| Season | 1952–53 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Shelbourne (6th title) |
| Matches played | 132 |
| Goals scored | 484 (3.67 per match) |
| Top goalscorer | Shay Gibbons (22 goals) |
| Biggest home win | Cork Athletic 6–1 Bohemians Drumcondra 6–1 Bohemians Shelbourne 6–1 Cork Athletic |
| Biggest away win | Bohemians 3–7 St Patrick's Athletic |
| Highest scoring | Bohemians 3–7 St Patrick's Athletic |
| ← 1951–52 1953–54 → | |
The 1952–53 League of Ireland was the 32nd season of senior football in the Republic of Ireland.
St Patrick's Athletic were the defending champions.
Changes from 1951–52
No new teams were elected to the League.
Teams
Dublin
BrayCorkDundalkSligoLimerickWaterfordclass=notpageimage| Locations of the 1952–53 League of Ireland teams
| Team | Location | Stadium |
|---|---|---|
| Bohemians | Dublin (Phibsborough) | Dalymount Park |
| Cork Athletic | Cork (Mardyke) | Mardyke |
| Drumcondra | Dublin (Clonturk) | Clonturk Park |
| Dundalk | Dundalk | Oriel Park |
| Evergreen United | Cork (Turners Cross) | Turners Cross |
| Limerick | Limerick | Markets Field |
| Shamrock Rovers | Dublin (Milltown) | Glenmalure Park |
| Shelbourne | Dublin (Ringsend) | Shelbourne Park |
| Sligo Rovers | Sligo | The Showgrounds |
| St Patrick's Athletic | Dublin (Inchicore) | Richmond Park |
| Transport | Bray | Carlisle Grounds |
| Waterford | Waterford | Kilcohan Park |
Season overview
Shelbourne won their sixth title.
Table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shelbourne | 22 | 12 | 6 | 4 | 46 | 24 | +22 | 30 |
| 2 | Drumcondra | 22 | 10 | 9 | 3 | 49 | 33 | +16 | 29 |
| 3 | Shamrock Rovers | 22 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 40 | 27 | +13 | 27 |
| 4 | St Patrick's Athletic | 22 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 49 | 34 | +15 | 24 |
| 5 | Sligo Rovers | 22 | 8 | 7 | 7 | 42 | 37 | +5 | 23 |
| 6 | Dundalk | 22 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 45 | 45 | 0 | 22 |
| 7 | Limerick | 22 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 39 | 44 | −5 | 21 |
| 8 | Cork Athletic | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 41 | 47 | −6 | 21 |
| 9 | Transport | 22 | 7 | 7 | 8 | 35 | 42 | −7 | 21 |
| 10 | Evergreen United | 22 | 8 | 4 | 10 | 36 | 35 | +1 | 20 |
| 11 | Waterford | 22 | 5 | 5 | 12 | 35 | 58 | −23 | 15 |
| 12 | Bohemians | 22 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 27 | 58 | −31 | 11 |
Results
| Home \ Away | BOH | CAT | DRU | DUN | EVE | LIM | SHM | SHE | SLI | STP | TRA | WAT |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bohemians | — | 1–2 | 1–3 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 2–0 | 3–7 | 4–2 | 0–0 |
| Cork Athletic | 6–1 | — | 3–3 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 4–2 |
| Drumcondra | 6–1 | 1–1 | — | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 4–4 |
| Dundalk | 5–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | — | 3–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 5–2 | 4–0 |
| Evergreen United | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 5–0 | — | 2–2 | 0–3 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 4–2 |
| Limerick | 4–3 | 1–4 | 1–1 | 6–3 | 2–0 | — | 4–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 |
| Shamrock Rovers | 1–0 | 6–2 | 4–3 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–2 | — | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 1–2 |
| Shelbourne | 2–1 | 6–1 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 1–2 | — | 4–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 |
| Sligo Rovers | 4–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 2–2 | — | 1–1 | 3–1 | 4–3 |
| St Patrick's Athletic | 2–0 | 6–2 | 1–2 | 4–2 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 3–3 | — | 1–2 | 4–1 |
| Transport | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–4 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–4 | 3–3 | — | 5–1 |
| Waterford | 2–1 | 4–2 | 1–3 | 3–5 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | — |
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Top scorers
| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Shay Gibbons
|
St Patrick's Athletic | 22 |
| 2 | Jim Rowe
|
Drumcondra | 16 |
| 3 | Liam Coll
|
Sligo Rovers | 13 |
| Rory Dwyer
|
Shelbourne | ||
| Dessie Glynn
|
Drumcondra | ||
| Mick Lipper
|
Transport | ||
| 7 | Seán McCarthy
|
Evergreen United | 11 |
| Joe Martin
|
Dundalk | ||
| 9 | Paddy Collopy
|
Limerick | 10 |
 Tom McCabe
|
Dundalk |
| 1952–53 in European football | |
|---|---|
| « 1951–52 1953–54 » | |
| Domestic leagues |
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| Domestic cups |
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| League cups | |