Buzzin Championship Football

The Carling Nations Cup which kicks off in Dublin in February 2011, has unveiled the fixture list and schedule for the upcoming tournament along with the competitions new logo.

The logo incorporates the colours of the four participating nations, Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales and highlights Carling’s long association with football throughout the UK and Ireland.

Managers of the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland attended today’s event where it was announced that The Carling Nations Cup will kick off on Tuesday February 8 with a match between Giovanni Trapattoni’s Republic of Ireland and Wales.

The full list of fixtures are:

Tuesday February 8                            Republic of Ireland        v          Wales
Wednesday February 9                       Northern Ireland           v          Scotland
Monday May 23                                    Republic of Ireland        v          Northern Ireland
Tuesday May 24                                                 Wales                      v          Scotland
Thursday May 26                                               Wales                      v          Northern Ireland
Friday May 27                                       Republic of Ireland        v          Scotland

The Carling Nations Cup will be the first senior international tournament hosted in Ireland and will be played in a league format with six matches between the four neighbouring teams. Tickets will go on sale in November.

Craig Levein, Scotland National Team Manager said: “Now that the schedule has been announced we are really looking forward to our visit to Dublin next year. This exciting new competition brings together four groups of passionate fans and also allows me to test my squad, in a competitive environment, in the middle of our UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying campaign.”

Nigel Worthington, Northern Ireland manager said: “I am really looking forward to the Carling Nations Cup, as competitive games against our neighbouring countries don’t come around too often. There are bragging rights at stake here, not only for the fans but also for the players as no-one will want to lose against their closest rivals. Northern Ireland is more than capable of winning this tournament and we hope to get off to a good start against Scotland in February.”

Giovanni Trapattoni, Republic of Ireland manager said: “The Carling Nations Cup is a tournament that we would very much like to win, particularly playing at home in Dublin, but speaking to my colleagues from Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland,  I know we are not alone in wanting to claim the trophy.  The matches will provide us with a good opportunity to see our players in games with a real competitive edge at an important time in our bid to qualify for 2012.”

Jonathan Ford, Chief Executive, Football Association of Wales (FAW) said “It will be fantastic to see these games taking place.  We can all remember great matches in the past in the Home Internationals, Championship qualifiers and friendlies.  I am sure they will be a huge success and we look forward to generating competitive matches but maintaining the friendly rivalry that exists between our respective countries.”