Donegal Celtic F.C.
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| Full name | Donegal Celtic Football & Sports Club |
|---|---|
| Nickname(s) | "DC", "The Wee Hoops", "Celtic" |
| Founded | 1970 |
| Ground |
Donegal Celtic Park Belfast |
| Capacity | 5,330 (2,650 seats) |
| Manager | Declan McGreevy |
| League | NIFL Premier Intermediate League |
| 2016-17 | 3rd |
Donegal Celtic Football Club is an intermediate football club based in Belfast, Northern Ireland who currently play in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League. The club, founded in 1970, plays its home matches at Donegal Celtic Park. Club colours are green and white in Celtic-style hoops.
Donegal Celtic was formed in 1970 when a group of young men who had a huge interest in football decided to form a team in the Lenadoon district of west Belfast.
With no facilities, kits, pitch or equipment, the first few years were spent playing friendlies and entering local summer competitions, which helped to enhance and promote their reputation and name. They registered their chosen name with the Irish Football League, taking the name from the area in which they were based, Lenadoon, Gweedore, Glenveagh are all local areas named after towns in County Donegal, with the Celtic part being taken on due to the massive local following for Scotland's Celtic, and formerly Belfast Celtic.
The club has a youth setup, covering boys' age groups U10 - U18, and a girl’s set-up at U14. Donegal Celtic Ladies senior side won the 'Belfast Cup' in 2004.
The club's senior men’s team has a chequered and colourful history. After continually applying for Irish League entry they were denied on several occasions and forced to play amateur football, along with County Armagh team Lurgan Celtic. A 1990 cup tie at Linfield involved ground unrest. With accusations of a sectarian selection process and with the threat of court action looming, both clubs finally gained entry into the Irish League 2nd Division for the 2002–03 season.
The club managed to finish in 6th place in their first year in the Irish League proper, which due to a league shake-up was enough to earn promotion to the First Division. The club's second season in Irish League football was marred by poor home form and an inability to cope with the change in standard, finishing in 8th place.
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