Derry City F.C. Women is the women's association football department of Derry City F.C., in Derry, Northern Ireland.[1] It was founded in 2002 by Declan Devine and in 2007 affiliated to the Northern Ireland Women's Football Association; since 2015 it has played in the Women's Premiership. Its home matches have been played at various grounds, recently including the Brandywell Stadium used by the men's senior team.
| Full name | Derry City Football Club Women |
|---|---|
| Short name | Derry City Women |
| Founded | 2002 |
| Ground | Brandywell Stadium |
| Capacity | 7,700 |
| Manager | Kevin McLaughlin |
| League | Women's Premiership |
| 2021 | 6th |
| Website | Club website |
To coincide with the men's team's 75th anniversary, Derry City Ladies were formed and played their first match at the men's team's Brandywell Stadium against Donegal Celtic F.C. which resulted in a 3–3 draw.[2] Despite the men's team being affiliated with the Republic of Ireland's Football Association of Ireland and play in the Republic of Ireland's league system,[3][4] the ladies team are affiliated with the Irish Football Association's Northern Ireland Women's Football Association and play in the Northern Irish leagues.[5][6] They initially started playing league football in the Republic of Ireland's Inishowen Football League but later moved into the Northern Irish league system in 2007.[6]
In 2015, they won the NIWFA Championship and were promoted into the Women's Premiership for the first time. They also won the Foyle Cup, Ballymena Sevens, NIWFA Championship League Cup.[6][3] Despite this, they had no official home ground. They asked Derry and Strabane District Council for permission to play at the Brandywell Stadium.[7] However consent was not granted and no permanent address was published in the league's handbook,[8] so they played their matches at Riverside Stadium in Drumahoe.[3] The club finished bottom of the league in their debut season and were relegated back to the NIWFA Championship for 2017.[9] However they won promotion back to the Women's Premier League the following season.[10]
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