been a plethora of all creeds and classes wearing the Blue jersey Malcolm Brodie 79 Sectarian tensions have long been a cause of conflict at football matches in Northern Ireland since the 1920s and crowd trouble occasionally marred games involving Linfield throughout the twentieth century 80 One of the most notable such instances occurred in 1948 at a Boxing Day match between Linfield and Belfast Celtic a team whose support was largely composed of Catholics and Irish nationalists Immediately following a 1 1 draw in which Linfield scored in the last minute there was a pitch invasion by Linfield supporters In the ensuing violence three Belfast Celtic players were seriously injured including Protestant striker Jimmy Jones who was left unconscious and suffered a broken leg Belfast Celtic subsequently withdrew from the league in protest at the end of the 1948 49 season 81 In the 1979 80 European Cup Linfield were drawn to face Dundalk from the Republic of Ireland In the first leg which was played in Dundalk and ended in a 1 1 draw crowd disturbance prompted UEFA to switch the second leg to the Haarlem Stadion Netherlands Linfield were held almost entirely accountable for the events and were forced to pay Dundalk s costs to travel to the Netherlands as well as an additional 5 000 for damage sustained to Oriel Park Dundalk were fined 870 for providing insufficient security at the match Dundalk eventually won the match 2 0 to progress 3 1 on aggregate 82 In the 1987 88 campaign Linfield s home game against Lillestrom was marred by missile throwing resulting in UEFA sanctions which meant that the club had to play their next two home games in European competitions at Welsh club Wrexham in 1988 89 and 1989 90 A 1997 match against Coleraine was abandoned when Linfield fans hurled bottles onto the pitch after two Linfield players were sent off 83 In May 2005 there were disturbances in Dublin at the Setanta Cup final between Linfield and Shelbourne 84 In the same month Linfield fans were banned from travelling to the Oval for a match against Glentoran allegedly as a result of disturbances involving both sets of fans the previous month However Glentoran denied this was the reason behind the ban citing health and safety regulations that forced them to close the away stand 85 In 2008 three Linfield fans were charged in a Dublin court with public order offences at a Setanta Cup match against St Patrick s Athletic 86 but were released The management of Linfield has continually attempted to reverse the stigma of negative press attached to the club The club has moved forward in co operation with the Irish Football Association which has launched a campaign called Give sectarianism the boot It assisted a local Camogie team who needed space to train in 2005 and also built links with the Gaelic Athletic Association which has traditionally had little support from the Protestant community in Northern Ireland 87 In 2006 FIFA officially commended Linfield for their anti racism initiatives 88 A play dealing with the conflict between Linfield and Belfast Celtic Lish and Gerry at the Shrine was staged by the IFA at Windsor Park in October 2010 with the co operation of the Linfield management 89 Since 2008 the number of incidents has significantly decreased However in February 2014 Linfield were fined 3 000 and Cliftonville were fined 3 250 by the IFA following sectarian chanting from sections of both sets of supporters during a County Antrim Shield semi final at Windsor Park in October 2013 Cliftonville s fine of an extra 250 came as a result of their fans causing a big bang during the game 90 Both clubs criticised the decision and expressed their intent to appeal against the fines 91 In April 2014 the punishments were rescinded on appeal 92 There was also crowd trouble at a league fixture between the clubs at Windsor Park in March 2014 with reports of missiles being thrown after the game The Northern Ireland Football League condemned the actions of a small minority of supporters 93 In May 2014 Linfield were fined 1 200 by the Irish Football Association over the singing of sectarian songs by supporters ruling that Linfield fans had been guilty of breaching the code of conduct during a league game at Coleraine 94 In a Champions League qualifier match on 14 July 2017 some Linfield supporters threw bottles and coins at Celtic players Although both a section of Linfield fans and the small group of visiting fans sang sectarian songs it was noted that a much larger section of Linfield fans booed and drowned out these songs 95 In 2022 the club reportedly ended its voluntary association with one of the coaches of its girls academy after the man admitted being involved in singing a chant which was described as gratuitous ly sectarian and condemned by senior members of the Orange Order Ulster Unionists DUP Sinn Fein Alliance Party and the Northern Ireland Secretary of State 96 European record editMain article Northern Irish football clubs in European competitions As Northern Ireland s most dominant club side Linfield have been regular competitors in European football The club first participated in European competition in 1959 against Goteborg in the 1959 60 European Cup 97 In the first round of the 1961 62 European Cup Linfield were drawn to face an East German team Vorwarts The away leg was played which Linfield lost 3 