Michael Andrew Martin O'Neill (born 5 July 1969) is a

Northern Irish Northern Irish people is a demonym for all people born in Northern Ireland or people who are entitled to reside in Northern Ireland without any restriction on their period of residence. Most Northern Irish people either identify as Northern ...

football manager ''Football Manager'' (also known as ''Worldwide Soccer Manager'' in North America from 2004 to 2008) is a series of football management simulation video games developed by British developer Sports Interactive and published by Sega. The game bega ...

and former

player Player may refer to: Role or adjective * Player (game), a participant in a game or sport ** Gamer, a player in video and tabletop games ** Athlete, a player in sports ** Player character, a character in a video game or role playing game who ...

, who is currently manager of the Northern Ireland national team, his second spell in charge, having previously managed them between 2011 and 2020. O'Neill started his playing career in his native

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...

with Coleraine, before playing for a number of clubs in England, Scotland and the United States, including Newcastle United,

Dundee United Dundee United Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in the city of Dundee. The club name is usually abbreviated to Dundee United. Formed in 1909, originally as Dundee Hibernian, the club changed to the present name in 1 ...

, Hibernian,

Wigan Athletic Wigan Athletic Football Club () is an English professional association football club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester, England. The team competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1932, ...

and Portland Timbers. He was

capped In sport, a cap is a player's appearance in a game at international level. The term dates from the practice in the United Kingdom of awarding a cap to every player in an international match of rugby football and association football. In the ea ...

31 times at international level by

, scoring four goals. His first managerial role was with

Brechin City Brechin City Football Club is a Scottish football club based in the townDespite the name of the football club, Brechin is not an official city. Brechin was historically known as a city because it has a cathedral. of Brechin in Angus. The club ...

from 2006 to 2008. He then joined Shamrock Rovers, where he won two

League of Ireland The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally use ...

titles and the

Setanta Cup The Setanta Sports Cup was a club football competition featuring teams from both football associations on the island of Ireland. Inaugurated in 2005, it was a cross-border competition between clubs in the League of Ireland from the Republic of I ...

. He became Northern Ireland manager in 2011 and, under his management, they qualified for their first ever European Champions finals in

2016 File:2016 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Bombed-out buildings in Ankara following the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt; the Impeachment of Dilma Rousseff, impeachment trial of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff; Damaged houses duri ...

. In November 2019, O'Neill was appointed manager at Stoke City. He lasted just under 3 years in the role before he was sacked in August 2022.

Early life

O'Neill was born in

Portadown Portadown () is a town in County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The town sits on the River Bann in the north of the county, about southwest of Belfast. It is in the Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council area and had a population of a ...

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of an ...

, to parents Dessie and Patricia O'Neill. His father, Dessie played hurling for All Saints and

Ulster Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United Kin ...

whilst his brother Sean, was a track athlete who competed in the Men's 800 metres at the 1982 Commonwealth Games. Raised Catholic, he briefly attended Presentation Convent Primary School before the family moved to Ballymena,

County Antrim County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, ) is one of six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and has a population o ...

. In Ballymena he attended All Saints Primary School and later St Louis Grammar School, where he won the Northern Ireland Schools FA Cup in 1980 against St Oliver Plunkett whose side included

Jim Magilton James Magilton (born 6 May 1969) is a Northern Irish football manager and former professional player. As a player, he was a midfielder who notably played in the Premier League for Southampton, Sheffield Wednesday and Ipswich Town. He started hi ...

. He was also a promising Gaelic games player, representing Antrim GAA minors, before concentrating on football. He played youth football for Ballymena team Star United for four years before joining intermediate club Chimney Corner as a 14-year-old. His manager Alec McKee didn't think it was right to try to integrate a 14/15-year-old into his first team and thought he should play for Coleraine's reserve side.

Club career

O'Neill was brought in to Coleraine by former Northern Ireland internationals Bertie Peacock and

Jim Platt James Archibald Platt (born 26 January 1952) is a former footballer who played as a goalkeeper for Northern Ireland. Playing career During his career, Platt won 23 caps for Northern Ireland, an amount largely restricted due to the presence of ...

