Ireland Under-17 cruise past Panama in World Cup opener

Kenneth Fox

The Republic of Ireland has opened its Under-17 World Cup campaign in style with a 4-1 win against Panama.

Goals from Shamrock Rovers duo Michael Noonan and Max Kovalevskis as well as Jaden Umeh and Kian McMahon-Brown got Colin O'Brien's side off to the perfect start in Qatar.

It's 2-0 to the Republic of Ireland as Kian McMahon-Brown finishes well after some great play.

Excellent display so far by the Boys in Green

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— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) November 5, 2025

Group J opponents Paraguay trail Uzbekistan 2-0 late on.

Ireland will play Uzbekistan on Saturday at 3:45pm Irish time before taking on Paraguay on Tuesday, November 11th at 1:30pm Irish time.