CELTIC return to Ireland as they take on Cork City in the inaugural Cork Super Cup Clash at Páirc Uí Chaoimh on Tuesday July 8th.

The Hoops will be in Ireland for the second time in three years as part of their pre-season campaign ahead of the 2025/26 season which kicks off in four weeks’ time when the Scottish champions host St Mirren on August 3rd at Celtic Park.

Brendan Rodger’s side kicks-off their pre-season tour of the UK and Ireland this weekend when they face former captain and Celtic legend Scott Brown as they take on Ayr United on Friday evening in Glasgow.

The friendly was announced back in February with Rodger’s himself believing that it is the perfect chance for the Hoops to enhance their Irish roots and develop better pathways for young Irish talent at the club.

“It’s an area that we want to be better in. Our market to bring in Irish players is still very important for us," said the Carnlough man.

“We’ve a couple of our younger players that have come through but it’s just going to take a bit of time.

"We’ve a boy, Francis Turley, from the north. He’s had some appearances in and around the first team. What’s very important is bringing Celtic to Ireland to keep that connection. When they’re young, a lot of the players support Premier League teams, but Celtic is still a huge draw.

"Taking the team to America last year really proved that,” said the Celtic manager.

Glasgow’s green toured the states last summer and managed victories over English giants Manchester City and Chelsea, with the latter seeing the Hoops run out with a 4-1 victory at home of the ‘Fighting Irish’ at Notre Dame Stadium.

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Cork’s very own Adam Idah is the star-man of the affair, the 24-year-old striker bagged 20 goals in his first full season the club, as Celtic clinched a consecutive double in two seasons.

The Cork native scored huge goals in the hoops this season despite being criticised due to the £9 million fee that exchanged hands between Norwich and the Bhoys last summer.

But the striker managed to silence his critics as the club secured Champions League knock-out football for the first time in over a decade, with the Irish forward playing huge roles at times with notable performances at Ibrox and Villa Park last season.

The striker is relishing the chance to return to his home county and believes the occasion will be a special one for all involved.

"I haven't played in Cork since I was 15 and didn't think I'd ever come back and play here," the striker said. "So, to come back in the summer is going to be brilliant. It will be amazing. There's obviously a massive Celtic fan base in Cork, so it'll be like a home game.

"It'll be really cool to have the Cork fans and the Celtic fans. It'll be a bit of a strange one because I think everyone will be supporting both sides. But it'll be a fantastic day,” said the Celtic talisman.

"I still support Cork City, they were obviously my team growing up, so it's exciting."

Celtic have shown their strong Irish connection in recent years, the club currently holds three key players from Irish shores in the form of Liam Scales, Johnny Kenny and the aforementioned Adam Idah.

This week Celtic donated €10,000 to Feed Cork, a local charity, in honour of the game next Tuesday.

Feed Cork opened Ireland's first social supermarket last summer, with clients now able to access food support in a comfortable shop setting, run by volunteers every Wednesday and Thursday.

The charity’s After School Fuel programme also provides freshly made meals to local families.

Celtic FC Foundation Chief Executive Tony Hamilton said the charity was one "close to our heart".

"The work being carried out in Cork and other areas is really in line with our own objectives and origins. It is tragic that food poverty continues to have such a crippling effect on so many people, but organisations such as Feed Cork continue to tackle this head on and make such a big difference to people in need."

The Hoops expect a huge turnout in the Rebel County, with Páirc Uí Chaoimh accommodating 45,000 spectators with the event selling quickly as the summer begins.

Tickets can be purchased via Ticketmaster with prices ranging from €28-€45 for adults and €18-€25 for children.