Glenn Whelan

Glenn David Whelan (born 13 January 1984) is an Irish professional football coach and former player who played as a defensive midfielder. He was most recently the head coach of Scottish Championship club Livingston. Whelan started his career at Manchester City, making only one first team appearance, in the UEFA Cup. After a loan spell at Bury, he joined Sheffield Wednesday, with whom he won promotion to the EFL Championship in 2005. In January 2008 Whelan joined Stoke City for a fee of £500,000, and helped them gain promotion to the Premier League. He took a while to establish himself in Tony Pulis' first team plans in the top flight, but became a regular by 2009 and went on to play for Stoke in the 2011 FA Cup Final. Whelan continued to be a regular in the team under Pulis and kept his place under Mark Hughes. He spent nine years at Stoke making 338 appearances, before joining Aston Villa in 2017 and then Hearts in 2019. He retired from playing in 2023, following spells with Fleetwood Town, Wythenshawe and Bristol Rovers. A full international from 2008 to 2019, Whelan represented the Republic of Ireland at senior level, playing for his country at two UEFA European Championships (2012 and 2016), earning 91 caps as an international. After coaching with Bristol Rovers and Wigan Athletic, Whelan was appointed head coach of Livingston in May 2026.