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sport · Saturday 8 August 2026 · 7:45pm 
Coleraine FC - Irish Premiership Season Opener 2026-27
At The Showgrounds · Ballyclogh Road, Coleraine BT52 2DL
At The Showgrounds · Ballyclogh Road, Coleraine BT52 2DL
The Sports Direct Irish Premiership returns in August 2026 and Coleraine FC bring it home to The Showgrounds for what promises to be one of the most anticipated fixtures on the opening month calendar. The Bannsiders - Coleraine’s long-established senior club - have been playing at this ground since 1927, and a home match under the floodlights on Ballyclogh Road is exactly the kind of local football evening that is hard to replicate anywhere else. This is a good option for families, football tourists visiting the north coast, and anyone curious about what the top tier of Northern Irish club football looks, sounds and feels like at close quarters.
The Showgrounds holds around 6,500 spectators, with 1,400 covered seats in the tall brick-and-blue main stand and a set of U-shaped terraces behind each goal. The covered central terracing on the far side gives a decent sightline from the raised steps at the rear. It is a compact ground in the traditional mould - you are close to the pitch, the game feels immediate, and the social club on site serves refreshments before and during the match. Coleraine compete week-in week-out against clubs such as Linfield, Glentoran, Cliftonville and Larne, so the standard of play is a genuine step up from casual Sunday football. Evening kick-offs under the lights tend to lift the atmosphere considerably. Admission from £12 covers adults; younger children may enter free or at a reduced rate - check colerainefc.com for the current pricing breakdown before you go.
Coleraine is on the main Belfast to Londonderry railway line, and the station sits practically adjacent to The Showgrounds - roughly a 10-minute walk along Ballyclogh Road. The journey from Belfast Great Victoria Street takes around an hour and twenty minutes by rail. Goldline service 218 runs between Belfast and Portrush via Coleraine and drops passengers near the bus station, which is equally close to the ground. By road, Coleraine is on the A26 from Ballymena and the A29 from the south; the A2 coast road connects it to Portrush and Portstewart. Car parking is available directly in front of the main stand and beside the training pitch at the away end, with additional spaces in the nearby town centre.
The town sits on the River Bann a few miles inland from the Causeway Coast, so a match here pairs well with a day on the north coast before kick-off. There is more to see in Coleraine and across Co. Derry.
Heading to The Showgrounds in Coleraine? Derry has plenty more to see. Read the Coleraine area guide, find what else is on, and explore the towns and villages nearby.