It’s been no big secret that Armagh City FC have struggled this season. Having faced a managerial departure after Shea Campbell left by mutual consent in November, the club went through a series of disappointing results that now see them placed 11th in the NIFL Championship.
Breaking managerial news.
ℹ️ @armaghcityfc #PlayrFitChamp pic.twitter.com/EKMCkWtFP9
— NI Football League (@OfficialNIFL) November 24, 2025
Now, with the risk of relegation on the horizon, we can look ahead to what next season may look like for The Eagles. Will they manage to stay up and push on for the NIFL Premiership, or go down to the NIFL Intermediate League and look to rebuild next year?
We also examine how Armagh City FC can address their current issues and whether there is any hope of overcoming them.
How Armagh City FC Stay Up
In the NIFL Championship, there is a unique system for relegation. It’s not as straightforward as three teams automatically being relegated, such as in England, which you can see the predictions for with Premier League 2025/26 betting odds.
In this league, the team in last place is automatically relegated at the end of the season. However, Armagh City FC, who are one position away from the bottom, still have a chance to stay up. You can see the chances of them staying in the league using bet on football statistics.
This is because of the NIFL Championship play-off game. In this match, the team in 11th place will play against the team that finished second in the NIFL Premier Intermediate League, in a two-legged game. The winner on aggregate will stay or join the NIFL Championship the following season.
While they are almost ten points away from safety, it looks like this is the only route for Armagh City to stay in the league. This would be a positive end to an otherwise poor season. They have struggled a lot this year, with many factors behind the team’s poor run of form.
Problems Facing the Club – Can They Rebuild?
The last month has seen some extremely disappointing results for Armagh City. They lost 8-0 to Ards on the 30th of December, 12-0 to H&W Welders on the 3rd of January, and most recently were knocked out of the Irish Cup Fifth Round by Drumaness Mills FC 4-1 on the 10th January.
Irish Cup fifth round results ⚽#BBCFootball pic.twitter.com/W8BwB1sodP
— BBC SPORT NI (@BBCSPORTNI) January 10, 2026
This exit from the cup has been another step in a season filled with struggles. The issues first arose back in November when the previous manager, Shea Campbell, left the club. After this, a total of 16 players followed suit and departed.
From this, it has been reported that many of the players who remained have become disgruntled, and there have been a variety of internal issues behind closed doors. Manager of Drumaness Mills FC, Ciaran Brannigan, stated before their Irish Cup match that he wasn’t ‘reading much into’ Armagh’s recent struggles, which seemed a measured outlook ahead of their eventual victory.
While there are many issues both on and off the pitch at Armagh City FC, they will still be able to compete in the Irish Cup next season. They also still have a chance of staying in the league if they are successful in the play-offs, as well as opportunities to rebuild if they are relegated to the NIFL Intermediate League.
