Liverpool are the most supported Premier League team in Ireland, according to data analytics group Adaptive & Co.
Research carried out on support of Premier League teams showed that Liverpool now edge out rivals Manchester United in terms of Irish support, with 443,500 fans on the island.
They are closely followed by Manchester United with 441,000 fans.
The two next most popular teams have significantly less support, with Chelsea totalling 254,100 and Arsenal 246,400 respectively.
Adaptive's research also revealed that young supporters pick and stick with a team based on the club's success during the pre-teen (12-14 years old) period and most then continue to support the team into adulthood.
For example, Liverpool’s support is highest across the 46-60-year-old age group. This peaks with 46-50-year-olds, who would have been 12-15 years old in the early to mid 1980s when Liverpool were utterly dominant both domestically and on the continent.
The Reds won nine league titles and four European Cups between 1973 and 1985 and it is clear that that success has had a knock-on effect on support of the club in Ireland.
That pattern remains consistent when the support of Manchester United is analysed; support for the Red Devils peaks with the over 65-year-old age segments, with 21.2% of football fans of this age supporting Manchester United.
These fans would have been young children and teenagers during the “Busby Babe” years of the 1950s.
The research demonstrates that just 15.89% of fans amongst 18-24 year-olds support Liverpool, the lowest share of support across all age groups for Liverpool.
This could increase should the club continue to build on its foundation of recent success; the Reds won the Champions League in 2019 and followed that up with a league title the following year, the club's first in 30 years.
Thus, they edge Manchester United overall but the margins are minimal and a wider gap will most likely be determined by the fortunes of both sides on the pitch.
Despite Liverpool and United leading the way as has been traditional, fans have diversified to some extent with more and more latching onto success elsewhere in the Premier League.
While a combined 41.92% of 41-45 year-olds support either Liverpool or Man United, the top two’s share of the pie has shrunk to 32.97% with 18-24 year-olds, with the biggest gains from this age group going to Manchester City and Chelsea.
Both City and Chelsea have enjoyed success in the 21st century having received aggressive financial backing from new owners; Sheikh Mansour at the former and Roman Abramovich at the latter.
Everton have seen an increase in support from 18-24 year-olds, a swelling which could be linked in part to Donegal man Seamus Coleman captaining the side.
Cathal Gillen of Adaptive & Co summarised the research undertaken.
He said: "Looking to the future, it will be interesting to see how younger fans will react to the decline of Manchester United and to the allure of successful clubs that have been built on the back of oil billions.
"Will Manchester City’s star continue to rise and will they surpass Manchester United in years to come? Will Newcastle see a revival of fan support in Ireland?
"Or will fans flock back to Liverpool on the back of their recent achievements and the amiable Jürgen Klopp?”
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