, making his debut in the Irish League at the age of 15 and was a regular in the side by the age of 18. After playing against

in a

UEFA Cup A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, china, clay ...

tie in 1987 O'Neill came close to joining the Scottish club. In October 1987 he was signed by Newcastle United for a £100,000 fee. After scoring 13 goals in 22 appearances during his first season and helping Newcastle finish eighth in the First Division, O'Neill suffered from injuries and loss of form in his second season which saw Newcastle relegated to the Second Division. O'Neill joined Dundee United in August 1989 for a club record fee of £350,000. A difficult relationship with manager

Jim McLean James Yuille McLean (2 August 1937 – 26 December 2020) was a Scottish football player, manager and director. He managed Dundee United between 1971 and 1993, becoming the longest-serving and most successful manager in the club's history, winn ...

came to a head in 1991 when O'Neill refused to extend his contract and was dropped from the first team. He left the club in 1993 joining Hibernian where he had three successful seasons under the management of

Alex Miller Alex Miller (born 4 July 1949) is a Scottish football manager and former player. As a player, he had a 15-year career with Rangers, winning several trophies. As a manager, he won the 1991–92 Scottish League Cup with Hibernian. He subsequen ...

. O'Neill agreed to join Austrian club

Sturm Graz Sportklub Sturm Graz is an Austrian association football club, based in Graz, Styria, playing in the Austrian Football Bundesliga. The club was founded in 1909. Its colours are black and white. In its history, Sturm Graz has won the Austrian f ...

on a Bosman free transfer in 1996 but changed his mind after an offer to return to English football with

Coventry City Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. The club is nicknamed t ...

where he spent just over two years. After spending time on loan to

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

and

Reading Reading is the process of taking in the sense or meaning of letters, symbols, etc., especially by sight or touch. For educators and researchers, reading is a multifaceted process involving such areas as word recognition, orthography (spelling ...

during the 1997–98 season O'Neill left Coventry to sign for

in September 1998. He later played for St Johnstone, Portland Timbers, Clydebank,

Glentoran Glentoran Football Club is a professional football club that plays in the NIFL Premiership. The club was founded in 1882. History Early history In 1914, Glentoran won the Vienna Cup, becoming the first United Kingdom team to win a European t ...

and

Ayr United Ayr United Football Club are a football club in Ayr, Scotland, who play in the Scottish Championship, the second tier of the Scottish Professional Football League. Formed in 1910 by the merger of Ayr Parkhouse and Ayr F.C., their nickname is ...

International career

O'Neill played for the under-21, under-23, B and full international teams of

. He scored four goals for the national team, including two in a 5–3 win against

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Managerial career

O'Neill retired from playing football in 2004 and began a career in financial services. A year later he took a part-time role as assistant manager at

Cowdenbeath Cowdenbeath (; sco, Coudenbeith) is a town and burgh in west Fife, Scotland. It is north-east of Dunfermline and north of the capital, Edinburgh. The town grew up around the extensive coalfields of the area and became a police burgh in 189 ...

, working with

Mixu Paatelainen Mika-Matti Petteri Paatelainen (born 3 February 1967) is a Finnish former professional football player and the head coach of Veikkausliiga club HIFK. He scored 18 goals in 70 appearances for the Finnish national team, which makes him Finland's ...

Brechin City

O'Neill became manager of Scottish side

in April 2006. He won the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

Manager of the Month award in both December 2007 and October 2008. O'Neill was released by Brechin City to join Shamrock Rovers on 13 December 2008.

Shamrock Rovers

At the press conference when unveiled as Rovers manager, O'Neill cited

Gordon Strachan Gordon David Strachan ( born 9 February 1957) is a Scottish former football coach and player. He played for Dundee, Aberdeen, Manchester United, Leeds United and Coventry City, as well as the Scotland national team. He has since managed Co ...

as his main managerial influence. He was awarded the Irish Soccer Writers Manager of the Month award for July 2009 and eventually guided The Hoops to second place in the

2009 League of Ireland The 2009 League of Ireland Premier Division was the 25th season of the League of Ireland Premier Division. The division was made up of 10 teams. Bohemians were champions while Shamrock Rovers finished as runners-up. Teams Overview The 20 ...

. In October 2010, he guided Shamrock Rovers to win the

2010 League of Ireland The 2010 League of Ireland Premier Division was the 26th season of the League of Ireland Premier Division. The division was made up of 10 teams. Shamrock Rovers were champions while Bohemians finished as runners-up. Teams Overview Airtrici ...

title, their first league championship since 1994. O'Neill led Rovers to the

2011 Setanta Sports Cup The 2011 Setanta Sports Cup was the sixth staging of the all Ireland association football competition. It commenced on 14 February 2011 with the final played on 14 May 2011. The draw for the 2011 competition was made at Belfast City Hall on 13 ...

and then made history by being the first manager of a

team to reach the group stages of a

European competition The European Competition is a student competition in which students of all ages submit creative, artistic, or written pieces of work on the activities of the European Union. Tendered by European Movement Germany, it is the oldest student competition ...

