Shamrock Rovers F.C. - Supporters and Rivalries

Supporters and Rivalries

The majority of Shamrock Rovers supporters originate from the Southside of Dublin, but the club attracts fans from across the city and country. Since its foundation, the club has maintained a proud Irish identity, and their supporters reflect this in the flags and banners they display. Their support base contains a number of clubs dedicated to supporting the team at away games. It also contains an ultras group, which was the first formed in Ireland, the SRFC Ultras, who produce choreographed displays of support at games. They have connections with other European groups including supporters of Roma, Hammarby and Panathinaikos.

Until the 1970s, Glenmalure Park regularly hosted attendances in the region of 20,000 people, but as the majority of the Irish public turned its back on Irish football, those numbers declined and despite winning the League of Ireland four times in succession in the 1980s, the attendances for the period averaged approximately a quarter of that figure. The sale of the stadium contributed to a further decline in support. During the homeless years, particularly those spent on the Northside, attendances continued to fall with the exception of those recorded during the club's residence at the RDS, which included an opening attendance of 22,000. Prior to the relocation to Tallaght, the club's support base had been reduced to a hardcore group of over a thousand people. It currently includes approximately 2,700 season ticket holders.

Throughout their history, Shamrock Rovers have shared many rivalries of differing importance and intensity. The oldest such rivalry is that shared with Shelbourne, formed on the basis of the clubs' foundations in Ringsend. It remains as a secondary rivalry of similar importance to the local derby contested with St. Patrick's Athletic. During the 1950s and 1960s, the club's principal rival was, the now defunct, Drumcondra. In the 1970s, they were replaced as the major club on the Northside by Bohemians. Since then, the relatively minor rivalry that existed between Shamrock Rovers and Bohemians has developed into a classic rivalry, producing intense games and large attendances.