| All-Ireland Senior Football Championship | |
|---|---|
Current season or competition: 2026 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship | |
 Logo | |
| Irish | Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann |
| Code | Gaelic football |
| Founded | 1887; 139 years ago (1887) |
| Region |  Ireland (32 Teams) England (1 team) United States (1 team) (GAA) |
| Trophy | Sam Maguire Cup |
| No. of teams | 34 |
| Title holders |  Kerry (39th title) |
| Most titles | Kerry (39 titles) |
| Sponsors | Supervalu Allied Irish Bank Allianz |
| TV partner(s) | RTÉ,BBC Northern Ireland,Premier Sports,TG4[1] |
| Official website | gaa.ie/gaa-football-championship |
TheAll-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) (Irish:Craobh Shinsir Peile na hÉireann) is the premierinter-county competition inGaelic football.County teams compete against each other and the winner is declaredAll-Ireland Champions.
Organised by theGaelic Athletic Association (GAA), the championship has been contested every year except one since1887.
The final is played by the 35th Sunday of the year atCroke Park in Dublin, with the winning team receiving theSam Maguire Cup. For the majority of its existence, the All-Ireland Championship has been played on astraight knockout basis whereby once a team loses they are eliminated from the championship. In more recent years, the qualification procedures for the championship have changed several times. Currently, qualification is limited to teams competing in 6 feeder competitions; the finalists of the 4provincial championships:Connacht,Leinster,Munster andUlster, theTailteann Cup holders and the best non-qualifiedNational Football League teams to make the 16-team group stage.
Thirty three teams currently participate in the All-Ireland Championship, withKerry,Dublin,Galway andCavan being the most successful teams in their respective provinces.
The title has been won by 19 counties, 18 of whom have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders areKerry, who have won the championship on 39 occasions. They are the current title holders, defeatingDonegal by 1–26 to 0–19 in the2025 final.
Thefirst Championship to be held featured club teams who represented their respective counties after their county championship. The 21 a-side final was between Commercials of Limerick and Young Irelands of Louth. The final was played in Beech Hill, Donnybrook (not Bird Avenue) on 29 April 1888 with Commercials winning by 1–4 to 0–3. Unlike later All-Ireland competitions, there were no provincial championships, and the result was an open draw.
Thesecond Championship was unfinished owing to theAmerican Invasion Tour. The 1888 provincial championships had been completed (Tipperary, Kilkenny and Monaghan winning them; no Connacht teams entered) but after the Invasion tour returned, the All-Ireland semi-final and final were not played. English teamLondon reached the final four times in the early years of the competition (1900–1903).
In 1892, inter-county teams were introduced to the All-Ireland Championship. Congress granted permission for the winning club to use players from other clubs in the county, thus the inter-county teams came into being. The rules of hurling and football were also altered: goals were made equal to five points, and teams were reduced from 21 to 17 a-side.
The1903 Championship broughtKerry's first All-Ireland title. They went on to become the most successful football team in the history of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.[2]
Unlike in other European countries, such as neighbouring England, where annual sports events were cancelled during the twentieth century due to theFirst andSecond World Wars, the All-Ireland Championship has been running continuously since 1887, with the final running since 1889 (the 1888 competition was played but no final was held due to the Invasion mentioned above). The competition continued even in spite of the effects on the country of theCivil War and the Second World War (theNational Football League was not held during the latter). In1941, the All-Ireland Championship was disrupted by an outbreak offoot-and-mouth disease but the postponed Leinster final were later rescheduled.[3]
The duration of certain championship matches increased from 60 to 80 minutes during the 1970s. They were settled at 70 minutes after five seasons of this in 1975.[4] This applied only to the provincial finals, All-Ireland semi-finals and finals.[5]
The first half of the twentieth century brought the rise of several teams who won two or more All-Ireland titles in that period, such as Kildare, Mayo, Cavan, Wexford and Roscommon. In the 1990s, a significant sea change took place, as the All-Ireland was claimed by anUlster team in four consecutive years (1991–1994). Since then Ulster has produced more All-Ireland winning teams than any other province.[6]
The All-Ireland Qualifiers were introduced in 2001. Later that year,the 2001 final brought victory for Galway who became the first football team to win an All-Ireland by springing through "the back door." In 2013,Hawk-Eye was introduced for Championship matches at Croke Park.[7] It was first used to confirm thatOffaly substitutePeter Cunningham's attempted point had gone wide 10 minutes into the second half of a game againstKildare.[8] 2013 also brought the first Friday night game in the history of the Championship – a first round qualifier betweenCarlow andLaois.[9]