. Rovers defeated

Partizan Belgrade Jugoslovensko sportsko društvo Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, Југословенско спортско друштво Партизан, lit=Yugoslav Sports Society Partizan), commonly abbreviated as JSD Partizan ( sr-Cyrl, ЈСД Партизан, link ...

in the play-off round of the

2011–12 UEFA Europa League The 2011–12 UEFA Europa League was the third season of the UEFA Europa League, Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 41st edition overall including its predecessor, the UEFA Cup. It began on 30 June 2011 with t ...

. Shamrock Rovers retained their league title in the 2011 season. New contract talks between O'Neill and Shamrock Rovers stalled and he left the club in December 2011. O'Neill won the Soccer Writers Association Personality of the Year award for 2011.

Northern Ireland

O'Neill was appointed manager of

on 28 December 2011, with one report stating he was "the first Catholic in 50 years to manage Northern Ireland". However, this is almost certainly untrue, since previous managers Lawrie Sanchez (2004–07) and Lawrie McMenemy (1998–99) were both educated in Roman Catholic schools. O'Neill's first game in charge ended in defeat with a 3–0 loss to

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

. In his next game an inexperienced Northern Ireland team were beaten 6–0 by the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

in Amsterdam. During their 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification, Northern Ireland earned some creditable results, including a 1–1 draw away to

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

and a 1–0 home win against

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. In November 2013, O'Neill agreed a new two-year deal with Irish Football Association to remain as Northern Ireland manager. Northern Ireland qualified for their first ever European Championship,

Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe o ...

in France after beating

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

3–1 at Windsor Park on 8 October 2015. It was the first time in 30 years that Northern Ireland had qualified for a major tournament. At the tournament itself he led the side to the second round, losing narrowly to

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

but recorded a surprise victory over

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

in the group stages. In January 2018, O'Neill turned down an offer to become manager of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

following discussions with the Scottish Football Association. O'Neill initially continued as Northern Ireland manager after his appointment by Stoke City in November 2019. He had intended to stay on for

UEFA Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...

playoffs, which had been scheduled for March 2020, but these were postponed by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...

. With the Euro 2020 playoffs delayed at least until the autumn of 2020, O'Neill resigned as Northern Ireland manager on 22 April.

Stoke City

O'Neill was appointed manager of EFL Championship club Stoke City on 8 November 2019. He joined Stoke with the side bottom of the 2019–20 EFL Championship table after struggling under the management of Nathan Jones. O'Neill won his first match in charge of Stoke, 4–2 away at Barnsley on 9 November. Stoke began to improve and secured vital victories over

Luton Town Luton Town Football Club () is a professional association football club based in the town of Luton, Bedfordshire, England, that competes in the Championship, the second tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1885, it is nicknam ...

Sheffield Wednesday Sheffield Wednesday Football Club is a professional association football club based in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1867 as an offshoot ...

and

Huddersfield Town Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...

, helping the team move out of the relegation zone at the turn of the year. In the January transfer window O'Neill cancelled the loans of Cameron Carter-Vickers, Mark Duffy and Scott Hogan, whilst also letting Peter Etebo, Badou Ndiaye and Ryan Woods leave on loan. Into the team came Northern Irish midfielder Jordan Thompson from Blackpool, center-back

James Chester James Grant Chester (born 23 January 1989) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back and is a free agent. Chester began his career with Manchester United but made only one appearance for the club. He had spells on loan at Peter ...

on loan from Aston Villa and young midfielder Tashan Oakley-Boothe from

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

. Stoke beat

Hull City Hull City Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving from Boothferry Park in 2002. The club's t ...

5–1 on 7 March 2020 moving the team three points above the drop with nine remaining matches. The Championship was suspended on 13 March due to the

. Championship squads returned to training on 25 May with the intention to finish the season behind closed doors. Stoke's preparations for the season restart were disrupted after O'Neill tested positive for coronavirus on 9 June which caused a training match against Manchester United to be cancelled. Stoke won four of the remaining nine matches to avoid relegation and finish in 15th position, finishing eight points clear of the relegation zone. Due to the ongoing pandemic the 2020–21 season began later in September with matches continuing to played behind closed doors. O'Neill brought in a number of free transfers including

, Morgan Fox, Steven Fletcher and

Mikel John Obi Mikel John Obi (born John Michael Nchekwube Obinna; 22 April 1987) is a Nigerian former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder. Mikel began his career with local club Plateau United, before joining Norwegian club Lyn at th ...

