Cliftonville Football Club

What Cliftonville Football Club does

Cliftonville Football Club is a professional football club based in north Belfast, Northern Ireland, founded in 1879. It competes in the NIFL Sports Direct Premiership and plays its home matches at Solitude stadium on Cliftonville Street. The club operates a multi-tier football structure comprising the senior men's team, Cliftonville Ladies (which in 2025 became the first Irish League side to progress through a round of the UEFA Women's Champions League), Cliftonville Olympic as a development squad, and Cliftonville Strollers as the Under-18 academy, supplemented by youth summer camps operated in partnership with RH Coaching. It is governed as a private members' club under an Annual General Meeting structure with an elected chairman; Paul McKeown served as chairman from 2021 until stepping down in September 2023.

The club's commercial operations span four principal revenue streams: matchday ticketing (league adult tickets £12, concessions £8, plus season tickets and premium European match pricing), merchandise sales through The Reds Shop (online at theredsshop.net and at the Solitude physical store), commercial sponsorships (including Sean Graham as main shirt sponsor, O'Neills as kit supplier, Fonacab, Rexel, Quo Pro Recruitment for the Ladies team, Pentagon Solutions, The Burger Club, National Lottery, and AXA Insurance Belfast), and social club operations at Solitude. Distribution is omnichannel: stadium box office, TicketCo online ticketing, the club's own e-commerce storefront, and third-party ticketing agents, with global merchandise delivery available online. Additional engagement products include the 200 Club supporter lottery, Half Gate Draw, Friends of Cliftonville supporters' group, matchday mascots, stadium tours, and the official charity partnership with TAMHI (Tackling Awareness of Mental Health in Ireland). The headcount is approximately 31 and the club holds both NIFL Premiership and UEFA licences permitting top-flight and European participation.

Name

Cliftonville Football Club

Legal name

Cliftonville Football Club

Website

https://cliftonvillefc.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1879

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Cliftonville Football Club is a professional men's and women's football club based in Belfast, Northern Ireland, founded in 1879. It competes in the NIFL Sports Direct Premiership, plays at Solitude stadium, and generates revenue from matchday tickets, merchandise, sponsorships, and youth programmes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Professional Football Club

NAICS

Sports Teams and Clubs (711211), Sports and Recreation Instruction (61162)

SIC

Services-Membership Sports & Recreation Clubs (7997)

akta.pro primary industry

Association Football (Soccer) Leagues (MPAKAAAA)

akta.pro secondary industry

Local Amateur Clubs & Community Sports Organizations (MPAKACAE)

Keywords

• Professional football club
• Matchday ticketing
• Club merchandise retail
• Youth academy development
• Commercial sponsorships

Headquarters

HQ city

Belfast

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Matchday Revenue: Revenue generated from ticket sales for home matches at Solitude stadium, including league fixtures, cup matches, and European competition matches.
2. Merchandise Sales: Revenue from The Reds Shop selling official club merchandise including leisurewear, training gear, accessories, and memorabilia through physical and online storefronts.
3. Commercial Sponsorships: Revenue from commercial partners including main shirt sponsors, matchball sponsors, training gear sponsors, and various advertising partners displayed at Solitude.
4. Social Club Operations: Revenue from the Social Club facility at Solitude with operating hours across evenings and weekends.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Cliftonville Football Club is a professional football club competing in the NIFL Premiership that offers competitive men's and women's football at Solitude stadium in Belfast. The club generates revenue through matchday ticket sales, retail merchandise via The Reds Shop (online and physical), commercial sponsorships, and supporter membership programmes. It also operates youth development pathways including an academy, summer camps for children aged 4-12, and development squads.

Product overview

Cliftonville Football Club is a Northern Irish football club based in Belfast, founded in 1879. The club operates primarily as a professional football organization offering matchday experiences, supporter memberships, and community programs. Its product portfolio includes: The Reds Shop (official merchandise), Solitude Stadium (venue hire and tours), youth development programs (Academy, Summer Camps), and various supporter engagement initiatives (200 Club, Half Gate Draw, mascots). The club also fields a Ladies team competing in European competition and development teams (Olympic, Strollers Academy) for player progression. The club's primary commercial activities center on matchday ticketing, merchandise sales, and commercial partnerships.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• The Reds Shop: Official retail store of Cliftonville Football Club selling merchandise including leisurewear, training gear, accessories, and memorabilia
• Solitude
• The Red Eye
• 200 Club
• Friends of Cliftonville

Quantifiable outcome

• First Irish League side to win through a round in Women's Champions League (2025)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record.

• NIFL (Northern Ireland Football League)Strategic or Co-development PartnerLeague governing body administering the Sports Direct Premiership and associated competitions.
• TAMHI (Tackling Awareness of Mental Health in Ireland)Strategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial charity partner of Cliftonville Football Club, raising awareness for mental health initiatives.
• UEFAStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean football governing body overseeing European competition qualification and administration.
• RH CoachingStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organization for Cliftonville Summer Camps providing youth coaching services.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Larne FC: Larne FC has emerged as a competitive NIFL Premiership club with significant recent investment, directly competing with Cliftonville for league standings, European qualification, and Northern Irish talent.
• Glentoran FC: Glentoran FC is another Belfast-based NIFL Premiership club competing directly with Cliftonville in domestic league and cup competitions, and shares the same Northern Irish supporter and sponsor market.
• Ballymena United FC: Ballymena United is an NIFL Premiership club of comparable scale to Cliftonville, competing in the same domestic league and operating a similar community-focused, academy-driven model.
• Carrick Rangers FC: Carrick Rangers is another NIFL Premiership club operating at a similar small-club scale to Cliftonville, sharing the same Northern Irish domestic football market and governance structures.
• Coleraine FC: Coleraine FC is a long-established NIFL Premiership club in Northern Ireland that competes with Cliftonville in domestic league play and shares the same regional football ecosystem.
• Crusaders FC: Crusaders FC is a Belfast NIFL Premiership club that competes with Cliftonville for league titles, European qualification spots, and the same Northern Irish fan and sponsorship base.
• Linfield FC: Linfield FC is Cliftonville's primary rival in the NIFL Premiership and the most decorated club in Northern Irish football. They compete in the same domestic league and cup competitions, serving an overlapping fan base in the Belfast market.

Regional players

• Dundalk FC: Dundalk FC is a comparable-sized League of Ireland club from the Republic of Ireland that competes in a parallel cross-border football ecosystem, sharing similar UEFA pathway opportunities and small-market dynamics.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/cliftonvillefc
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/cliftonvillefootballclub1879
• Facebookfacebook.com/cliftonvillefc
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/cliftonville-football-club

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles3 records

Subsidiaries3 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Cliftonville Football Club