0 However Vorwarts were denied visas to enter the UK to play the second leg and similarly to Glenavon the previous season travelling to play the second leg in a neutral country was not financially viable for Linfield They were therefore forced to withdraw from the competition 98 Linfield s most notable achievement in European competition to date is reaching the quarter finals of the 1966 67 European Cup 97 After beating Aris of Luxembourg and Valerenga of Norway they faced CSKA Red Flag of Bulgaria in the last eight This resulted in a 2 2 draw at home and 1 0 defeat away 99 In the 1984 85 season after overcoming Shamrock Rovers on away goals the first and so far only series of meetings between the two Irish superpowers outside all Ireland tournaments 100 Linfield faced eventual semi finalists Panathinaikos in the second round After a 2 1 defeat in Greece Linfield raced into a 3 0 lead at half time in the second leg at Windsor Park 97 However Panathinaikos staged a remarkable comeback in the second half to level the match at 3 3 and eliminate Linfield 5 4 on aggregate 97 The 1993 94 UEFA Champions League saw Linfield drawn with Dinamo Tbilisi of Georgia After losing 3 2 on aggregate they were later reinstated when the Georgian side were expelled from the competition for alleged match fixing and bribing officials Linfield faced Copenhagen in the first round proper 97 They won the first leg 3 0 but lost the second leg 4 0 after extra time This proved costly as victory would have meant a financially lucrative tie against eventual champions A C Milan in the next round 97 The club then had to wait seven years to participate in the competition again due to the format of the two European competitions being altered The league s relatively low ranking in the UEFA coefficient system has meant that the club has entered in the early qualifying rounds of either the UEFA Champions League or the UEFA Cup Europa League 97 with the Blues becoming the first Irish League side to reach the play off round of the Europa League in 2019 In the 2012 13 UEFA Champions League the Blues entered the competition in the first qualifying round and defeated B36 Torshavn 4 3 on penalties to progress to the second qualifying round after both legs ended as 0 0 draws 101 This was the first time since the 1984 85 season excluding their opponent s expulsion in 1993 94 that the club had won a tie in the competition However they were defeated 3 0 on aggregate in the next round by AEL Limassol 102 The 2013 14 UEFA Europa League campaign started in record breaking fashion In July 2013 the club won 2 0 away from home against IF Fuglafjordur of the Faroe Islands in the first qualifying round This was the Blues first win in Europe since 2005 and their first away win in Europe since 1966 when they defeated Valerenga 4 1 during their run to the quarter finals of the 1966 67 European Cup 103 In the second leg at Windsor Park the Blues won 3 0 to go through to the next round 5 0 on aggregate 104 This was the club s largest aggregate victory in a European tie since defeating Aris Bonnevoie 9 4 on aggregate in the first round of the 1966 67 European Cup It was also the first time that a Northern Irish club had won both legs of a European tie in any competition They followed this up in the next round by winning away from home again Despite being massive underdogs for the tie a 1 0 victory away to Xanthi of Greece made it three consecutive victories in Europe without conceding a goal in the process another first for the club 105 However in the second leg at home they went down 2 1 after extra time which eliminated them on the away goals rule 106 The following season Linfield s first venture into Europe under new manager Warren Feeney was in the Faroe Islands against B36 Torshavn in the 2014 15 UEFA Europa League first qualifying round which was also Feeney s first competitive game in charge of the club Linfield came out 2 1 victors with goals coming from Jamie Mulgrew and Michael Carvill 107 The return leg was played at Glenavon s ground Mourneview Park due to the redevelopment of Windsor Park Linfield had to settle for a 1 1 draw but that was enough to secure passage into the second qualifying round for the second successive season where they were drawn to face AIK from Sweden 108 An 87th minute Andrew Waterworth goal in the home leg at Mourneview Park ensured a 1 0 win for Linfield in their 100th competitive European match since their debut in 1959 109 However the Blues fell to a 2 0 defeat in the away leg which meant they were eliminated 2 1 on aggregate nbsp Linfield playing against Allsvenskan side AIK in the second leg of the 2014 15 UEFA Europa League second qualifying round The match was played at the Friends Arena Solna on 24 July 2014 As 2018 19 NIFL Premiership champions Linfield initially entered the 2019 20 UEFA Champions League first qualifying round where they were drawn to face Rosenborg In naming Charlie Allen to the final 25 man squad for this match 110 the Blues set a new record for the youngest UK player named to a final squad for a match in the Champions League The Norwegian champions had eliminated the Blues from the competition back in the 2010 11 season and again they proved to be too strong A 6 0 aggregate defeat saw the Blues drop down into the UEFA Europa League second qualifying round Champions Path where