James Callan Named Football Content Awards 2026 Finalist

Touchline Sport founder James Callan has been named a finalist at the 2026 Football Content Awards in the Best New Content Creator category.

It is a lovely bit of recognition for a project built around the parts of football that do not always fit neatly into a score graphic. Touchline covers the League of Ireland, club ownership, recruitment, academies, finance and tactics, usually while trying not to sound like a board meeting has accidentally escaped onto the internet.

The nomination follows work on Irish football development pathways, club strategy, scouting reports and the launch of Touchline Tactics, a long-form series breaking down how teams build, press and create advantages.

More importantly, it comes from the people who read, share and interact with the work. Touchline is still growing, but becoming a finalist shows there is an audience for football writing that asks how a club works, why a plan succeeds and what should happen next.

Thanks a million to everyone who nominated James and backed Touchline. Getting shortlisted was the target. Making the final is the sort of thing that makes all the evenings spent staring at academy-minute spreadsheets feel slightly less strange.