Ryan is a Research Assistant working with Dr Mark Doidge on the Tackling Online Hate in Football (TOHIF) project. He is also a Lecturer in Sociology of Sport at Ulster University.
Ryan obtained his BSc in Sport Studies in 2015, and then his MSc in Sports Development and Coaching in 2016, both from Ulster University. His doctoral research investigates the lived experiences of aspiring Northern Irish footballers who pursued a professional football career in England/Scotland, only for their aspirations to be short-lived and, therefore, returned home with broken dreams. His research specifically examines the football-specific socialisation patterns which impact their post-migration experiences.
Ryan’s position as a Research Assistant on the TOHIF project requires him to engage with professional football players and referees who have been subjected to hate online. He delivers workshops to young players in Northern Ireland to educate them on the dangers of having an online presence, and how to manage any hate they may encounter online.
Ryan has also published on football migration in the Sociology of Sport Journal, Sport in Society, and the Elgar Handbook on Sport and Migration.
Ryan is chair and founder of the Irish Football Network (IFN), a non-profit organisation which aims to support returning football migrants from the island of Ireland. IFN works with partner organisations to offer psychological support, job training, qualifications, and employment advice for its members.
Featured publications
- Adams, R., Darby, P. and Liston, K. (2024). '‘A Field of Broken Dreams?’ The precarious social realities of male migrant footballers from Northern Ireland', in Maguire, J., Liston, K. and Falcous, M. (eds.) Elgar Handbook on Sport and Migration. Cheltenham: Edward Elgar, pp. 104-113
- Adams, R. and Darby, P. (2020). Precarious pursuits, broken ‘dreams’ and immobility among Northern Irish soccer migrants. Sport in Society, 23(5), pp. 920–937. DOI: 10.1080/17430437.2019.1593376
- Adams, R. (2019). Irish Soccer Migrants: A Social and Cultural History. Sociology of Sport Journal 36, 2, 179-181. DOI: 10.1123/ssj.2018-0052