The race to become the next president of the Republic of Ireland is beginning to heat up, with an election expected before the end of the calendar year and now-legendary mixed martial arts fighter Conor McGregor throwing his hat into the ring as a candidate.
The Dublin-born superstar has seemingly picked up the baton of politics since his in-ring career has come to an idle state, with his last bout taking place way back in 2021 when he suffered a broken leg mid-fight and suffered a third loss in four bouts.
But does he really have a chance of following in the footsteps of Donald Trump and moving from celebrity into running a country? We'll take a look as we provide you with our best free politics betting picks to earn you some extra cash in the process.
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Irish Presidential Election information
- Must take place by 11th November 2025
- Candidates must be at least 35 years of age
- Candidates must be an Irish citizen
- Candidates must be nominated by;
a - at least twenty of the 234 serving members of the Houses of the Oireachtas, or
b - at least four of the 31 county or city councils, or
c - themselves, in the case of a former or retiring president who has served one 7-year term. - Current president: Michael D Higgins
Conor McGregor declares plan to run for president
There have been many times in the past where McGregor has toyed with entering the political world, and several times he has got backlash for doing so.
His views on immigration have caused concern in the past, but the 36-year-old former two-weight world UFC champion made his ambition to formally run official via a post on his Instagram account to millions of followers.
"Ireland must fully implement the EU Migration Pact by June 12, 2026. So between now and 12 June 2026, several pieces of legislation have to be passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas [Irish parliament] & then signed by the President.
"The next presidential election must take place by 11 Nov 2025. Who else will stand up to Government and oppose this bill? Any other Presidential candidate they attempt to put forward will be of no resistance to them. I will!"
On St. Patrick's Day, McGregor was invited to the White House by President Trump and he used the opportunity to complain about his nation's "illegal immigration racket" - which prompted big pushback from Prime Minister Micheal Martin who claimed that McGregor's views "do not reflect the views of the people of Ireland."
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Experts Ignoring McGregor Candidacy
Multiple Irish politics experts have pointed out that the changes of McGregor meeting the threshold to run in November's election are low, and some have even described him as having a "close to zero" chance.
While speaking to Sky News in March, professor of political science Gail McElroy said the following about the hurdles McGregor would face getting into office.
"Close to zero [chance of success].There's two hurdles. First, you have to get nominated and then you have to win a majority of the vote. Both of those hurdles are almost insurmountable [for McGregor]."
Anyone hoping to be nominated to run for President must be nominated in one of two ways; either get the support of 20 members of the Oireachtas (representatives in Ireland's lower and upper houses of parliament), or nominated by four of Ireland's 31 local authorities, i.e. county or city councils. But McElroy explains how that is unlikely in his case.
"There's a lot of [Oireachtas members] - 60 senators and 174 TDs [Irish MPs], but most of those are party affiliated and they won't nominate [McGregor].
"You're talking about different types of characters, you know Mary Davis, who runs the Special Olympics [who ran for president in 2011]. It's likeable candidates who county councils feel should have the option to run.
"Conor McGregor is toxic in Ireland. I think it's almost inconceivable that four county councils would endorse him. Even if McGregor did make it through the nomination process, his chances of getting elected are "really just impossible."
For too long, Ireland has not had leadership with the influence and mettle needed to get results.
— Conor McGregor (@TheNotoriousMMA) April 2, 2025
Today’s news is further proof Ireland needs a change and an advocate who will work on the people’s behalf.
P.S That’s me. VOTE MCGREGOR 🇮🇪
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