Former Ireland star Campbell announces her retirement

Megan Campbell has announced her retirement from professional football at the age of 32.

Campbell, who won 57 caps for the Republic of Ireland, has been without a club since the end of last season after helping London City Lionesses gain promotion to the Women's Super League.

The Drogheda native began her senior career with St Francis before joining Raheny United in the SSE Airtricity Women's Premier Division, where she stood out early on as a talented player.

Campbell enjoyed an exceptional year in the 2012-13 season as she helped Raheny United win their first title in the League of Ireland, as well as lifting the Sports Direct Women's FAI Cup and being named on the Team of the Season.

By that stage, the athletic defender was already a star on the international stage after scoring the only goal in the 2010 Women's European Under-17 Championship semi-final win over Germany to reach the decider, where Ireland lost in a penalty shootout to Spain. She went on to score against Ghana in the 2010 Under-17 Women's World Cup as the Girls in Green reached the quarter-finals.

In August 2011, Campbell made her senior debut when introduced as a 68th-minute substitute in the friendly loss to Switzerland at Richmond Park. She made her first senior start in the Women's European Championship qualifier loss to France in Cork the next month and then scored her first goal in a Cyprus Cup win over Northern Ireland in March 2013.

Campbell, was nominated for the Senior Women's International Player of the Year award in 2017 and went on to play an important role in helping Ireland to qualify for the 2023 Women's World Cup, only to miss out on selection due to injury.

After spending time in SETU Carlow, Campbell enjoyed a successful college career in the United States with Florida State University before joining Manchester City in 2016, where she won the FA Women's Cup in 2020. She went on to feature for both Liverpool and Everton, before making her move to the English capital.

In April 2025, Campbell broke the Guinness World Record for the longest throw-in for a female footballer after launching the ball 37.55 metres.

Reflecting on her decision, Campbell said: "It's been a while coming, but it’s something that I’ve struggled accepting for a long time now.

"Football has been my life for over 25 years. It has given me so many amazing opportunities, allowed me to travel the world and to meet some of the best people. It has helped me to become the person I am today.

"Unfortunately, I knew that playing the sport I love, and have given everything to, would have to end some day. I just never wanted to believe that it would have come this soon.

"To my family, thank you for your support and love. You gave me advice, held me accountable and always encouraged me to push myself. You had my back and believed in me even when I didn’t. You dedicated your lives to my success, following wherever I went in the world and allowed me to pursue my goals. I’ll be forever grateful to you for that.

"To all my coaches back home in both Drogheda and Dublin, as a kid I could have only ever dreamed of getting a chance to play football as a career and to represent my national team on the biggest stages. You were the first ones to give me a chance to play, to enjoy the freedom of expressing myself, to find my voice and build my confidence, and to take those lessons with me throughout my entire footballing journey. Thank you.

"To my team-mates, I’ve had the pleasure of playing with across three countries. Thank you for your dedication and commitment; you not only made a massive impact on me, but on the sport itself. So many young girls around the world went on to play our beautiful game because of you. You pushed me beyond what I thought was possible and helped pull me through some of my darkest days off the pitch.

"To my coaches at a professional level, thank you for placing your trust in me. You gave me an opportunity to experience some of the highest highs in this sport. You listened, gave advice and valued me as a person and then as a player. You taught me lessons that I will try to pass on to the next generations of young girls wanting to play football at the highest level. Your dedication and commitment to the women’s game has helped to transform the sport and given fantastic opportunities to many people.

"To all those who have helped shape my career and push me beyond my limits, you know who you are, thank you.

"To Ireland, this is the hardest one to accept. Representing a beautiful nation of people with a passion and determination to fight for their country and for one another meant more than anything to me. For those who came before and drove its existence, to those who stand present today lucky enough to pull on the jersey and to those yet to do so, I envy you."

Campbell's retirement follows those of former Ireland team-mates Áine O'Gorman, Karen Duggan and Rianna Jarrett at the weekend.

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