with

Jacob Brown Jacob Jennings Brown (May 9, 1775 – February 24, 1828) was known for his victories as an American army officer in the War of 1812, where he reached the rank of general. His successes on the northern border during that war made him a national ...

the only arrival to have been bought. Stoke began the season well with Tyrese Campbell in decent form, winning eight of their first 16 matches and were just outside the play-off places at the beginning of December. However a number of injuries to key players most notably to Tyrese Campbell saw goals dry up and the team went nine games without a win at the turn of the year. Stoke were unable to put a sustained run of results together in March and April and ended the season in mid-table. Stoke had a busy 2021 summer transfer window with the permanent departure of 13 players. This enabled O'Neill to add to his squad with the arrivals of Jack Bonham, Romaine Sawyers, Sam Surridge, Mario Vrančić and Ben Wilmot. Stoke made a positive start to the season and were just outside the play-off places at the turn of the year. However a poor second half of the season saw Stoke drop down into mid-table and again finish in 14th position. Stoke made a poor start to the 2022–23 season, with one win from five games, O'Neill was sacked by the club on 25 August 2022.

Return to Northern Ireland

On 7 December 2022, O'Neill returned for a second spell as

manager on a five-and-a-half year contract.

Personal life

O'Neill was awarded an

MBE Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

for Northern Ireland's performance at

UEFA Euro 2016 The 2016 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2016 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2016) or simply Euro 2016, was the 15th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...

. In April 2022, O'Neill underwent

hip replacement Hip replacement is a surgical procedure in which the hip joint is replaced by a prosthetic implant, that is, a hip prosthesis. Hip replacement surgery can be performed as a total replacement or a hemi (half) replacement. Such joint replacement o ...

surgery.

Career statistics

Club

International

Managerial statistics

Honours

Player

Wigan Athletic *

Football League Trophy The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...

: 1998–99 Glentoran * Irish League Premier Division: 2002–03 *

Irish League Cup The Northern Ireland Football League Cup (BetMcLean League Cup for sponsorship purposes), also known colloquially as the Irish League Cup, is a national football knock-out cup competition in Northern Ireland open to all member clubs of the Nort ...

: 2002–03 *

County Antrim Shield The County Antrim & District Football Association Senior Shield (more commonly known as the County Antrim Shield) is a football competition in Northern Ireland. The competition is open to senior teams who are members of the North East Ulster Fo ...

: 2003

Manager

;Shamrock Rovers * League of Ireland Premier Division: 2010, 2011 *

Setanta Sports Cup The Setanta Sports Cup was a club football competition featuring teams from both football associations on the island of Ireland. Inaugurated in 2005, it was a cross-border competition between clubs in the League of Ireland from the Republic of I ...

: 2011

Individual

* SWAI Personality of the Year: 2011 *

Philips Sports Manager of the Year The Philips Sports Manager of the Year is an award for the person considered the most outstanding Irish sports manager or coach of a particular year. The award is contested by the twelve winners of the year's Philips Sports Manager of the Month ...

: 2015 (joint winner) * BBC Sports Personality of the Year Coach Award: 2015 * Scottish Football League Second Division Manager of the Month: December 2007, October 2008

Decorations

* Member of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Oneill, Michael 1969 births Living people People from Portadown Association footballers from Northern Ireland Association football midfielders Chimney Corner F.C. players Coleraine F.C. players Newcastle United F.C. players Dundee United F.C. players Hibernian F.C. players Coventry City F.C. players Aberdeen F.C. players Reading F.C. players Wigan Athletic F.C. players St Johnstone F.C. players Portland Timbers (2001–2010) players Clydebank F.C. (1965) players Glentoran F.C. players Ayr United F.C. players NIFL Premiership players English Football League players Scottish Football League players Premier League players Scottish Premier League players A-League (1995–2004) players Northern Ireland under-21 international footballers Northern Ireland B international footballers Northern Ireland international footballers Expatriate association footballers from Northern Ireland Expatriate sportspeople from Northern Ireland in the United States Expatriate soccer players in the United States Football managers from Northern Ireland Brechin City F.C. managers Shamrock Rovers F.C. managers Northern Ireland national football team managers Stoke City F.C. managers Scottish Football League managers League of Ireland managers English Football League managers UEFA Euro 2016 managers Expatriate football managers from Northern Ireland Expatriates from Northern Ireland in the Republic of Ireland Expatriate football managers in the Republic of Ireland Members of the Order of the British Empire