they faced Faroese champions HB Torshavn the fifth occasion since 2012 that they had faced Faroese opposition in Europe A 3 2 win on aggregate secured a place in the third qualifying round of the Europa League for the first time and the third stage of any European competition since a 5 2 aggregate win over Valerenga in November 1966 citation needed In the next round of the Europa League Linfield faced Montenegro champions Sutjeska A 2 1 win in the away leg was followed up with a 3 2 win in the second leg at Windsor Park with the Blues winning 5 3 on aggregate to become the first Irish League side to reach the play off round of the Europa League It was only the second time that the club had won both legs of a European tie the first being in 2013 against IF Additionally it was only the second time that the club had ever progressed through back to back rounds in Europe again the first time since November 1966 In the play off round Linfield were drawn to face Azerbaijan champions Qarabag with the winners qualifying for the Europa League group stage citation needed Summary edit As of 3 August 2023 Competition P W D L GF GA GD Win European Cup UEFA Champions League 78 11 23 44 66 139 73 14 10 UEFA Cup UEFA Europa League 43 13 9 21 49 78 29 30 23 UEFA Europa Conference League 10 2 3 5 16 17 1 20 00 European Cup Winner s Cup UEFA Cup Winner s Cup 6 2 0 4 6 11 5 33 33 Inter Cities Fairs Cup 4 1 0 3 3 11 8 25 00 Total 141 29 35 77 140 256 116 20 57 Matches 1959 1999 edit Season Competition Round Opponent Home A Away A Agg A 1959 60 European Cup PR nbsp Goteborg 2 1 1 6 3 7 nbsp 1961 62 PR nbsp Vorwarts Berlin w o B 0 3 0 3 nbsp 1962 63 1R nbsp Esbjerg 1 2 0 0 1 2 nbsp 1963 64 European Cup Winners Cup 2R nbsp Fenerbahce 2 0 1 4 3 4 nbsp 1966 67 European Cup 1R nbsp Aris 6 1 3 3 9 4 nbsp 2R nbsp Valerenga 1 1 4 1 5 2 nbsp QF nbsp CSKA Red Flag 2 2 0 1 2 3 nbsp 1967 68 Inter Cities Fairs Cup 1R nbsp Lokomotive Leipzig 1 0 1 5 2 5 nbsp 1968 69 1R nbsp Vitoria de Setubal 1 3 0 3 1 6 nbsp 1969 70 European Cup 1R nbsp Red Star Belgrade 2 4 0 8 2 12 nbsp 1970 71 European Cup Winners Cup 1R nbsp Manchester City 2 1 0 1 2 2 a nbsp 1971 72 European Cup 1R nbsp Standard Liege 2 3 0 2 2 5 nbsp 1975 76 1R nbsp PSV Eindhoven 1 2 0 8 1 10 nbsp 1978 79 1R nbsp Lillestrom 0 0 0 1 0 1 nbsp 1979 80 PR nbsp Dundalk 0 2 D 1 1 1 3 nbsp 1980 81 1R nbsp Nantes 0 1 D 0 2 0 3 nbsp 1981 82 UEFA Cup 1R nbsp Beveren 0 5 0 3 0 8 nbsp 1982 83 European Cup 1R nbsp 17 Nentori 2 1 0 1 2 2 a nbsp 1983 84 1R nbsp Benfica 2 3 0 3 2 6 nbsp 1984 85 1R nbsp Shamrock Rovers 0 0 1 1 1 1 a nbsp 2R nbsp Panathinaikos 3 3 1 2 4 5 nbsp 1985 86 1R nbsp Servette 2 2 1 2 3 4 nbsp 1986 87 1R nbsp Rosenborg 1 1 0 1 1 2 nbsp 1987 88 1R nbsp Lillestrom 2 4 1 1 3 5 nbsp 1988 89 UEFA Cup 1R nbsp TPS 1 1 E 0 0 1 1 a nbsp 1989 90 European Cup 1R nbsp Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk 1 2 E 0 1 1 3 nbsp 1993 94 UEFA Champions League PR nbsp Dinamo Tbilisi 1 1 1 2 2 3 C nbsp 1R nbsp Copenhagen 3 0 0 4 a e t 3 4 nbsp 1994 95 UEFA Cup F PR nbsp FH 3 1 0 1 3 2 nbsp 1R nbsp Odense 1 1 0 5 1 6 nbsp 1995 96 UEFA Cup Winners Cup QR nbsp Shakhtar Donetsk 0 1 1 4 1 5 nbsp 1998 99 UEFA Cup 1QR nbsp Omonia 5 3 1 5 6 8 nbsp 1999 2000 QR nbsp Locomotive Tbilisi 1 1 0 1 1 2 nbsp Matches 2000 edit Season Competition Round Opponent Home A Away A Agg A 2000 01 UEFA Champions League 1QR nbsp Haka 2 1 0 1 2 2 a nbsp 2001 02 1QR nbsp Torpedo Kutaisi 0 0 0 1 0 1 nbsp 2002 03 UEFA Cup QR nbsp Stabaek 1 1 0 4 1 5 nbsp 2004 05 UEFA Champions League 1QR nbsp HJK 0 1 0 1 0 2 nbsp 2005 06 UEFA Cup 1QR nbsp Ventspils 1 0 1 2 2 2 a nbsp 2QR nbsp Halmstad 2 4 1 1 3 5 nbsp 2006 07 UEFA Champions League 1QR nbsp Gorica 1 3 2 2 3 5 nbsp 2007 08 1QR nbsp Elfsborg 0 0 0 1 0 1 nbsp 2008 09 1QR nbsp Dinamo Zagreb 0 2 1 1 1 3 nbsp 2009 10 UEFA Europa League 1QR nbsp Randers 0 3 0 4 0 7 nbsp 2010 11 UEFA Champions League 2QR nbsp Rosenborg 0 0 0 2 0 2 nbsp 2011 12 2QR nbsp BATE Borisov 1 1 0 2 1 3 nbsp 2012 13 1QR nbsp B36 Torshavn 0 0 0 0 a e t 0 0 4 3 p nbsp 2QR nbsp AEL Limassol 0 0 0 3 0 3 nbsp 2013 14 UEFA Europa League 1QR nbsp IF 3 0 2 0 5 0 nbsp 2QR nbsp Xanthi 1 2 a e t 1 0 2 2 a nbsp 2014 15 1QR nbsp B36 Torshavn 1 1 2 1 3 2 nbsp 2QR nbsp AIK 1 0 0 2 1 2 nbsp 2015 16 1QR nbsp NSI Runavik 2 0 3 4 5 4 nbsp 2QR nbsp Spartak Trnava 1 3 1 2 2 5 nbsp 2016 17 1QR nbsp Cork City 0 1 1 1 1 2 nbsp 2017 18 UEFA Champions League 1QR nbsp La Fiorita 1 0 0 0 1 0 nbsp 2QR nbsp Celtic 0 2 0 4 0 6 nbsp 2019 20 UCL UEL 1QR nbsp Rosenborg 0 2 0 4 0 6 nbsp UEFA Europa League G 2QR nbsp HB Torshavn 1 0 2 2 3 2 nbsp 3QR nbsp Sutjeska 3 2 2 1 5 3 nbsp POR nbsp Qarabag 3 2 1 2 4 4 a nbsp 2020 21 UCL UEL UEFA Champions League PR SF nbsp Tre Fiori 2 0 H nbsp PR F nbsp Drita 3 0 H I nbsp 1QR nbsp Legia Warsaw 0 1 J nbsp UEFA Europa League G 2QR nbsp Floriana 0 1 J nbsp 2021 22 UCL UECL UEFA Champions League 1QR nbsp Zalgiris 1 2 1 3 2 5 nbsp UEFA Europa Conference League K 2QR nbsp Borac Banja Luka 4 0 0 0 4 0 nbsp 3QR nbsp Fola Esch 1 2 1 2 2 4 nbsp 2022 23 UCL UEL UECL UEFA Champions League 1QR nbsp The New Saints 2 0 a e t 0 1 2 1 nbsp 2QR nbsp Bodo Glimt 1 0 0 8 1 8 nbsp UEFA Europa League 3QR nbsp Zurich 0 2 0 3 0 5 nbsp UEFA Europa Conference League POR nbsp RFS 1 1 2 2 3 3 2 4 p nbsp 2023 24 1QR nbsp Vllaznia 3 1 0 1 3 2 nbsp 2QR nbsp Pogon Szczecin 2 5 2 3 4 8 nbsp Key PR