History will be made at next year’s European Championships by both football sides from this island.
Never before has the Republic of Ireland, and Northern Ireland, qualified for the same major tournament.
There has been major difficulties between both the FAI and the FA over the years, most notably over players from north of the border declaring for the Republic, as in the case of Darron Gibson and James McClean.
But a new survey suggests that most fans in the six counties would like to see both associations come together to form a new united Ireland football team.
According to the survey carried out by Ulster University, a majority of Catholics and Protestants would be in favour of a united Ireland football team.
The Irish Times reports that 54% of those who responded were in favour of a team that would feature the likes of Kyle Lafferty and Shane Long in the same XI, with 70% of Catholics supporting the idea, and 39% of Protestants backing the proposal.
The survey also found that Catholics still tend to be mostly associated with Gaelic Games, while only slightly more Protestants than Catholics would be happy to attend a game at Windsor Park, (60% vs 55%)
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