Portrait of Martin O'Neill

Birthday profile

Martin O'Neill

Northern Irish association football player and manager (born 1952)

Born
March 1, 1952
Age in 2026
74
Zodiac sign
Pisces
Birth year
1952

About Martin O'Neill

Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill (born 1 March 1952) is a Northern Irish professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is the manager of Scottish Premiership club Celtic. After a brief early career in the Irish League, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playing career with Nottingham Forest. He won the First Division title in 1977–78 and the European Cup twice, in 1979 and 1980. He was capped 64 times for the Northern Ireland national football team, and captained the side at the 1982 World Cup. At club level, O'Neill has managed Grantham Town, Wycombe Wanderers, Norwich City, Leicester City, Celtic, Aston Villa, Nottingham Forest and Sunderland. He guided Leicester City to the Football League Cup final three times, winning twice. As Celtic manager between 2000 and 2005, he led the club to seven trophies including three Scottish Premier League titles, and reached the 2003 UEFA Cup Final. After joining Aston Villa, he achieved three consecutive sixth-place finishes in the English Premier League, and guided them to the 2010 Football League Cup Final. He became Republic of Ireland manager in 2013 and led them to qualification for UEFA Euro 2016 where they reached the last 16 of the tournament. In October 2025, he returned to Celtic as interim manager following Brendan Rodgers' resignation. He departed in December after Wilfried Nancy was appointed permanent manager. After just 33 days, however, Nancy was dismissed and O'Neill was again appointed Celtic manager in January 2026. O'Neill ultimately guided Celtic to the Scottish Premiership title on the final day of the season. This was O'Neill's fourth Scottish title win. O'Neill then led Celtic to victory in the 2026 Scottish Cup Final, defeating Dunfermline Athletic 3–1 at Hampden Park to complete a domestic double. His brothers Gerry and Leo played for the club as well as being on the Derry senior team which won the 1958 Ulster Championship and reached that year's final of the All-Ireland SFC.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Career and life highlights

Martin O'Neill timeline

  1. His brothers Gerry and Leo played for the club as well as being on the Derry senior team which won the 1958 Ulster Championship and reached that year's final of the All-Ireland SFC.
  2. He won the First Division title in 1977–78 and the European Cup twice, in 1979 and 1980.

The world when Martin O'Neill was born

Martin O'Neill was born in 1952. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1952

  • #1 song"You Belong to Me" – Jo Stafford
  • Top movieThe Greatest Show on Earth
  • Top TV showI Love Lucy
  • Best-selling bookThe Old Man and the Sea – Ernest Hemingway

Headlines and milestones

  • Major sports momentRocky Marciano becomes heavyweight champion
  • Top headlineDwight Eisenhower elected president
  • Technology milestoneFirst hydrogen bomb tested
  • Defining fadMr. Potato Head
  • Notable inventionMr. Potato Head (first toy advertised on TV)
  • World population2.63 billion

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderHarry S. Truman
  • Sports championNew York Yankees (World Series)
  • Also wonMinneapolis Lakers (NBA)
  • U.S. population156.4M

1952 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Martin O'Neill's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure19522026
Gas$0.27$3.45/gal
Average home$9,100$435,000
Average income$5,700$67,500
Minimum wage$0.75$7.25/hr (federal)
Movie ticket$0.60$11.95
Postage stamp$0.03$0.73
Population156.4M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, UEFA. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

Read the source biography on Wikipedia. Wikipedia text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License.