Kevin O'Toole received his first senior international call-up on Thursday when he was named to the Republic of Ireland's squad for its upcoming international matches against Portugal and Hungary.
O'Toole, currently a New York City FC defender, qualifies for the Ireland team through his Dublin-born grandfather.
The New Jersey native only recently received international clearance to represent the Boys in Green.
Ireland's 25-man squad for the "crucial" FIFA World Cup 26 qualifiers against Portugal and Hungary was confirmed by Head Coach Heimir Hallgrímsson on Thursday, November 6.
The Republic of Ireland plays Portugal on November 13 at Dublin's Aviva Stadium, followed by a match against Hungary at Budapest's Puskas Arena on November 16.
Your Ireland squad for the final two FIFA World Cup 26 Qualifiers 🙌
New York City FC’s Kevin O’Toole recieves a first Ireland call-up with Mark Sykes & Andrew Moran both returning to the set up 🤝
Thu 13 Nov | 🇮🇪🇵🇹
— Ireland Football ⚽️🇮🇪 (@IrelandFootball) November 6, 2025
Sun 16 Nov | 🇭🇺🇮🇪 pic.twitter.com/3XxYzA5aaF
O’Toole has a strong family connection to Irish domestic football, with his sister Jillian currently playing for Treaty United in the SSE Airtricity Women's Premier Division.
On Thursday, O'Toole received a warm congratulations from NYCFC:
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"We've been watching him"
Speaking about the squad on Thursday, Hallgrímsson said: "A new one is Kevin O'Toole, not been called up before.
"He's playing in a position that we don't have a lot of depth in.
"We are missing, obviously, Robbie Brady; Ryan Manning is suspended. Callum O'Dowda [is] injured; Josh Honohan has been struggling with fitness in his groin, so Rovers are playing safely with him, not playing him all the time. I guess he will play the [FAI] Cup final, but struggling with injuries, otherwise he would be in our squad.
"Kevin comes in as one that just got his clearance to play for us. He's been working on that for over a year, waiting for the clearance.
"We've been watching him, so it's a good time to call him in, especially because of our situation."
When asked about integrating a new player into the squad before two huge matches, Hallgrímsson said: "It's just the situation we have. We're lacking depth in this position.
"Like I've said, I have watched Kevin O'Toole play. I know he is a good player. He has been playing and starting all games for New York City FC for about three seasons now, so he's experienced.
"He is 26. It's not like he is a young player we are testing. He has quality. It's just the situation."
Hallgrímsson went on to say that O'Toole "showed a lot of interest in playing for Ireland since I came."
Hallgrímsson said there were plans to have O'Toole attend the team's camp in May, but the player didn't have his clearance yet.
"It was in process," Hallgrímsson said, "it's been in process for a long time."
Republic of Ireland Squad – Portugal/Hungary
Goalkeepers: Caoimhin Kelleher (Brentford), Gavin Bazunu (Southampton), Mark Travers (Everton)
Defenders: Seamus Coleman (Everton), Nathan Collins (Brentford), Dara O'Shea (Ipswich Town), Jake O'Brien (Everton), Jimmy Dunne (Queens Park Rangers), Liam Scales (Celtic), John Egan (Hull City), Ryan Manning (Southampton)*, Kevin O'Toole (New York City)
Midfielders: Josh Cullen (Burnley), Jayson Molumby (West Bromwich Albion)*, Finn Azaz (Southampton), Conor Coventry (Charlton Athletic), Jack Taylor (Ipswich Town), Mark Sykes (Bristol City), Andrew Moran (LAFC)
Attackers: Evan Ferguson (AS Roma), Troy Parrott (AZ Alkmaar), Adam Idah (Swansea City FC), Mikey Johnston (West Bromwich Albion), Chiedozie Ogbene (Sheffield United), Festy Ebosele (İstanbul Başakşehir).
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