Inside Jim McGuinness's family life including wife and children

Irish Daily Mirror

3 days ago

Jim McGuinness is looking to cement himself as one of the GAA greats as he takes charge in his third All-Ireland Football final this Sunday.
It has been a remarkable turnaround since McGuinness came back in charge in 2024 as he turned the county's fortune back round.
Donegal fell just short last year, after being beaten by Galway in the semi-finals, while they went a step further this year and compete in a mouthwatering final against Kerry.
Here is everything you need to know about the Donegal boss. Where is he from and what age is he?
McGuinness was born in 1972 and turns 53 later this year. He is from the Glenties in Donegal. Family life
McGuinness is married to wife Yvonne and the pair met in 2002 after Donegal played Dublin in Croke Park.
Yvonne had been going out with this guy but had split up with him that summer, and her mother was going: 'And what about Jim McGuinness?' And what about Jim McGuinness?' Yvonne was sick of it: 'Will you just shut your mouth about Jim McGuinness! Why are you talking about him? I've never even met him!'," Jim told the Sunday Indepdendent.
"Anyway, we're in the players' lounge in Croke Park after losing to Dublin in the All-Ireland quarter-final and this woman - her mother - calls me over. And (Yvonne) turned around, and I turned around, and that was it. So I owe her mother a lot too."
The couple have six children together; Toni-Marie, Mark Anthony, Jim Jnr and twin girls Bonnie and Aoibhe. Jim McGuinness and family in 2012
McGuinness has endured tragedy in his own life, losing two of his brothers. When Jim was 12, his older brother Charles passed away aged 16.
The Donegal manager said on the Late Late Show in 2015: "We heard a shout from his room and ran in to see what was going on. He had a heart condition and there was no trace of it ever before."
"He was somebody who I felt was really, really cool and someone I looked up to. He was a beautiful looking boy and had a great manner about him, great work ethic, cared a lot about his appearance and worked real hard in the family business. And he was a great footballer and I really looked up to him from that point of view.
"It was a moment in your life when your life is going along in a certain direction and all of a sudden you're jilted and you are going in a different direction. In many respects it was like a sledge hammer. I was 12 and you are never the same person again.
"All of a sudden you're life just changes and you are weak and you are vulnerable. You try to make sense of it and all I wanted to do was make things right for my mother and father.
Jim's brother Mark died in 1998 in a road accident. The pair were driving to Dublin Airport when their car collided with a truck.
"I remember thinking the truck was out of control and the car was tossed like a matchbox. I held his hand, stared into his eyes and told him I loved him," said Jim.
McGuinness would return to the scene of the accident in 2012 with the Sam Maguire when Donegal won the All-Ireland. Playing and coaching Career
McGuinness was part of the All-Ireland winning panel with Donegal in 1992 but did not feature in the final. He would go on to play with the county for the guts of a decade but it co-incided with a barren spell for the county.
After his playing career ended he would guide Naomh Conaill to a county title and brought Donegal to an Under-21 All-Ireland Football finalin 2010. The Jim Gavin-managed side beat Donegal by two points on that occasion in a game that featured the likes of Michael Murphy and Dean Rock.
McGuinness was appointed manager for the 2011 season and went about completing a remarkable turnaround for the county. Donegal would not only win their first Ulster game in four years but went on the win the Championship before being knocked out of the All-Ireland at the semi-finals.
Donegal would go a step further and win the All-Ireland title in 2012 and again returned to the final in 2014 before losing to Kerry. That year they sent shockwaves in the GAA world after they upset Dublin in one of the most famous games in recent years.
He would depart Donegal at the end of that season and pursue a career in soccer coaching that included stints at Celtic, Beijing Guoan, and Charlotte Independence.
He returned to Donegal for the 2024 season and guided the county to an Ulster title and a semi-final.