In recent years further changes have been made to the structure of the championship. In 2018 the Super 8s were introduced, where the four provincial champions and the four-round 4 qualifier winners would be split into two groups of four teams. Each team plays their group rivals once, with the top two teams progressing to the All-Ireland Semi-Finals. In 2022 a two-tier format was adopted for the championship. Division 3 and 4 teams from theNational Football League that fail to reach a provincial final will not proceed to the All-Ireland qualifiers and will instead play in theTailteann Cup.[10][11]
For the first All-Ireland championship in 1887, the competition was played on an open draw knockout basis. From 1888, the provincial system was introduced, whereby the counties in each of Ireland's four provinces would play each other on a knockout basis to find provincial champions. These four champions would meet in the All-Ireland semi-finals. The structure outlined above was adopted in 2001 to allow more games to be played, but still retain provincial championships and the knockout structure, resulting in every game continuing to be a meaningful fixture, with no dead-rubber league format matches being played out.
From 2001 to 2017, the Championship was played using the Quarter-finals format. Under this format, Provincial matches would take place during the months of May, June and July. The winners of each of the four Provincial Championships would earn a place in the All-Ireland Quarter-Finals, which would take place in the month of August. Replays would be played for all drawn matches, not just drawn Provincial Finals and drawn All-Ireland Finals. Extra-time would only be used for Replays and Qualifier Matches. If the teams were still level after extra time, the qualifier match would go to a replay or in the case of replays, another replay would take place.
The qualifiers series (also referred to as the "back door") for teams that did not win their provincial championships would take place in the months of June and July with the winning four teams of Round 4 playing the four Provincial Champions in the All-Ireland Quarter Finals.
This championship was identical to the format above, though with no second-tier championship all teams who failed to win their provincial final were eligible to play in the qualifiers. The qualifiers took place over four rounds rather than two, and the four winners of the fourth round proceeded to the All-Ireland Super 8s. As in the format above, the further a team progressed in their provincial championships the later the round they entered the qualifiers. The All-Ireland Super 8s were a round-robin group stage, featuring four teams placed into two groups. The two-highest ranked teams from each group were drawn into an All-Ireland Semi-final, which was followed by the All-Ireland Final.[13]
Due to the impact of theCOVID-19 pandemic, the2020 and2021 championships returned to the historic single-elimination format. Teams that were eliminated in their provincial championships did not access the qualifiers, which were cancelled, and the "Super 8's" were removed in favour of a straight-knockout semi-final and final. In 2022 a smaller back door system took place then Knockout (2001–2017) or Super 8 (2018–2019) there was a knock outTailteann Cup in 2022 as well.
In 2023, the format of the championship was again altered. Under this system, approved at a Special Congress of the GAA in February 2022, the results in theNational Football League (held in January through to March of each year) would have an impact on counties' progression in the championship. After the conclusion of the four provincial championships, whose structures remain unaltered, there would be a round-robin competition for 16 teams, split evenly into four. The groups would be made up of the four provincial champions and four runners-up, joined by a further eight teams based on their overall ranking from the league. The four group winners would automatically qualify for the All-Ireland Quarter Finals, and the four remaining spots in the quarter-finals are determined by playoff-matches between the second and third placed teams. The quarter finals, semi-finals and final are then played under the traditional single-elimination format. Furthermore, the 16 teams that fail to qualify for the round-robin stage would compete in the second-tierTailteann Cup, which is also played via round-robin groups and single-elimination finals.[14][15]
A potential new format for the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (SFC) is under consideration, with a single alternative structure gaining significant support.
The proposal was discussed at a GAA Central Council meeting took place inDonegal on February 22, 2025.
The format, inspired by systems previously used in 16-team county championships, emerged as the most favoured option during a recent consultation process involving GAA counties.
