About Athlone Town AFC

Athlone Town AFC is one of the oldest football clubs in Ireland, based in Athlone, County Westmeath. The club was founded in 1887 and is recognised as the oldest active club in the League of Ireland. They first joined the national league in the early 1920s and have remained a long-standing part of Irish football history, playing their home matches at the Athlone Town Stadium in Lissywollen.

The club’s early history includes notable achievements, with one of its first major successes coming in 1924 when Athlone Town won the FAI Cup without conceding a goal in the competition. Over the decades, the team moved in and out of top-flight participation before returning permanently in the late 1960s. In the 1980s, Athlone Town reached its peak, winning the League of Ireland twice and also securing League Cup titles, marking the most successful era in the club’s history.

In European competition, Athlone Town has represented Ireland on several occasions, including memorable matches against clubs such as AC Milan and Standard Liège in the 1970s and 1980s. Although they did not progress far in Europe, these campaigns gave the club valuable international experience. In modern times, Athlone Town competes in the League of Ireland First Division and continues to develop both men’s and women’s teams, maintaining its role as an important provincial club in Irish football.