Eligibility Rules, Okay

**OMTY** · 29/05/2018, 9:06 AM

Question for the experts here.

Following a discussion with a few friends I was wondering if a granny qualified Irish player has a son born in England are they a)entitled to an Irish passport and b) entitled to play for Ireland? Seeing as how they would technically be 3 generations removed from anyone born here.

**Olé Olé** · 29/05/2018, 10:38 AM

I'll bow to someone who can tell me to the contrary, but I think the answer is no. As you say, they wouldn't have an Irish grandparent born here and so wouldn't qualify for the passport. I remember Danny Invincible citing Aiden McGeady once as having said he considered having his children born in Ireland as they don't qualify for an Irish passport because their father qualified through his grandparents.

**osarusan** · 29/05/2018, 12:20 PM

Originally Posted by OMTY

Question for the experts here.

Following a discussion with a few friends I was wondering if a granny qualified Irish player has a son born in England are they a)entitled to an Irish passport and b) entitled to play for Ireland? Seeing as how they would technically be 3 generations removed from anyone born here.

If the granny-qualified player becomes an Irish citizen before he has a son, then yes, the son is entitled to an Irish passport (and, as I understand it, all descendants in perpetuity are similarly entitled to it, as long as they keep availing of their citizenship before they have their kids).

See Type E here: http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en...r_descent.html

But I don't think he would be eligible for the Irish team on that basis alone.

**osarusan** · 29/05/2018, 12:24 PM

Originally Posted by Olé Olé

I'll bow to someone who can tell me to the contrary, but I think the answer is no. As you say, they wouldn't have an Irish grandparent born here and so wouldn't qualify for the passport. I remember Danny Invincible citing Aiden McGeady once as having said he considered having his children born in Ireland as they don't qualify for an Irish passport because their father qualified through his grandparents.

Qualifying for the passport would be a citizenship issue, not an eligibility issue.

**Olé Olé** · 14/06/2018, 4:07 PM

Think i did this for the Algeria squad at the last World Cup but had a look at the Morocco squad there- per Wikipedia, only 6 of their 23-man squad were born in Morocco. 8 were born in France and 5 in the Netherlands. Spain, Belgium and Canada make up the remainder. Interesting.

**tetsujin1979** · 14/06/2018, 4:13 PM

noticed this earlier, Leyton Orient signed Letterkenny born Dale Gorman. However, he's playing for Northern Ireland U21s, having also played for their U17 and U19 sides. Can't find how he qualifies for the North, although presumably through parentage.

**Olé Olé** · 14/06/2018, 5:07 PM

Originally Posted by tetsujin1979

noticed this earlier, Leyton Orient signed Letterkenny born Dale Gorman. However, he's playing for Northern Ireland U21s, having also played for their U17 and U19 sides. Can't find how he qualifies for the North, although presumably through parentage.

Someone got to the bottom of that a while ago on here. His father, anyways, is former Finn Harps player and manager Anthony Gorman, who I think is a Donegal man himself. He played a few seasons for Irish Leagues clubs so may have married a woman in that area. Dale went to secondary school in Derry and played for NI schools which is how he progressed into the NI underage side, from my recollection

**Blue Lou** · 06/07/2018, 2:56 PM

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-44736780

Fifa's nationality rules
Footballers who have played a competitive international for one team cannot switch to another national side.
But this rule has been relaxed to allow footballers to change nationality from junior to senior level.
Friendlies are not binding - so Diego Costa was able to switch to Spain after playing friendlies for Brazil, as did Belgium's Nacer Chadli after a Morocco friendly.
Players with no blood connection to a country are only allowed to represent it if they have lived and played there for five years.
But this is different for refugees, who can play upon receiving citizenship without having to wait to wait five years.

The emboldened bit isn't true, is it?

**geysir** · 07/07/2018, 9:48 PM

Originally Posted by Blue Lou

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-44736780

Players with no blood connection to a country are only allowed to represent it if they have lived and played there for five years.
But this is different for refugees, who can play upon receiving citizenship without having to wait to wait five years.

The emboldened bit isn't true, is it?