Preliminary round QR Qualifying round 1 2 3QR First Second Third qualifying round POR Play off round 1R 2R First Second round QF Quarter final SF Semi final F Final Notes a b c Linfield goals are listed first Linfield were forced to withdraw from the competition when the second leg could not be played UK officials refused to issue visas for the Vorwarts team to enter the country and Linfield failed to find an alternative venue outside the UK to host the match Dinamo Tbilisi were later expelled from the competition and Linfield were reinstated a b Home leg switched to Haarlem Stadion Netherlands as a result of a UEFA sanction following crowd trouble in the away leg against Dundalk in the 1979 80 European Cup a b Home leg switched to the Racecourse Ground Wales as a result of a UEFA sanction following crowd trouble against Lillestrom in the 1987 88 European Cup In the three seasons between 1994 95 and 1996 97 UEFA Champions League entry was limited to clubs from the continent s top 24 countries This meant that as 1993 94 Irish League champions Linfield entered the UEFA Cup instead a b Transferred to the UEFA Europa League Champions Path after being eliminated in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds a b The preliminary round saw four clubs compete for one place in the first qualifying round with two semi finals and a final as single knockout matches hosted at a neutral venue the Colovray Sports Centre in Nyon Switzerland Linfield were awarded a 3 0 win by UEFA after the preliminary round final did not take place when two Drita players tested positive for COVID 19 resulting in their squad being quarantined by the Swiss authorities a b As a result of the COVID 19 pandemic the qualifying round ties were played as single knockout matches instead of two legs with the team that was drawn first hosting the match Transferred to the UEFA Europa Conference League Champions Path after being eliminated in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds UEFA club ranking edit Current rankingAs of 7 May 2023 111 Rank Team Points 157 nbsp TNS 9 000 158 nbsp Olimpija Ljubjana 9 000 159 nbsp Linfield 8 500 160 nbsp FC Vaduz 8 500 161 nbsp HSK Zrinjski Mostar 8 500 Ranking since 2018 Year Rank Points 2018 nbsp 305 2 750 2019 nbsp 336 2 250 2020 nbsp 250 4 250 2021 nbsp 226 5 250 2022 nbsp 167 7 000 2023 159 8 500Current squad editSee also List of Linfield F C players 112 Note Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules Players may hold more than one non FIFA nationality No Pos Nation Player 1 GK nbsp NIR Chris Johns 2 DF nbsp NIR Daniel Finlayson 3 DF nbsp SCO Euan East 4 DF nbsp ENG Michael Newberry 5 MF nbsp IRL Chris Shields 7 MF nbsp NIR Kirk Millar 8 MF nbsp NIR Kyle McClean 9 MF nbsp NIR Joel Cooper 10 MF nbsp NIR Jordan Stewart 12 FW nbsp NIR Darragh McBrien 14 FW nbsp NIR Robbie McDaid 15 DF nbsp NIR Ben Hall No Pos Nation Player 16 DF nbsp NIR Matthew Clarke 17 FW nbsp NIR Chris McKee 19 FW nbsp NIR Ethan Devine 20 MF nbsp NIR Stephen Fallon 22 MF nbsp NIR Jamie Mulgrew captain 27 DF nbsp NIR Ethan McGee 29 FW nbsp NIR Matthew Fitzpatrick 34 DF nbsp NIR Dane McCullough 36 FW nbsp NIR Rhys Annett 37 DF nbsp NIR Ryan McKay 51 GK nbsp NIR David Walsh 53 MF nbsp NIR Joshua Archer Linfield Swifts players with first team squad appearances edit Note Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules Players may hold more than one non FIFA nationality No Pos Nation Player 55 FW nbsp NIR Jack Montgomery 60 FW nbsp NIR Aodhan Doherty Retired numbers Numbers retired in June 2011 113 11 In honour of Noel Bailie MBE 1986 2011 13 Unlucky numberPlayer of the Year editLinfield s Player of the Year award is voted for by the club s supporters 114 2008 09 Paul Munster 2009 10 Jamie Mulgrew 2010 11 Michael Gault 2011 12 Albert Watson 2012 13 Billy Joe Burns 2013 14 Andrew Waterworth 2014 15 Aaron Burns 2015 16 Jimmy Callacher 2016 17 Roy Carroll 2017 18 Kirk Millar 2018 19 Jimmy Callacher 2019 20 Stephen Fallon 2020 21 Shayne Lavery 2021 22 Chris Shields 2022 23 Daniel FinlaysonManagerial history editBelow is a list of the managers Linfield have appointed during the club s history In the early years after the club was formed in 1886 the team was selected by the club committee a standard practice by football clubs at the time Since then 25 different men have held the position of Linfield first team coach manager However only six have been appointed since Billy Campbell s departure in 1975 David Jeffrey holds the record for the longest reign as manager having been in charge for 17 years and 16 weeks between 4 January 1997 and 26 April 2014 Jeffrey and Roy Coyle jointly hold the record for the most trophies won as manager having led the club to 31 major honours each 115 Former Northern Ireland international Warren Feeney is the club s previous manager having been appointed in May 2014 43 He resigned in October 2015 to become assistant manager of Newport County 7 with current manager David Healy appointed as his successor Dates Name Notes 1886 Team Committee A committee was responsible for the first team Unknown Lincoln Hyde Manager for at least the 1932 33 season possibly for longer 1937 38 116 Tommy Sloan 1939 1940 Billy McCleery Resigned due to World War II and concentrated on his Cricket career Would later manage the Irish League XI team which defeated the Football League 