Key Features of the Proposed Format
The alternative format retains the provincial championships and introduces a new pathway for teams advancing to the All-Ireland series. After the completion of the provincial competitions, the eight provincial finalists would join the top seven National Football League teams and the Tailteann Cup winners in the first round of the Sam Maguire Cup. The outcome of this round would determine the placement of teams into two groups: winners and losers.
Quarter-Final Qualification
The winners of the provincial winners' group would secure direct qualification for the All-Ireland quarter-finals, while the remaining quarter-final spots would be contested between the provincial losers’ group winners and the losers of the provincial winners' group.
Game Structure
The proposed format involves 27 games across six rounds, a reduction from the current 35 games over seven rounds. This streamlining is aimed at easing scheduling pressure and creating a clearer gap between the league and the provincial championships.
Minimum Games Guarantee
Counties would be assured at least three championship games, down from the four currently guaranteed, from the 2026 season.
The Preliminary round, Quarter-finals and Semi-finals of the Provincial championships will be played in separate weekends in 2026. In 2026, the Connacht championship at the Quarter-final stage will seeMayo travel toLondon andRoscommon travel toNew York in separate weekends, while the Quarter-final between any two ofGalway,Sligo andLeitrim will be after the overseas trips have been completed.
The county is a geographical region in Ireland, and each of thethirty-two counties in Ireland organise their ownGaelic games affairs through a County Board. The county teams play in their respective Provincial Championships (reflective of the fourIrish provinces) inConnacht (which also includes teams fromLondon andNew York),Leinster,Munster, andUlster. Kilkenny is currently unique among the 32 Irish county associations in not participating in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship. The Provincial Championships operate through aknock-out cup competition format.
Quarter-finals (3 matches): These are three matches between the first six teams drawn – the other team receive a bye. Three teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the semi-finals. London and New York City games go into rotation of every 5th year.
Semi-finals (2 matches): The winners of the three quarter-finals join the other team to make up the semi-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the final and qualify for the All-Ireland group stage.
Final (1 match): The winners of the two semi-finals contest this game. The Connacht champions and runners-up advance directly to the All-Ireland group stage as first seeds and second seeds respectively.
Preliminary round (3 matches): These are three matches between the first six teams drawn – the other five teams receive a bye. Three teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the quarter-finals.
Quarter-finals (4 matches): The winners of the three preliminary round matches join the other five teams to make up the quarter-final pairings. Four teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the semi-finals.
Semi-finals (2 matches): The winners of the four quarter-finals make up the semi-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the final and qualify for the All-Ireland group stage.
Final (1 match): The winners of the two semi-finals contest this game. The Leinster champions and runners-up advance directly to the All-Ireland group stage as first seeds and second seeds respectively.
Quarter-finals (2 matches): These are two matches between the first four teams drawn – the other two teams receive a bye. Two teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the semi-finals.
Semi-finals (2 matches): The winners of the two quarter-finals join the other two teams to make up the semi-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the final and qualify for the All-Ireland group stage.
Final (1 match): The winners of the two semi-finals contest this game. The Munster champions and runners-up advance directly to the All-Ireland group stage as first seeds and second seeds respectively.
Preliminary round (1 match): This is one match between the first two teams drawn – the other seven teams receive a bye. One team is eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the quarter-finals.
Quarter-finals (4 matches): The winners of the preliminary round join the other seven teams to make up the quarter-final pairings. Four teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the semi-finals.
Semi-finals (2 matches): The winners of the four quarter-finals make up the semi-final pairings. Two teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the final and qualify for the All-Ireland group stage.
Final (1 match): The winners of the two semi-finals contest this game. The Ulster champions and runners-up advance directly to the All-Ireland group stage as first seeds and second seeds respectively.
Group stage (24 matches): The 8 provincial finalists, the Tailteann Cup holders and the next 7 highest ranked counties in the National Football League make up the group stage teams. Teams are divided into four groups of four. The group winners advance to the quarter-finals and the group runners-up and group third placed teams advance to the preliminary quarter-finals. Four teams are eliminated at this stage while twelve teams advance to the All-Ireland knockout-stage.
