Irish people in mainland Europe

30,000 Irish live in mainland Spain, another 15,000 Irish reside in Portugal, Andorra and Gibraltar and on the Balearic and Canary Islands. More than 750,000 people regularly attend Irish music, cultural and sports events in Iberia. There are Irish societies and associations, and you can take Irish culture courses in Spain and Portugal. There is an Irish Dominican parish in Portugal. Many of the 165+ Irish pubs in Spain and Portugal have regular live Irish music, as well as live Irish sports coverage, including GAA, association football and rugby. There are Spanish and Portuguese Irish music groups, Irish dancing schools and groups, and Irish music festivals. There is an Irish darts league in Madrid, and there are GAA clubs for Gaelic football in Barcelona, Madrid, Marbella, Valencia, Seville, Gibraltar and 11 clubs in Galicia. There is an Irish supporters club in Gibraltar.

15,000 Irish live in Austria, Italy, Liechtenstein, Malta, Monaco, San Marino, Slovenia, Switzerland, and Vatican City in south-central Europe. Almost a million people regularly in south-central Europe attend Irish music, cultural and sports evenings. Its 300 or so Irish pubs feature regular live Irish music, quiz nights and many feature Irish sports. Irish clubs, societies and associations arrange activities for the integrated Irish communities, and there is a strong Irish cultural and literature following in the region. There are Irish study courses and centers, and the Mediterranean Center for Irish Studies. There are local Irish music groups, Irish dancing schools and groups, organising special Irish music and dance nights and Irish music festivals. Irish nationals play in the region with local soccer, darts, rugby and GAA clubs here; often these clubs are set up by those in the local Irish communities.

Approximately 5,000 Irish live in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czechia, Hungary, Montenegro, Poland, Serbia, and Slovakia in Central Europe, and this figure is growing annually. In Hungary, Poland, and Czechia, there are more than 150,000 regular visitors to Irish music, Irish dancing, and Irish culture websites based there. The region has more than 100 Irish music bands, Irish dancing schools and Irish festivals. The Irish in Slovakia have a dedicated newspaper published regularly. There are more than 60 Irish pubs in Central Europe; one has an Irish golf society, another one has a rugby club, and others have darts and soccer clubs. The first ever GAA club was inaugurated in the region in 2014. Irish charity groups also have centers and communities based in the region.

30,000 Irish live in the Low Countries of Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg. More than 750,000 people attend the Netherlands', Belgium's and Luxembourg's Irish music, cultural and sports events. The region has Irish clubs, societies and associations, Irish theatre groups, Irish studies centers, and James Joyce groups. Its 200+ Irish bars have regular live Irish music, as well as live Irish sports coverage: GAA, soccer, and rugby. Along with Irish dancing schools and groups, the region has many local Irish music bands and festivals. It also has Irish soccer clubs, darts, rugby, badminton, and GAA clubs, as well as Irish golf societies.

30,000 Irish live in France, including more than 15,000 in Paris.[1] More than 700,000people enjoy France's Irish music, Irish culture and Irish sports. With Brittany and Breton culture matched closely to Irish culture, you can join Irish societies and associations, and study Irish courses from Brittany to the French Riviera. The Irish College in Paris, which once was home to Karol Wojtyla, later Pope John Paul II, is now an Irish cultural center. It hosts Irish events, such as lectures, book-launches, exhibitions and performances by Ireland's authors, musicians and artists.

Many of the France's 300+ Irish Pubs have a special closeness to the Irish Communities in the country, often arranging events in conjunction with them. Europe's largest Irish annual festival is held in Brittany. In fact, there is a wide range of Irish music bands, Irish set-dancing schools and groups, and Irish music festivals, covering most parts of the country. There are Irish soccer clubs in Montpellier, Marseille and Paris. Gaelic football is played in Brittany, Paris, Lyon or at festivals across the nation.

With an unemployment rate just over 5 percent, the second-lowest in the EU, Germany is becoming a magnet for Irish people. According to statistics, over 2,800 people moved to Germany from Ireland in 2012, including almost 800 German citizens.[2] As of 2019, about 30,000 Irish live in Germany. Together with Germans interested in Irish culture, some of these emigrants organise Irish cultural events across the country. Most German cities have at least one Irish pub, although they typically feature a mixture of German and Irish pub culture.