5 2 at Windsor Park in 1956 1940 1943 Tommy Brolly Unknown Jack Challinor Unknown John Hutton 1952 1953 Tully Craig Unknown Gibby Mackenzie 1957 1960 Jackie Milburn Joined as player manager from Newcastle United 1960 1962 Isaac McDowell Guided the club to seven trophies in the 1961 62 season before leaving to manage Glentoran the following season 1962 1965 Tommy Dickson Captain of the Linfield team which famously won seven trophies in the 1961 62 season 1965 1967 Tommy Leishman Joined as player manager from Hibernian before returning to Scotland two years later Was named Ulster Footballer of the Year for 1965 66 1967 1970 Ewan Fenton Joined from Limerick before returning to the club after his departure in 1970 1969 1970 Dennis Viollet The former Manchester United forward joined Linfield in 1969 as a player coach and picked up an Irish Cup winner s medal after the Blues won the 1969 70 final 1970 1971 Billy Bingham Managed Northern Ireland and Linfield simultaneously until leaving both posts in 1971 Would later return for a second spell as Northern Ireland manager in 1980 1971 1972 Jimmy Hill 1972 1973 Sammy Hatton A member of the Linfield squad which famously won seven trophies in the 1961 62 season 1973 1974 Billy Sinclair 1974 1975 Billy Campbell The club s eighth different manager in ten years 1975 1990 Roy Coyle Won a record equalling six consecutive Irish League Championships Most successful Linfield manager of all time alongside David Jeffrey with 31 major honours as manager 1990 1992 Eric Bowyer Won three league titles as a player at the club from 1967 to 1978 before joining Glenavon 1992 1997 Trevor Anderson Later became Director of Football at Newry Town 1997 2014 David Jeffrey Longest serving manager in the club s history Won 31 major honours as Linfield manager a record shared with Roy Coyle Would later manage Ballymena United 2014 2015 Warren Feeney Only the club s fifth different manager since 1975 and the shortest reign of any Linfield manager since then Resigned in October 2015 to become assistant manager of Newport County 2015 David Healy Only the club s sixth different manager since 1975 Former Northern Ireland international and record goalscorer Healy s first managerial position Honours editSenior honours edit Irish League Championship 56 1890 91 1891 92 1892 93 1894 95 1897 98 1901 02 1903 04 1906 07 1907 08 1908 09 1910 11 1913 14 1921 22 1922 23 1929 30 1931 32 1933 34 1934 35 1948 49 1949 50 1953 54 1954 55 1955 56 1958 59 1960 61 1961 62 1965 66 1968 69 1970 71 1974 75 1977 78 1978 79 1979 80 1981 82 1982 83 1983 84 1984 85 1985 86 1986 87 1988 89 1992 93 1993 94 1999 2000 2000 01 2003 04 2005 06 2006 07 2007 08 2009 10 2010 11 2011 12 2016 17 2018 19 2019 20 2020 21 2021 22 Irish Cup 44 1890 91 1891 92 1892 93 1894 95 1897 98 1898 99 1901 02 1903 04 1911 12 1912 13 1914 15 1915 16 1918 19 1921 22 1922 23 1929 30 1930 31 1933 34 1935 36 1938 39 1941 42 1944 45 1945 46 1947 48 1949 50 1952 53 1959 60 1961 62 1962 63 1969 70 1977 78 1979 80 1981 82 1993 94 1994 95 2001 02 2005 06 2006 07 2007 08 2009 10 2010 11 2011 12 2016 17 2020 21 Irish League Cup 12 1986 87 1991 92 1993 94 1997 98 1998 99 1999 2000 2001 02 2005 06 2007 08 2018 19 2022 23 2023 24 Charity Shield 4 1993 shared 1994 2000 2017 County Antrim Shield 43 1898 99 1903 04 1905 06 1906 07 1907 08 1912 13 1913 14 1916 17 1921 22 1922 23 1927 28 1928 29 1929 30 1931 32 1932 33 1933 34 1934 35 1937 38 1941 42 1946 47 1952 53 1954 55 1957 58 1958 59 1960 61 1961 62 1962 63 1965 66 1966 67 1972 73 1976 77 1980 81 1981 82 1982 83 1983 84 1994 95 1997 98 2000 01 2003 04 2004 05 2005 06 2013 14 2016 17 Gold Cup 33 1915 16 1917 18 1918 19 1920 21 1921 22 1923 24 1926 27 1927 28 1928 29 1930 31 1935 36 1936 37 1948 49 1949 50 1950 51 1955 56 1957 58 1959 60 1961 62 1963 64 1965 66 1967 68 1968 69 1970 71 1971 72 1979 80 1981 82 1983 84 1984 85 1987 88 1988 89 1989 90 1996 97 City Cup 24 1894 95 1895 96 1897 98 1899 1900 1900 01 1901 02 1902 03 1903 04 1907 08 1909 10 1919 20 1921 22 1926 27 1928 29 1935 36 1937 38 1949 50 1951 52 1957 58 1958 59 1961 62 1963 64 1967 68 1973 74 Ulster Cup 15 1948 49 1955 56 1956 57 1959 60 1961 62 1964 65 1967 68 1970 71 1971 72 1974 75 1977 78 1978 79 1979 80 1984 85 1992 93 Floodlit Cup 2 1993 94 1997 98 Top Four Cup 2 1966 67 1967 68 Belfast Charity Cup 24 1890 91 1891 92 1892 93 1893 94 1894 95 1898 99 1900 01 1902 03 1904 05 1912 13 1913 14 1914 15 1916 17 1917 18 1918 19 1921 22 1926 27 1927 28 1929 30 1932 33 1933 34 1934 35 1935 36 shared 1937 38 Alhambra Cup 1 1921 22 Jubilee Cup 1 1935 36 Belfast amp District League 2 n 4 1915 16 1917 18 Belfast City Cup 1 n 5 1917 18 Northern Regional League 3 n 6 1942 43 1944 45 1945 46 Substitute Gold Cup 2 n 7 1942 43 1944 45 Manchester Charity Cup 2 1945 46 1946 47 All Ireland honours edit North South Cup 1 1960 61 n 8 Blaxnit Cup 1 1970 71 Tyler Cup 1 1980 81 Setanta Cup 1 2005 Intermediate honours edit Honours won by Linfield Swifts Irish Intermediate League 2 1939 40 1945 46 Irish League B Division 3 1951 52 1952 53 1975 76 B Division Section 2 Reserve League Development League 21 1977 78 1978 79 1979 80 1982 83 1983 84 1984 85 1987 88 1988 89 1990 91 1991 92 1998 99 1999 2000 2003 04 2004 05 2008 09 2009 10 2010 11 2014 15 2016 17 2017 18 2018 19 County Antrim Shield 1 1948 49 Irish Intermediate Cup 11 1896 97 1898 99 1900 