Mark Sykes (footballer)

Mark Sykes (born 4 August 1997) is an Irish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL Championship club Bristol City. Born in Northern Ireland, he plays for the Republic of Ireland national team, having previously represented Northern Ireland at underage level.^[3]

Mark Sykes

Personal information
Full name	Mark Sykes[1]
Date of birth	(1997-08-04) 4 August 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth	Belfast, Northern Ireland
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.82 m)[2]
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	Bristol City
Number	17
Youth career
	Glenavon
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2019	Glenavon	117	(16)
2019–2022	Oxford United	104	(9)
2022–	Bristol City	103	(13)
International career‡
	Northern Ireland U18
	Northern Ireland U19
2016–2018	Northern Ireland U21	11	(2)
2022–	Republic of Ireland	7	(0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 20:20, 8 April 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 22:00, 20 March 2025 (UTC)

Club career

Glenavon

Born in Belfast,^[4] Sykes began his career with Glenavon. In December 2017 he was linked with a transfer away from the club.^[5] In February 2018 he signed a new contract until the end of the 2018–19 season.^[6] In March 2018 he was described by a journalist as "one of the most outstanding young prospects in the Irish League".^[7]

Oxford United

In January 2019 he signed for English club Oxford United,^[8] making his debut on 8 January 2019 in the EFL Trophy.^[9] He scored his first goal for Oxford against Millwall in the EFL Cup on 27 August 2019, and his first league goal in a 2–1 victory over AFC Wimbledon on 29 December 2019.^[10] In his three and a half seasons at the club he made 137 appearances and scored 12 times,^[11] including Oxford's consolation goal in their 2–1 defeat to Wycombe Wanderers in the 2020 EFL League One play-off final at Wembley Stadium.^[12]

Bristol City

In May 2022, Bristol City announced that they had signed Sykes, with the transfer becoming official on 1 July 2022, on a three-year deal with the option of a further year.^[13][14] On 3 October 2023, Sykes was voted Bristol City's September Player of the Month, receiving 46% of the total votes.^[15] On 2 February 2025, Sykes signed a 12 month contract extension.^[16]

International career

Northern Ireland

Sykes has also played for Northern Ireland at under-18, under-19 and under-21 youth levels.^[17] He made his debut for the under-21 side in September 2016, in a 2–0 defeat to Macedonia and as of 28 January 2019 had 11 caps and 2 goals.^[4]

He received his first call-up to the Northern Ireland senior team in May 2019.^[18] He was called up again in September 2019.^[19]

Republic of Ireland

In August 2020, Sykes informed the Irish Football Association (which governs football in Northern Ireland) that he no longer wished to be considered for their squad, instead opting for the Republic of Ireland.^[20] In March 2022, he was named in Stephen Kenny's Republic of Ireland squad for forthcoming friendly matches.^[21][22]

Sykes was named as a late inclusion to the squad in November 2022 for the Republic of Ireland's November friendlies with Norway and Malta, following the withdrawals of two players through injury.^[23][24]

On 20 November 2022, Sykes made his debut in a 1–0 win over Malta, becoming the first Belfast–born player to represent the Republic of Ireland since 1946.^[25][26]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 8 April 2025

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		League cup[b]		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Glenavon	2013–14[27]	NIFL Premiership	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
	2014–15[27]	NIFL Premiership	2	0	0	0	0	0	1[c]	0	3	0
	2015–16[27]	NIFL Premiership	25	1	4	0	0	0	0	0	29	1
	2016–17[27]	NIFL Premiership	33	2	3	1	2	0	2[c]	0	40	3
	2017–18[27]	NIFL Premiership	30	9	2	0	0	0	0	0	32	9
	2018–19[27]	NIFL Premiership	22	4	0	0	0	0	2[c]	0	24	4
	Total		117	16	9	1	2	0	5	0	133	17
Oxford United	2018–19[9]	League One	9	0	0	0	0	0	2[d]	0	11	0
	2019–20[10]	League One	23	1	4	0	4	1	7[e]	1	39	3
	2020–21[28]	League One	32	0	1	0	1	0	8[f]	0	42	0
	2021–22[29]	League One	40	8	2	0	1	0	1[d]	0	44	8
	Total		104	9	7	0	6	1	18	1	135	11
Bristol City	2022–23[30]	Championship	36	5	4	1	2	0	—		42	6
	2023–24[31]	Championship	40	5	0	0	2	0	—		42	5
	2024–25[32]	Championship	27	3	0	0	1	0	—		28	3
	Total		103	13	4	1	5	0	0	0	112	14
Career total			323	38	19	2	13	1	23	1	378	42

1. Includes Irish Cup and FA Cup
2. Includes Irish League Cup and EFL Cup
3. Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa League.
4. Appearance(s) in the EFL Trophy.
5. 4 appearances in the EFL Trophy; 3 appearances and 1 goal in the play-offs.
6. 6 appearances in the EFL Trophy, 2 appearances in the play-offs.

International

As of match played 23 March 2025^[27]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Republic of Ireland	2022	1	0
	2023	2	0
	2024	2	0
	2025	2	0
Total		7	0

Honours

Glenavon

• Irish Cup: 2015–16^[33]

Individual

• Ulster Young Footballer of the Year 2017–18^[17]