Preliminary quarter-finals (4 matches): The second-placed teams from the group stage play the third-placed teams from the group stage. Teams who met in the provincial finals are kept apart in separate quarter-finals and provincial champions are kept apart where possible. Four teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the quarter-finals.
Quarter-finals (4 matches): The winners of the preliminary quarter-finals join the first placed teams in the group stage. Teams who met in the provincial finals are kept apart in separate quarter-finals and provincial champions are kept apart where possible. Four teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the semi-finals.
Semi-finals (2 matches): The winners of the quarter-finals make up the semi-final pairings. Teams who met in the provincial finals are kept apart in the semi-finals. Two teams are eliminated at this stage while the winners advance to the final.
Final (1 match): The two winners of the semi-finals contest this game. The winning team are declared All-Ireland champions.
Teams from the first two levels are eligible for the All-Ireland series in that year. Teams from tiers 3 to 5 may reach tiers 1 and 2 through promotion.
| Level | Total teams | Championship | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 33 | Connacht Senior Football Championship 7 counties | Leinster Senior Football Championship 12 counties | Munster Senior Football Championship 6 counties | Ulster Senior Football Championship 9 counties |
| 2 | 17 | Tailteann Cup 17 counties | |||
| 3 | 10 | All-Ireland Junior Football Championship 10 counties | |||
Thirty three counties competed in the2025 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship: seven teams in theConnacht Senior Football Championship, eleven teams in theLeinster Senior Football Championship, six teams in theMunster Senior Football Championship and nine teams in theUlster Senior Football Championship.
Typically, over the four Sundays of September, All-Ireland Finals in men's football, ladies' football, hurling and camogie take place atCroke Park, the national stadium of the GAA. Two grades are played on each final day, thesenior team and theminor team (consisting of younger players, under the age of 18, who have participated in that year'sAll-Ireland Minor Football Championship). Guests who attend these events include thePresident of Ireland, theTaoiseach and other important dignitaries. The football final is considered the pinnacle event of this period.
The final game of the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship historically took place on the third Sunday of September since the late 1920s. Since 2022, the final game is held on the third Sunday of July. The men's decider regularly attracts crowds of over 80,000. The winning team captain receives theSam Maguire Cup. The current champions are Kerry.
Due to COVID-19 and the related State restrictions, the2020 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final was staged on Saturday, 19 December, two weeks after the semi-finals.
For the first time since 2000, the football championship was a sudden-death scenario, while the hurling championship – completed on Sunday, 13 December – contained a backdoor format.
a.^ London received abye to the final in five seasons.
| Province | Winners | Runners-up | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
 Leinster | 53 | 38 | 91 |
 Munster | 51 | 43 | 94 |
 Ulster | 18 | 18 | 36 |
 Connacht | 14 | 32 | 46 |
.svg) Britain | 0 | 5 | 5 |
For each year, the number of teams (in brackets) are shown.
| Team | 2022 (16) | 2023 (16) | 2024 (16) | 2025 (16) | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Armagh | QF | QF | 1st | 4 | |
 Cavan | TC | TC | GS | 2 | |
 Clare | QF | GS | GS | 4 | |
 Cork | QF | QF | PQF | 4 | |
| Derry | SF | SF | QF | 4 | |
 Donegal | R2 | PQF | SF | 2nd | 4 |
 Down | TC | TC | TC | 1 | |
 Dublin | SF | 1st | QF | 4 | |
 Galway | 2nd | PQF | 2nd | 4 | |
