1990 in Ireland

← 1989 1988 1987 1986 1985 1990 in Ireland → 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995
Centuries:	18th 19th 20th 21st
Decades:	1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s
See also:	1990 in Northern Ireland Other events of 1990 List of years in Ireland

Events from the year 1990 in Ireland.

Incumbents

• President: Patrick Hillery (Fianna Fáil) (until 2 December), Mary Robinson (Labour) (starting 3 December)
• Taoiseach: Charles Haughey (Fianna Fáil)

Events

• 1 January – The Northern Ireland Fair Employment Act became law.
• 3 April – There was all-party support for the Criminal Justice Bill to abolish capital punishment for all offences and replaced it with lengthy prison sentences (although in practice the penalty for murder has always been commuted in Ireland since 1954).
• 26 April – The Labour Party selected Mary Robinson as its candidate in the presidential election.
• 11 June – The Irish football team began their first appearance at a World Cup Final with a 1–1 draw against England in Cagliari in Italy. Kevin Sheedy scored for Ireland, with Gary Lineker scoring for England.
• 17 June – Ireland's World Cup continued with a goalless draw against Egypt.
• 20 June – The Irish Pound coin was introduced into circulation to replace the note of the same denomination.
• 21 June – The Irish football team completed their World Cup group stage unbeaten and reached the last 16 group with a 1–1 draw against Holland.
• 25 June – Ireland reached the World Cup quarter-finals by beating Romania on penalties after a goalless draw in the last 16 tie, in Genoa.
• 30 June – Ireland were eliminated from the World Cup Final by a goal from Toto Schillaci in the quarter final match against the hosts, Italy, in Rome.
• 1 July – Enormous crowds gathered in Dublin when 500,000 people came to pay tribute to the Irish football team and to former South African President, Nelson Mandela. The football team had reached the World Cup quarter final in Italia '90 before being beaten by Italy, while Mandela accepted the Freedom of the City of Dublin, granted to him two years earlier, at an open-air ceremony outside the Mansion House in Dawson Street.
• 2 July – Deputy President of the ANC, Nelson Mandela, addressed a joint session of both houses of the Oireachtas.
• 11 July – The Criminal Justice Act abolished capital punishment for all offences and replaced it with lengthy prison sentences.
• 24 July – The IRA killed three policemen and a nun in a bomb attack near Armagh.
• 24 August – Brian Keenan was released after 1,574 days in captivity in Beirut.
• September – Janet Catterall became the first woman in Ireland to be ordained as a priest in the Church of Ireland.
• 28 September – The centenary of People's Park, Dún Laoghaire, was celebrated.
• 24 October – The IRA killed six soldiers and a civilian in proxy bomb attacks at Derry and Newry.
• 25 October – Presidential candidate Brian Lenihan denied that he tried to contact President Hillery to stop the dissolution of the Dáil in 1982. This was in spite of a taped interview where he confirmed that he did.
• 31 October – Tánaiste and Minister for Defence Brian Lenihan was dismissed from the government over the telephone call controversy.
• 9 November – Mary Robinson was elected the seventh President of Ireland.
• 3 December – Mary Robinson was inaugurated as the first female President of Ireland. Patrick Hillery retired after 14 years as Head of State.
• The pro-cathedral in Ennis was rededicated as a cathedral.

Arts and literature

• 24 April – Brian Friel's Dancing at Lughnasa opened at the Abbey Theatre.
• Anton Chekhov's Three Sisters opened at the Gate Theatre with Dublin-born Sinéad, Sorcha and Niamh Cusack in the title roles and their father Cyril Cusack as Dr. Chebutykin.
• Jim Sheridan's film The Field was shown.
• Shaun Davey's The Relief of Derry Symphony was composed.
• Maeve Binchy's novel Circle of Friends was published.
• Roddy Doyle's novel The Snapper, second of The Barrytown Trilogy, was published.
• John McGahern's novel Amongst Women was published.
• Colm Tóibín's first novel The South was published.
• CBI Book of the Year Awards for writers and illustrators of children's literature originated as Bisto Book of the Decade Awards.

Sport

Gaelic games

• Cork GAA's football team won a second consecutive All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. The hurling team won the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship to complete a double for the county.

Golf

• Carroll's Irish Open was won by José María Olazábal (Spain).
• Ireland (David Feherty, Ronan Rafferty, Philip Walton) won the Dunhill Cup.

Soccer

• World Cup 1990

Group Stage

Ireland 1–1 England

Ireland 0–0 Egypt

Ireland 1–1 Netherlands

Ireland qualified for the knock out stage

Knockout stage

Ireland 0–0 (AET 5–4 PEN) Romania

Ireland qualified for the quarter final stage

Ireland 0–1 Italy

Ireland were knocked out at the quarter final stage

• St Patrick's Athletic won the League of Ireland.
• Bray Wanderers won the FAI Cup beating non league St Francis FC in the first ever Lansdowne Road final.

Births

• 29 May – Maeve O'Donovan, finalist in the 2006/2007 RTÉ programme "You're A Star."
• 25 October – Niall Donoghue, hurler (Galway) (died 2013).

Deaths

• 21 January – Patrick Mulligan, Bishop of Clogher 1970–1979 (born 1912).
• 17 February – Brendan Corish, Labour Party TD and former leader, Cabinet Minister and Tánaiste (born 1918).
• 28 February – John O'Sullivan, Fine Gael TD and Senator (born 1901).
• 6 April – Peter Doherty, soccer player (born 1913).
• 8 May – Tomás Ó Fiaich, Cardinal Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland 1978–1990 (born 1923).
• 12 May – John 'Tull' Dunne, Gaelic footballer, coach and administrator (born 1911).
• 11 June – Seosamh Mac Grianna, writer (born 1900).
• 12 June – Terence O'Neill, Fourth Prime Minister of Northern Ireland (born 1914).
• 3 August – Thomas Dunne, Fine Gael TD and MEP (born 1926).
• 19 October – Jerry Cronin, Fianna Fáil TD Cabinet Minister and MEP (born 1925).
• 18 November – Fred Daly, golfer (born 1911).

Full date unknown

• Harry Bradshaw, golfer (born 1913).
• Mick Cashman, Cork hurler (born 1931).
• Peter Desmond, soccer player (born 1926).