01 1928 29 1945 46 1948 49 1955 56 1956 57 1971 72 2001 02 2003 04 Steel amp Sons Cup 11 1895 96 1898 99 1915 16 1939 40 1946 47 1948 49 1972 73 1983 84 1997 98 2016 17 2019 20 George Wilson Cup 10 1953 54 1961 62 1976 77 1980 81 1983 84 1984 85 1988 89 1998 99 2008 09 2010 11 McElroy Cup 5 1928 29 1937 38 1939 40 1944 45 1945 46 shared Honours won by Linfield Rangers Irish Intermediate Cup 2 1921 22 1924 25 Junior honours edit Irish Junior League 4 1898 99 1899 1900 1900 01 1903 04 Irish Junior Cup 3 1890 91 1893 94 1905 06ƒ County Antrim Junior Shield 1 1904 05ƒ Harry Cavan Youth Cup 5 2003 04 2004 05 2006 07 2009 10 2016 17 Belfast Youth Cup 2 2009 10 2010 11 Lisburn League Shield 1 2016 17 IFA Youth Premier League 4 2005 06 2006 07 2008 09 2012 13 IFA Youth League Cup NIFL Youth League Cup 5 2008 09 2012 13 2013 14 2014 15 2015 16 Won by Linfield II reserve team Won by Linfield Swifts reserve team ƒ Won by Linfield Pirates reserve team Won by Linfield Rangers reserve team Records editDoubles and trebles edit The club has achieved the double of winning the League title and the national cup in the same season on 25 occasions more than any other club in the world 10 The club has also achieved the domestic treble of the League national cup and League Cup in the same season on three occasions and a domestic quadruple of those three trophies plus the regional County Antrim Shield in the same season once in 2005 06 Most notably absent from the list are the seven trophy hauls in the 1921 22 and 1961 62 seasons n 8 achieved prior to the inauguration of the League Cup in 1987 16 18 Doubles League and Irish Cup 25 1890 91 1891 92 1892 93 1894 95 1897 98 1901 02 1903 04B 1921 22B 1922 23B 1929 30B 1933 34B 1949 50 1961 62B 1977 78 1979 80 1981 82B 1993 94A 2005 06C 2006 07 2007 08A 2009 10 2010 11 2011 12 2016 17B 2020 21 League and League Cup 6 n 9 1986 87 1993 94A 1999 2000 2005 06C 2007 08A 2018 19 Trebles League Irish Cup and League Cup 3 n 9 1993 94 2005 06C 2007 08 AAs part of a domestic treble BAs part of a domestic treble including the County Antrim Shield CAs part of a domestic quadruple including the County Antrim Shield See also editLinfield F C WomenNotes edit Brazil s ABC has 57 titles from the Campeonato Potiguar a state league Linfield also won seven trophies during the 1961 62 season however one of those trophies the North South Cup was actually the previous season s competition Due to fixture congestion the 1960 61 final was postponed until February 1962 Excluding unofficial wartime results between 1915 and 1919 first World War and 1940 1947 second World War An unofficial league which ran for four seasons between 1915 and 1919 It was set up while the Irish League was suspended during World War I A temporary competition set up to replace the City Cup while it was suspended during World War I An unofficial league which ran for seven seasons between 1940 and 1947 It was set up while the Irish League was suspended during World War II A temporary competition set up to replace the Gold Cup while it was suspended during World War II a b Linfield won the North South Cup during the 1961 62 season but it was actually the 1960 61 final Due to fixture congestion the 1960 61 final was postponed until February 1962 Similarly the 1961 62 competition was not completed until the 1962 63 season and was won by Glenavon a b Although the Irish Cup was inaugurated in 1881 and the Irish League was formed in 1890 the League Cup was not introduced until 1987 References edit a b c d e Club History linfieldfc com Archived from the original on 25 December 2017 Retrieved 18 December 2013 NIFL Premiership Football Grounds In Northern Ireland footballgroundmap com Retrieved 26 March 2023 a b Garnham Neal 2004 Association football and society in pre partition Ireland Ulster Historical Foundation p 47 Bairner Alan 2004 Sport and the Irish Dublin University College Press p 199 ISBN 9781910820933 Archived from the original on 25 April 2022 Retrieved 25 September 2020 2021 22 NIFL Premiership results Northern Ireland Football League Archived from the original on 11 February 2022 Retrieved 6 May 2022 a b David Healy appointed as new Linfield manager BBC Sport 14 October 2015 Archived from the original on 17 October 2015 Retrieved 19 October 2015 a b c Warren Feeney quits Linfield to become Newport assistant boss BBC Sport 7 October 2015 Archived from the original on 7 October 2015 Retrieved 7 October 2015 Trivia on Winning Domestic Championships Total Number of Championships RSSSF a b Beyond Trebles Rec Sport Soccer Statistics Foundation 15 January 2010 Archived from the original on 1 October 2018 Retrieved 11 January 2013 a b Doing the Double Rec Sport Soccer Statistics Foundation Archived from the original on 26 November 2015 Retrieved 3 April 2014 a b Roberts Benjamin 2017 Gunshots amp Goalposts The Story of Northern Irish Football Avenue Books p 29 ISBN 978 1 905575 11 4 Collett Mike 2003 The Complete Record of The FA Cup p 878 ISBN 1 899807 19 5 Belfast Telegraph historical article published on 22 February Linfield F C Archived from the original on 1 July 2020 Retrieved 1 July 2020 a b c d e f g h i j k l m 25 Greatest Linfield players of all time PDF Belfast Telegraph Archived PDF from the original on 14 July 2014 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Northern Ireland Final League