MASON Melia has become the first million euro League of Ireland footballer on foot of his future move to Spurs.
The 17-year-old won’t actually join the London giants until January 2026, by which time he will be 18.
These days Brexit prevents underage Irish footballers from moving to the UK before their 18th birthday[/caption]
Nonetheless, news of him being snapped up by the Premier League giants for the long-term has generated buzz across the LOI as a whole.
The initial sum of around €1.9m that Spurs have agreed to pay the Inchicore outfit will be by far the largest upfront fee paid for a player based in Ireland.
The League of Ireland side will also maintain a sell on clause is 20 percent on the player.
That could be doubled through performance-related clauses, including ones after five and ten first-team appearances, goals scored, senior international caps won and any future transfer.
Shamrock Rovers eventually received well in excess of €2m from the sale of Gavin Bazunu to Manchester City, following his subsequent move to Southampton, but the initial fee was just €500,000.
St Pat’s received around €700,000 for James Abankwah from Udinese three years ago and are still in line to receive further payments relating to the defender, now on loan at Watford.
The duration of his contract is a noteworthy sign of Spurs’ belief in him too as he will be with the club until 2031.
It’s the latest groundbreaking step in what’s already been a career packed full of sizeable leaps for someone so young.
Here, SunSport chronicles his emergence from making his senior debut for St Patrick’s Athletic at 15 to the present day:
How old is Mason Melia?
Despite being a much-hyped prospect for the Saints for quite some time now, he’s still only 17.
His date of birth is September 22, 2007.
How many times has he played for St Pat’s?
He’s already lined out for the Inchicore club on 41 occasions, scoring eight times.
These have included some clinical finishes leading fans to joke his price tag should be a minimum of two million euro.
International record with Ireland:
Unsurprisingly, the Wicklow native has been capped all the way up to Under-19s level with the Republic of Ireland.
He’s found the net once in three appearances at that age grade while he had a one in two strike rate for the U17s with 10 from 22.
Other big clubs to have shown interest:
SunSport revealed in December that Tottenham had launched a major charm offensive in a bid to jump to the top of the queue to sign him.
He was brought over for their game against Chelsea and shown around their training facilities.
That was a decisive move in ensuring Spurs remained in the hot seat to sign the hot prospect.
Everton, Chelsea and Celtic were also keen but, like Tottenham, could not proceed with a deal until he turned 18.
Bologna and Hannover 96 were in a position to sign the forward now but SunSport revealed that he would be staying put until at least the summer.
But now a deal has been done that will see Melia remain at Richmond Park for the duration of the 2025 season before making the move to London.
Saints Director of Football Ger O’Brien said: “We are delighted to agree a deal with Tottenham Hotspur for Mason Melia.
“When we recruited Mason in 2022 we knew we had signed an incredible talent. We had watched his development with St Joseph’s Boys and Bray Wanderers for a number of years.
“He has been fantastic during his three years at the club, and we’re delighted for Mason that he’ll be making the move to the Premier League early next year.
“There has been a lot of interest in Mason from the UK and Europe over the last number of years and our chairman has been negotiating this deal for a number of months, it’s a record transfer fee for a League of Ireland player and something the club is proud of.
“We look forward to working with Mason over the next year before he moves to London in January.”
Kenny praise
Pat’s manager Stephen Kenny added: “Mason is a terrific talent with an exceptional attitude and a real appetite for hard work.
“He has had a dramatic impact for one so young, his performances in our Conference League games playing as a central striker against high calibre opposition were of real quality.
“Every day on the training ground he shows a high work ethic and a capacity to take on information quickly and he grasps the tactical requirements depending on the game in question.
“His pressing out of possession is phenomenal and his pace offers a real threat and adds a dimension to our attacking play.
“His hold up play has been his greatest improvement over the last six months as he continues to develop physically.
“First and foremost he is a goalscorer, he scored some brilliant goals last season, and different types of goals and has shown a capacity to play anywhere along the front three.
“Mason has repeated those performances at international level for Ireland and has a bright future ahead for his country.
“We are looking forward to Mason continuing to be an integral part of the St Patrick’s Athletic team for the 2025 season and we wish him every success at Tottenham Hotspur from January 2026 onwards, in the next phase of his career in what is a brilliant opportunity for him.”
