Let’s not suffer World Cup FOMO ever again as football moves on from the summer of 2026
Ireland have to be on the biggest stage of all in Spain, Portugal or Morocco in 2030
Cathal Dervan, Editor
It is almost time to park the 2026 FIFA World Cup. Almost. With the League of Ireland vibrant and exciting, with our top clubs active in Europe and with the return of the English and Scottish Premier Divisions only around the corner, the world will move on from the World Cup.
That’s football. One of the beauties of the game, one of the facts facing any supporter dealing with a massive letdown from their team is the simple fact that there’s always another game on the horizon.
Rodri will return to Manchester City in a couple of weeks. Mbappe will be wearing the Real Madrid shirt again. Ronaldo will play on, regardless of his age, in Saudi Arabia. Messi will be back on South Beach in Miami alongside new team-mate Vozinho. And Pico will finally have ventured back into Dunnes Stores in Kilnamanagh for the big shop.
article continues below
Life will return to normal - or as normal as it gets for some of the superstars of international football, as normal as it will ever be again for Vozinha and Pico after their Cape Verde heroics.
We will still have the great moments of the summer of 2026 to fall back on. We will always have those magical plays from France, the tactical genius of Spain, the false promise of England, the farce of the American President’s red card interference, the 308 goals across 104 games, the Scottish bagpipes, the Viking rowers, the hydration breaks, the four quarters, Argentina’s comeback in Miami, the Torres winner again the overly aggressive Argies in the final.
Those positive memories will be there whenever our World Cup vibe needs a boost, whenever we feel like looking back at a tournament that delivered probably more than most of us expected, a tournament which proved once again that the World Cup can suck you in and stick to you like no other sporting event on the planet. It is still an essential watch every four years.
And now it is time to move on. And debate what it all means for Irish football after a summer when one of our own reversed the granny rule and starred for his father’s country on the international stage.
Four years from now Spain, Portugal and Morocco will be the main hosts for a tournament likely to be expanded to 64 teams - with Uruguay, Argentina and Paraguay also hosting games to mark the 100th anniversary of this great event.
That expansion to the Beatles number is an interesting one. Will we get to love the World Cup as Ireland fans when it’s 64? Apologies to Beatles fans but it is an interesting question to ponder post the summer of 48 guns - and that’s an alarming attempt at humour.
There’s no guarantee that Europe will get significantly more teams at the next World Cup. That ignoramus Infantino is a dab hand at harvesting votes from the smaller confederations as he clings to his tainted power and you would have to suspect that votes equals more teams at the next World Cup finals for those who keep Trump’s mate in office.
So what we have to ensure is that Ireland qualify on the pitch next time around. And I’m hopeful. The Troy Parrott generation will be four years older and have the benefit of the Euro 28 campaign behind them.
The kids coming up behind Troy - the Noonans, Melias, Umehs and Devanneys - will be senior internationals by then. A generational talent may well have exploded from the traps. We might even have a Head Coach who knows how to protect a two goal lead in a play-off away from home and see it through. It won’t be the current incumbent by the way but that’s a story for another day.
Who knows, four years from now the FAI might have sorted itself out and realised that it is a members association, not a supermarket chain.
What we cannot do is allow another World Cup to pass us by. Norway and Scotland have had their shot at the ‘best fans in the world’ title. It’s time to get the champions back in the ring.
Let’s do whatever needs to be done to get Ireland back on the World Cup stage in 2030. We deserve another Ray Houghton moment of our own.
AROUND THE HEADLINES
Kevin Palmer: I owed him my name so getting a chance to work with Kevin Keegan was a special moment - Irish Independent
Potential European opponents revealed for four Irish clubs - Extratime.com
Possibilities abound as Hoops face Armenian test - RTE Sport
Shelbourne solve goalkeeper crisis with signing of Kilmarnock man with League of Ireland experience - Irish Mirror
Fifa opens investigation into Argentina post-final trouble - BBC Sport
NOTE TO READERS
You may have noticed that there was no email from us (again) yesterday… as we wind down with the World Cup, we’re also preparing for the new European seasons as well as concentrating on our podcasts.
For the next few weeks, we’ll be publishing twice a week to ensure that the quality and relevance of our content meets your expectations. As always, we welcome reader feedback, so please do reply to our emails if you have any suggestions or comments.
Renowned coach and coach educator Larry Mahony joins us for his regular chat and discusses the finale to the World Cup, the non-football from Argentina versus the patient approach from Spain - catch up with Larry at www.bigpicturecoachingIreland.com.
Watch the full episode now on TheSportsHacks.com
or you can listen to all of our podcasts on our Spotify channel
Check our socials (X here or insta here or tiktok here) for all the latest or just to see the World Cup giraffes again!
No noise, just the news & views that matters. The Sports Hacks is a reader supported publication - if you like what you read, please consider becoming a free or paid subscriber and sharing our work.