Tables 1890 1998 Rec Sport Soccer Statistics Foundation Archived from the original on 4 March 2016 Retrieved 5 January 2014 a b The 1921 22 team Linfield s first seven trophy si 46674 Belfast Telegraph Photosales Belfast Telegraph Archived from the original on 7 April 2014 Retrieved 5 April 2014 UEFA Champions League History UEFA Archived from the original on 25 September 2015 Retrieved 16 July 2014 a b A superb night of 7 Trophy Linfield nostalgia linfieldfc com 29 April 2012 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 11 January 2013 Northern Ireland s Footballing Greats Roy Coyle NIFG Archived from the original on 7 April 2014 Retrieved 3 April 2014 Blueman Gary returned to haunt his boyhood heroes linfieldfc com 12 February 2012 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 8 July 2014 a b Why David Jeffrey not Roy Coyle is the best Belfast Telegraph 6 March 2014 Archived from the original on 7 April 2014 Retrieved 3 April 2014 Look at Linfield Interview with Eric Bowyer linfieldfc com 30 August 2009 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Trevor realised his boyhood dreams at Linfield linfieldfc com 19 October 2009 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 8 July 2014 DJ 17 years 31 trophies and 179 players linfieldfc com 27 April 2014 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 24 July 2014 Linfield beat Shelbourne in final BBC Sport 21 May 2005 Archived from the original on 12 February 2015 Retrieved 18 December 2013 Crusaders 0 0 Linfield BBC Sport 24 April 2010 Archived from the original on 26 September 2022 Retrieved 14 January 2013 Linfield 1 0 Cliftonville BBC Sport 27 April 2010 Archived from the original on 29 April 2010 Retrieved 27 April 2010 Lisburn Distillery 0 4 Linfield BBC Sport 26 April 2011 Archived from the original on 29 April 2011 Retrieved 26 April 2011 Linfield 1 0 Portadown BBC Sport 30 April 2011 Archived from the original on 3 January 2013 Retrieved 14 January 2013 Linfield beat Portadown to secure Premiership crown BBC Sport 7 April 2012 Archived from the original on 5 April 2020 Retrieved 11 January 2013 Crusaders 1 4 Linfield BBC Sport 5 May 2012 Archived from the original on 9 May 2012 Retrieved 11 January 2013 Linfield 1 3 Ballinamallard Utd BBC Sport BBC 6 October 2012 Archived from the original on 16 November 2012 Retrieved 19 April 2013 Cliftonville beat Linfield to secure Irish Premiership title BBC Sport BBC 13 April 2013 Archived from the original on 2 August 2015 Retrieved 13 April 2013 Setanta Sports Cup Linfield and Glentoran crash out of cup BBC Sport BBC 11 March 2013 Archived from the original on 13 March 2013 Retrieved 15 July 2013 Linfield 0 1 Crusaders BBC Sport BBC 11 December 2012 Archived from the original on 13 December 2012 Retrieved 15 July 2013 Irish Cup full time Crusaders beat Linfield 2 1 in replay BBC Sport BBC 22 January 2013 Archived from the original on 24 January 2013 Retrieved 15 July 2013 Statement from Linfield FC with regard to Setanta Sports Cup linfieldfc com 9 December 2013 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 18 December 2013 Cliftonville and Linfield withdraw from Setanta Cup BBC Sport 9 December 2013 Archived from the original on 17 December 2013 Retrieved 18 December 2013 David Jeffrey to quit as Linfield manager at end of the season BBC Sport 15 February 2014 Archived from the original on 4 March 2014 Retrieved 12 March 2014 Linfield defeat Crusaders in Shield shoot out BBC Sport 4 March 2014 Archived from the original on 5 March 2014 Retrieved 5 March 2014 Cliftonville retain Irish Premiership title for first time BBC Sport BBC 22 April 2014 Archived from the original on 29 April 2014 Retrieved 22 April 2014 Irish Premiership Glenavon 2 5 Linfield BBC Sport BBC 26 April 2014 Archived from the original on 1 May 2014 Retrieved 20 July 2014 a b Linfield FC announces appointment of new Manager linfieldfc com 26 April 2014 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 1 May 2014 Ballyclare Comrades stun Linfield in League Cup BBC Sport 25 August 2014 Archived from the original on 26 September 2022 Retrieved 27 May 2015 Irish Cup quarter finals Portadown 3 2 Linfield BBC Sport 28 February 2015 Archived from the original on 2 March 2015 Retrieved 27 May 2015 Linfield respectfully declines invitation to participate in proposed Setanta Cup in June linfieldfc com 6 May 2015 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 27 May 2015 Setanta Sports Cup postponed to 2016 as clubs fails to agree dates BBC Sport 13 May 2015 Archived from the original on 16 May 2015 Retrieved 27 May 2015 Warren Feeney Newport County appoint new manager BBC Sport 15 January 2016 Archived from the original on 18 January 2016 Retrieved 15 January 2016 A special guest welcomed in Windsor Park boardroom 100 years after historic game linfieldfc com Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 24 March 2014 Richard William Cox Dave Russell Wray Vamplew 2002 Encyclopedia of British football Psychology Press p 219 The IFA and Linfield to agree 51 year Windsor Park deal BBC Sport 22 February 2012 Archived from the original on 5 July 2020 Retrieved 1 July 2020 LINFIELD FOOTBALL CLUB LIMITED Financial Statement PDF Linfield F C 28 March 2019 p 10 Archived PDF from the original on 1 July 2020 Retrieved 1 July 2020 Uefa provides half a million euros to save