In general that statement has a (moral) veracity because the refugee has lost the citizenship of the birth country possibly due to illegitimate actions on behalf of the birth country or possibly for some other outstanding compelling reasons the person has had to exit the birth country. The player is stateless because of circumstances beyond his/her control. As soon as the refugee (footballer) satisfies the adopted country's citizenship rules, then FIFA are also satisfied. Offhand though, 5 years sounds a regular period of residence unless a citizenship application is fast forwarded with political intervention.
If citizenship was granted within a 5 year period, FIFA would require paperwork evidence of refugee status in order to be satisfied, like any decent bureaucracy. I don't see anything out of the ordinary with this, the world's social infrastructure is in a state of constant flus and FIFA try to keep up with protecting the sporting civil rights of the player. FIFA ain't all bad. The rules of eligibility go a long way to supporting the footballers right to play international football.

**nigel-harps1954** · 12/07/2018, 11:59 AM

Isn't that how Xherdan Shaqiri plays with Switzerland? He's actually from Kosovo with no blood connection to Switzerland.

**pineapple stu** · 12/07/2018, 12:01 PM

He's living there since the age of 1 though. He'd have residency long ago

**nigel-harps1954** · 12/07/2018, 12:19 PM

Originally Posted by pineapple stu

He's living there since the age of 1 though. He'd have residency long ago

Fair point that.

**Olé Olé** · 24/07/2018, 7:58 PM

Michael Duffy was just on Off the Ball and asked what international side he wanted to play for. He said he would refuse neither O'Neill "but if I had to choose, I'd play for the Republic."

**Olé Olé** · 28/08/2018, 7:26 PM

https://m.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/spo...-37255968.html

This all got lost in the Rice drama yesterday but O'Neill has very clearly confirmed that he's hoping to bring Michael Duffy into the Ireland fold. Positive new that. He could have a good career ahead of him. It's also positive that O'Neill isn't afraid to approach a person born in the six counties, although Duffy has clearly stated he'd play for either but Ireland would be his preference.

**DeLorean** · 29/08/2018, 9:01 AM

Originally Posted by nigel-harps1954

Fair point that.

Originally Posted by Olé Olé

Positive news that.

I can only read this kind of lingo in an English accent.

**liamoo11** · 07/09/2018, 8:38 PM

Lads Can anyone explain how okoflex is english eligible? My Understanding was It was because he was in School there From 11 to 16 but is that rule Is just a home nations rule ? Thanks

**Charlie Darwin** · 08/09/2018, 12:24 AM

Originally Posted by liamoo11

Lads Can anyone explain how okoflex is english eligible? My Understanding was It was because he was in School there From 11 to 16 but is that rule Is just a home nations rule ? Thanks

It's not a rule for, I suspect, good reason. The rule is five years continuous residency over the age of 18. FIFA make exceptions in the cases of children who were born in one country and grew up in another who don't have nationality through their parents on a case-by-case, but it's not in the rule book itself.

**liamoo11** · 08/09/2018, 11:38 AM

Originally Posted by Charlie Darwin

It's not a rule for, I suspect, good reason. The rule is five years continuous residency over the age of 18. FIFA make exceptions in the cases of children who were born in one country and grew up in another who don't have nationality through their parents on a case-by-case, but it's not in the rule book itself.

thanks Charles. So how Is He eligible for them So? It must be a Parenthood on grandparent?

**cestlavie** · 08/09/2018, 4:01 PM

Originally Posted by Olé Olé

Someone got to the bottom of that a while ago on here. His father, anyways, is former Finn Harps player and manager Anthony Gorman, who I think is a Donegal man himself. He played a few seasons for Irish Leagues clubs so may have married a woman in that area. Dale went to secondary school in Derry and played for NI schools which is how he progressed into the NI underage side, from my recollection

Think, I clarified this before.

Dale Gorman, was born in Altnagalvin Hospital in Derry, but he has always lived and went to school in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal. His mother and father are also from Donegal. He played for Donegal Schoolboys in all the national competitions. He captained the Northern Ireland U21 team on Thursday.

**Olé Olé** · 08/09/2018, 5:22 PM

Originally Posted by cestlavie

Think, I clarified this before.

Dale Gorman, was born in Altnagalvin Hospital in Derry, but he has always lived and went to school in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal. His mother and father are also from Donegal. He played for Donegal Schoolboys in all the national competitions. He captained the Northern Ireland U21 team on Thursday.

That is fair madness. How in the name of God does he see fit to still line out for them? Wouldn't he have been picked for our under 21 side?