Kevin O’Toole’s 2025 could be measured in numbers, but that wouldn’t tell you much.
By the time it was done, he had played more than 2,000 minutes for New York City FC.
Thirty-four games in three competitions, scattered across long nights and early mornings, stitched together by flights across the country, long training sessions, and games that often came thick and fast.
In between all of that was a whole other world. One where O’Toole became engaged to his long-term girlfriend Emma, where he worked on a business venture with his siblings, Jillian and Patrick, called Athlete’s Toole Box, which aims to help college-age players and their families navigate the college recruiting process.
And then, almost as if the year hadn’t already given enough, came the call from the Republic of Ireland national team.
“A lot of stuff is happening at once,” O’Toole says, a smile across his face. “It’s an exciting place to be in.”
The Republic of Ireland locker room was an exciting place to be in November. O’Toole knows because he was standing inside it. His first call-up came with the Republic of Ireland perched on the edge of elimination from the 2026 World Cup. Two matches remained, against Portugal and Hungary.
A chance to keep the dream alive.
O’Toole was named on the bench against Portugal. A 2-0 win at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin set up a pressure-cooker fixture in Budapest days later.
At half-time in Hungary, the Republic of Ireland was 2-1 down. Another World Cup campaign slipping between their fingers.
By the 80th minute they had equalized.
By the 96th minute, Troy Parrott had completed his hat-trick.
The Republic of Ireland won 3-2 and was now headed to the playoffs. A nation’s World Cup dream lived another day. O’Toole saw it all unfold, another chapter in a year defined by exhilarating moments.
The journey to that day began quietly in January. Heimir Hallgrímsson connected with O’Toole via his teammate Tayvon Gray, who had worked with Hallgrimsson while on international duty with Jamaica.
For months, it was a question mark. Would the call come? If it did, how would it go?
“I wasn’t sure how I’d be received being an American-born Irish-American,” O’Toole says. “But they were all fantastic. They all wanted to help me assimilate into the group as quickly as possible.”
International football often signifies consistency. The kind built when no one is watching. When the schedule compresses. When legs are tired. When roles change.
“At the end of the day, that's what gets you to that next step in your career,” he says. “I think that was kind of the thing that was impressed upon me most — that in order to earn call-ups, you need to be performing well, week in and week out.”
That consistency has made O’Toole valuable to Head Coach Pascal Jansen, who has used him in multiple positions, including during preseason, where O’Toole has operated in central midfield.
“Honestly, I really love being played all over the pitch. It's something I really enjoy,” O’Toole says. “I enjoy all of the differences and nuances of playing in Pascal’s system. He’s built trust in me that I can play in different positions for him and I hope to reward him with good performances wherever he chooses to play me.”
“One of the things he's big on when I'm playing in the midfield is checking my shoulders.”
O’Toole needed no encouragement to study his surroundings while on international duty.
Before the Portugal game, on the peg in front of him, a green jersey hung. His name across the back. The same name his grandfather carried when he left Dublin for the United States in 1958. The number 13 beneath it.
“It was a cool moment to walk into the locker room and see it hanging up there for me,” he says.
The jersey is now tucked away safely in his home in Montclair, New Jersey. A souvenir. A reminder. A motivation.
“To understand what it takes to play at that level, on the international stage, gave me some invaluable lessons,” he adds. “There were a lot of little nuggets I picked up on that I hope to incorporate into my routines as this year goes on as well.”
The Republic of Ireland will face Czechia in a playoff game next month. O’Toole hopes to be there. He is already planning a return to Ireland regardless — he and Emma will wed there in June 2027.
“We had a lovely few days away from football where we could just enjoy that moment with family and friends and that was really special,” he says of the proposal.
Those moments are special, and they are important. They give you time to catch your breath and recognize the life that your hard work is creating. Planning a wedding can also signify the passing of time. O’Toole is not old, not in the way people usually mean it, but he feels different.
“Something about being in the second half of your 20s, being 27 in football, makes you feel older, which is kind of crazy to say that 27 has to be old, but it seems to be in the footballing world,” he says. “I feel like I’m moving into the second part of my career, so to speak.”
He hopes that second phase of his career can surpass the first one. The next 12 months are about further growth, higher standards, bigger goals.
The season has already begun: 34 regular-season games. Hopefully a playoff run. A second star, a ring, a place in the Republic of Ireland squad in March, and then at the World Cup. It’s all up for grabs.
“If you set those goals, it can kind of force you to think big and strive to achieve,” he says.
And if it doesn’t work?
“If I can do that and it doesn’t work out, then I’ll be pleased with my effort,” he says.
It started in California last month against the LA Galaxy. And hopefully continues later this month with the Republic of Ireland’s playoff game.
“If it turns out I’m in that squad [for the games in March], I’ll be unbelievably proud and honored again.”
O’Toole isn’t shrinking his ambitions. He is moving toward them.
Asked to sum up 2025 with a song, he thinks for a moment.
“Dreams by The Cranberries.”
And what about a song to sum up his hopes for 2026?
“Let’s say ‘Freebird’ by Lynyrd Skynyrd. No context or description for either of those — it can be up to interpretation.”
That feels right.
Because Kevin O’Toole’s plans for 2026 don’t need to be explained. They just need to happen.
