| Season | 1985–86 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Shamrock Rovers |
| Relegated | Shelbourne UCD |
| European Cup | Shamrock Rovers |
| UEFA Cup | Galway United |
| UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | Waterford United |
| Top goalscorer | Tommy Gaynor:15 (Limerick) [1][2] |
← 1984–85 1986–87 → | |
The 1985–86 League of Ireland Premier Division was the first season of the League of Ireland Premier Division. The Premier Division was made up of 12 teams.
The Premier Division was contested by 12 teams and Shamrock Rovers F.C. won the championship. The top 12 teams from the 1984–85 League of Ireland automatically qualified for the Premier Division. [2][3]
| Team | Hometown/Suburb | Stadium | Manager |
|---|---|---|---|
| Athlone Town | Athlone | St Mel's Park |  Con Flanagan
|
| Bohemians | Phibsborough | Dalymount Park | Billy Young
|
| Cork City | Cork | Turners Cross | Noel O'Mahony
|
| Dundalk | Dundalk | Oriel Park | Turlough O'Connor
|
| Galway United | Galway | Terryland Park | Tony Mannion
|
| Home Farm | Drumcondra, Dublin | Tolka Park | Mick Lawlor
|
| Limerick | Limerick | Jackman Park | Joe O'Mahoney
|
| Shamrock Rovers | Milltown, Dublin | Glenmalure Park |  Jim McLaughlin
|
| Shelbourne | Harold's Cross | Harold's Cross Stadium | Paddy Mulligan
|
| St Patrick's Athletic | Inchicore | Richmond Park | Jimmy Jackson
|
| Waterford United | Waterford | Kilcohan Park | Alfie Hale
|
| University College Dublin | Belfield | UCD Bowl |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shamrock Rovers (C) | 22 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 44 | 17 | +27 | 33 | Qualification to 1986–87 European Cup |
| 2 | Galway United | 22 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 42 | 19 | +23 | 31 | Qualification to 1986–87 UEFA Cup |
| 3 | Dundalk | 22 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 35 | 16 | +19 | 30 | |
| 4 | Bohemians | 22 | 8 | 11 | 3 | 27 | 22 | +5 | 27 | |
| 5 | Waterford United | 22 | 8 | 10 | 4 | 27 | 25 | +2 | 26 | Qualification to 1986–87 European Cup Winners' Cup[a] |
| 6 | St Patrick's Athletic | 22 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 23 | 19 | +4 | 25 | |
| 7 | Limerick | 22 | 10 | 4 | 8 | 45 | 28 | +17 | 24 | |
| 8 | Athlone Town | 22 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 23 | 27 | −4 | 19 | |
| 9 | Home Farm | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 15 | 30 | −15 | 15 | |
| 10 | Cork City | 22 | 3 | 7 | 12 | 23 | 44 | −21 | 13 | |
| 11 | Shelbourne (R) | 22 | 3 | 7 | 12 | 15 | 40 | −25 | 13 | Relegation to League of Ireland First Division |
| 12 | UCD (R) | 22 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 19 | 51 | −32 | 8 |
| Home \ Away | ATH | BOH | COR | DUN | GAL | HOM | LIM | SHM | SHE | StP | UCD | WAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Athlone Town | — | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 4–0 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 |
| Bohemians | 1–0 | — | 0–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| Cork City | 0–2 | 1–2 | — | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–4 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 |
| Dundalk | 3–2 | 0–0 | 2–2 | — | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 |
| Galway United | 2–0 | 0–2 | 3–1 | 1–1 | — | 3–0 | 3–0 | 1–3 | 6–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 |
| Home Farm | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | — | 1–3 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 |
| Limerick | 0–1 | 0–0 | 5–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | — | 3–1 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 |
| Shamrock Rovers | 5–1 | 3–0 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 4–0 | 1–0 | — | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Shelbourne | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 0–3 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 0–4 | 1–1 | — | 0–0 | 5–3 | 0–2 |
| St Patrick's Athletic | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 1–1 | — | 2–0 | 2–2 |
| UCD | 2–0 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 0–4 | 1–4 | 0–2 | 1–3 | — | 1–1 |
| Waterford United | 3–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–5 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | — |
After winning the league title in the previous season, Shamrock Rovers received automatic qualification into the first round of the European Cup. Shamrock Rovers were drawn against Hungarian club, Budapest Honvéd, 1984-85 Hungarian League Winners. Budapest Honvéd were the hosts for the first leg and won the game comfortably in a 2-0 defeat of Shamrock Rovers. In the return leg, Shamrock Rovers were defeated once again 3-1, thus eliminating them from the competition.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Budapest Honvéd 
|
5-1 | Shamrock Rovers
|
2 - 0 | 3 - 1 |
v Shamrock Rovers
| 18 September 1985 | Budapest Honvéd | 2 – 0 | Shamrock Rovers | Illovszky Rudolf Stadion (1960), Budapest |
Dajka  36'Détári 67' |
Report |
v Budapest Honvéd
| 2 October 1985 | Shamrock Rovers | 1 – 3 | Budapest Honvéd | Glenmalure Park, Dublin |
| Coady 84' |
Report | Détári 69', 74' Cseh 85' |
Budapest Honvéd won 5–1 on aggregate.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians
|
4-7 |  Dundee United
|
2 - 5 | 2 - 2 |
FAI Cup Runners-up, Galway United entered the European Cup Winners' Cup in the first round against Danish side, Lyngby BK. Galway United were defeated 1-0 in the away leg in Lyngby BK. In the second leg, United were defeated 3-2 at Terryland Park, ending their European campaign.
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Lyngby BK 
|
4-2 | Galway United
|
1 - 0 | 3 - 2 |
|
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| Domestic leagues |
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| Domestic cups |
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| League cups |
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| UEFA competitions |
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| Non-UEFA competitions |
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