| Kerry | 1st | 2nd | SF | 1st | 4 |
 Kildare | R2 | PQF | TC | TC | 2 |
 Limerick | R2 | TC | TC | TC | 1 |
| Louth | R1 | GS | QF | 4 | |
 Mayo | QF | QF | PQF | 4 | |
| Meath | R1 | TC | GS | 3 | |
 Monaghan | R1 | SF | PQF | 4 | |
 Roscommon | R2 | PQF | QF | 4 | |
 Sligo | TC | GS | TC | TC | 1 |
 Tyrone | R1 | QF | PQF | 4 | |
| Westmeath | TC | GS | GS | TC | 2 |
| Year | Debutants | Total |
|---|---|---|
| 1887 | Clare,Cork,Dublin,Galway, Kilkenny,Limerick,Louth,Meath,Tipperary,Waterford, Wexford,Wicklow | 12 |
| 1888 | Cavan,Kildare,Laois,Monaghan | 4 |
| 1889 | Kerry | 1 |
| 1890 |  Antrim,Armagh,Tyrone,Westmeath | 4 |
| 1891 | None | 0 |
| 1892 | Roscommon | 1 |
| 1893–1895 | None | 0 |
| 1896 |  Offaly | 1 |
| 1897 |  Carlow | 1 |
| 1898–1899 | None | 0 |
| 1900 | London | 1 |
| 1901 | Mayo | 1 |
| 1902 | None | 0 |
| 1903 | Fermanagh,Longford | 2 |
| 1904 | Derry,Down | 2 |
| 1905 | Sligo | 1 |
| 1906 | Donegal,Leitrim | 2 |
| 1907–1998 | None | 0 |
| 1999 |  New York | 1 |
| 2000–present | None | 0 |
| Total | 34 |
| Rank | Player | Team | Appearances | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Stephen Cluxton | Dublin | 111 | 2001–present |
| 2 | Seán Cavanagh | Tyrone | 89 | 2002–2017 |
| 3 | Marc Ó Sé | Kerry | 88 | 2002–2015 |
| 4 | Tomás Ó Sé | Kerry | 88 | 1998–2013 |
| 5 | Colm Cooper | Kerry | 85 | 2002–2016 |
| 6 | Andy Moran | Mayo | 84 | 2004–2019 |
| 7 | Darragh Ó Sé | Kerry | 81 | 1997–2010 |
| 8 | Ross Munnelly | Laois | 79 | 2003–2022 |
| 9 | Aidan O'Shea | Mayo | 78 | 2009–present |
| 10 | Tom O'Sullivan | Kerry | 76 | 2000–2011 |
| Competition | Year | Champions | Title | Runners-up | Next edition | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| All-Ireland Senior Football Championship | 2025 | Kerry | 39th | Donegal | 2026 | ||
| Connacht Senior Football Championship | 2025 | Galway | 51st | Mayo | 2026 | ||
| Leinster Senior Football Championship | 2025 | Louth | 9th | Meath | 2026 | ||
| Munster Senior Football Championship | 2025 | Kerry | 86th | Clare | 2026 | ||
| Ulster Senior Football Championship | 2025 | Donegal | 12th | Armagh | 2026 | ||
| Tailteann Cup | 2025 | Kildare | 1st | Limerick | 2026 | ||
| All-Ireland Junior Football Championship | 2025 | New York | 3rd | London | 2026 |
A huge crowd is expected at MacCumhaill Park at a time when Gaelic games in the county have never had a higher profile. Nothing beats being there, as the GAA slogan goes, but for the neutrals who can't be in Ballybofey, the game is live on TG4 from throw-in at 4pm.
Dublin... hadn't won Leinster for seven years and didn't go into the All-Ireland semi-final as provincial champions – they were nominated by the province because of the foot-and-mouth outbreak that year, which caused the Leinster final against Carlow to be postponed until November. Postscript: Dublin won by 4–6 to 1–4... By this stage [the 1930s] the tendency to spread the [All-Ireland] semi-finals around the country was dying, and the 1941 replay in Tralee would be the last played outside Croke Park until 1983, when Dublin memorably went to Páirc Uí Chaoimh to take on Cork in an All-Ireland semi-final replay.
Another issue touched on by John O'Keeffe in his interview was the strange decision to extend senior championship provincial finals, All-Ireland semi-finals and finals to 80 minutes – which was an extra third on the previous duration of an hour. It made little difference to the outcome of matches. Of the five finals plus 1972 replay played over 80 minutes – the length of a match was settled at 70 minutes from 1975 onwards – only the 1971 Offaly-Galway result would have been affected. Had it been played over an hour, it would have ended in a draw instead of Offaly's first All-Ireland triumph.
Carlow will play Laois on 28 June in Dr Cullen Park, the first time a Championship game will take place on a Friday night.
| Rules |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Competitions | ||
| Related topics | ||
.jpg)
