We should all jump aboard a true Mayo adventure

As we enter the New Year, there is no more fitting a time for a football fan in the west to look ahead than now. Mayo FC will soon be sending its first teams into the National League at under-14 and -15 boys level, with an under-17s girls team as well. The plan culminates in 2026 where the club, launched last summer, intends to enter a senior team into the league, giving the county its first taste of senior national competition. It’s a superb sign of progress and a clear pathway for our talented young soccer players, where they can aim to play at a level previously unavailable without considerable travel to Sligo, Galway or even further. Looking to the future of Mayo FC, it’s fascinating to analyse where it can go, what it can do and the trajectory it may take.

Football in Ireland has been a landmine for clubs in less urban areas; even the likes of Sporting Fingal hit the graveyard of ambition when their reach exceeded their grasp. Mayo will have a big job on their hands to ensure the stability of the club and make sure this pathway for talented youth is around far into the future, and doesn’t disappear into the abyss a few years after its inception.

The club will need to tap into a local fanbase and get them behind them right away. The social media team has already been active on sites like X (formerly Twitter), engaging with the creative process of the club’s new crest. It’s a positive start to the fanbase building that will be crucial to ensuring the longevity of the League of Ireland’s newest addition. It’s an exciting era to enter into and the excitement will only build as the projects reveal themselves and as the club makes its way down the timeline of its progression.

The promise of players in Mayo has long been apparent to the league. David Cawley, John Mountney, Ronan Murray, Luke McNicholas and so on, the long list of high calibre players from the Plain of the Yews would have made a terrifically strong starting 11 in their prime and shows the practical, competitive aspect of a national Mayo side has more than enough merit to stand on its own two feet. Nourishing that talent under the tutelage of coaches in our own county will see immense benefits and likely, a huge increase in the amount of players that commit to the sporting code also. The appointment to the youth system of big names with experience of playing in the League of Ireland, like Raffaele Cretaro, just exemplifies how much emphasis is being placed on developing our own talent and the wealth of ability available in coaching.

But the biggest thing for fans of the club to remember will be to not expect the success to roll in right away. The youth teams come first, rolling in each year before 2026 when, as previously mentioned, the senior team is planned to be entered. That team will most likely consist of the youth players that will have had a few years to progress, with some experienced older heads in the dressing-room alongside them to guide them through professional football.

Kerry FC struggled through their first year in the First Division, with just one victory in the 36-game competition. However, that is not what mattered most. What mattered to the Kingdom is that they now have a pathway for their young footballers, and success can be built off the back of the hard work put in during their early years.

So for Mayo FC fans in the not-so-distant future, do not expect Mayo to be challenging or even be an imposing force on the First Division in their first year, but be appreciative of the work that has been put in to achieve this reality, and how the young players out on the pitch have a future to chase and are doing it in their home county. Support the club not because of winning, or success, but so that you too can play a part in sustaining what will be the biggest step in the development of soccer in Co Mayo’s history. Putting bums in seats will be one of the biggest assistances you can offer to the club, and encouraging others to get out and support the team too.

The potential journey – watching Mayo FC make its way through the Irish football pyramid – is one of the big draws to support the club as well. Imagine being able to say you were there in the early years when struggles were high, when you’ve just watched the club seal promotion or pull off some big result in the cup. Linking back with the work the club can do with the local community, these are angles that the club can promote as reasons for getting behind them early doors.

There has long been untapped potential in the West of Ireland, and with two Connacht clubs in the Premier Division next year and Mayo soon entering the footballing hierarchy, the club can capitalise on the rising popularity and catch some of those players from Sligo Rovers or Galway United who may not be making the grade there and give them a second lease of life in football. The neighbouring counties have harboured some of our own finest talents and the time may finally come to return the favour to Mayo FC’s advantage.