Windsor Park BBC News 22 January 2010 Archived from the original on 14 July 2014 Retrieved 15 March 2011 Stadiums fit for our heroes on way at last Belfast Telegraph 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Abandoned after 83 minutes Two off then Linfield fans go wild Sunday Mirror Archived from the original on 2 November 2013 Retrieved 14 January 2013 Shane Hickey 22 May 2005 Gardai make arrests as Linfield and Shelbourne fans trade taunts Archived from the original on 15 October 2011 Retrieved 28 February 2011 Linfield criticise supporters ban BBC Sport 9 May 2005 Archived from the original on 31 July 2022 Retrieved 14 January 2013 Linfield fans charged in connection with Setanta match trouble 16 April 2008 Archived from the original on 21 July 2011 Retrieved 28 February 2011 The history of Linfield Part 3 17 September 2009 Archived from the original on 25 July 2011 Retrieved 27 July 2010 BLUES RECEIVE BLATTER PRAISE 8 May 2006 Archived from the original on 6 October 2012 Retrieved 3 August 2011 Kicking politics to touch with a home ground advantage Irish Times 16 February 2011 Archived from the original on 13 August 2011 Retrieved 5 August 2011 Linfield and Cliftonville fined over sectarian chanting BBC Sport 27 February 2014 Archived from the original on 21 March 2014 Retrieved 24 March 2014 Linfield hit out at Irish FA after receiving hefty fine News Letter 1 March 2014 Archived from the original on 24 March 2014 Retrieved 24 March 2014 Linfield and Cliftonville win appeals over sectarian chanting BBC Sport 12 April 2014 Archived from the original on 15 April 2014 Retrieved 13 April 2014 NIFL condemn trouble at Linfield Cliftonville game BBC Sport 31 March 2014 Archived from the original on 21 April 2014 Retrieved 2 April 2014 Linfield fined 1 200 by IFA over sectarian songs Archived 25 May 2014 at the Wayback Machine BBC News 14 May 2014 Linfield face penalties after yobs ruin historic night and attack Celtic players with bottles and coins belfasttelegraph Archived from the original on 26 September 2022 Retrieved 12 July 2021 Two men apologise for mocking murder of Michaela McAreavey irishtimes com Irish Times 3 June 2022 Archived from the original on 3 June 2022 Retrieved 3 June 2022 a b c d e f g Look at Linfield European article by Roy McGivern linfieldfc com 25 July 2013 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Jim Savoured Seven Trophy Success with Linfield linfieldfc com Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 25 July 2013 Crowley Rod 8 February 2011 The Lisbon Lions remembered Celtic s 1967 European Cup Winners Archived from the original on 16 July 2011 Retrieved 16 March 2011 Bradley Steve 22 February 2005 Football s last great taboo ESPN Soccernet Archived from the original on 24 October 2012 Retrieved 16 March 2011 B36 Torshavn 0 0 Linfield Linfield win 4 3 on penalties BBC Sport 10 July 2012 Archived from the original on 31 August 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Champions League qualifier Linfield 0 0 AEL Limassol BBC Sport 25 July 2012 Archived from the original on 29 August 2012 Retrieved 8 July 2014 IF Fuglafjordur 0 2 Linfield BBC Sport 3 July 2013 Archived from the original on 4 July 2013 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Linfield 3 0 IF Fuglafjordur BBC Sport 10 July 2013 Archived from the original on 21 August 2013 Retrieved 8 July 2014 FC Xanthi 0 1 Linfield BBC Sport 18 July 2013 Archived from the original on 12 May 2014 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Linfield 1 2 FC Xanthi BBC Sport 25 July 2013 Archived from the original on 24 October 2013 Retrieved 8 July 2014 B36 Torshavn 1 2 Linfield BBC Sport 3 July 2014 Archived from the original on 7 July 2014 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Europa League Linfield 1 1 B36 Torshavn BBC Sport 8 July 2014 Archived from the original on 8 July 2014 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Europa League Linfield 1 0 AIK BBC Sport 17 July 2014 Archived from the original on 17 July 2014 Retrieved 17 July 2014 Charlie Allen profiled as Leeds United move closer to landing the Linfield youngster Yorkshire Evening Post 15 May 2020 Archived from the original on 9 October 2020 Retrieved 6 October 2020 UEFA 5 year Club Ranking 2022 kassiesa net Archived from the original on 12 November 2020 Retrieved 16 January 2022 First Team Profiles linfieldfc com Archived from the original on 4 September 2015 Retrieved 21 June 2015 New squad numbers linfieldfc com 8 June 2011 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 5 September 2014 Linfield FC Player of the Year 2021 22 award presentation Linfield FC 16 May 2022 Archived from the original on 23 May 2022 Retrieved 23 May 2022 Pride once again linfieldfc com 5 March 2014 Archived from the original on 17 November 2015 Retrieved 8 July 2014 Items of Interest Portadown News 10 September 1938 p 2 Retrieved 20 November 2020 via British Newspaper Archive External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Linfield F C Linfield FC official website Linfield Statistics and Results at the Irish Football Club Project archived 54 34 57 45 N 5 57 18 68 W 54 5826250 N 5 9551889 W 54 5826250 5 9551889 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Linfield F C amp oldid 1219958591, wikipedia, wiki, 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