The Final of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship is the ultimate match in the annual hurling competition organised since 1887 by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). Contested by the top hurling teams in Ireland, the tournament has taken place every year, except in 1888, when the competition was not played due to a tour of the United States by would-be competitors. In 2012 the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship Final was listed in second place by CNN in its "10 sporting events you have to see live", after the Olympic Games and ahead of both the FIFA World Cup and UEFA European Football Championship. [1] The most recent All-Ireland Hurling Final was held at Croke Park, Dublin, on 21 July 2024 and saw Clare beat Cork by 1 point (final score: Clare 3-29 to Cork: 1-34).
The final, held in the middle of August since the introduction of the new format in 2018, except for 2022 when it was held in the middle of July, serves as the culmination of a series of games played during the summer months, and the results determine which county's team receives the Liam MacCarthy Cup. The Championship was initially a straight knockout competition open only to the champions of each of the four provinces of Ireland. During the 1990s the competition was expanded, firstly incorporating a "back-door system" and later a round-robin group phase involving more games. The Championship currently consists of several stages. In the present format, it begins in late May with provincial championships held in Leinster and Munster. Once a team is defeated in the provincial stage they are granted one more chance to compete for the title. The Munster and Leinster champions gain automatic admission to the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship semi-finals, where they are joined by the two winners of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship qualifiers via two lone quarter-finals.
Thirteen teams currently participate in the Championship, the most dominant teams coming from the provinces of Leinster and Munster. Kilkenny, Cork and Tipperary are considered "the big three" of hurling. Between them, these teams have won 94 out of 136 (69%) championships completed during its history. The title has been won by 13 different teams, 10 of which have won the title more than once. The all-time record-holders are Kilkenny, who won their 36th title in 2015. The current champions are Clare.
a. ^ Limerick refused to play in Thurles after the original fixture on 18 February 1911 in Cork was postponed owing to the state of pitch. Kilkenny were awarded the All-Ireland title. Tipperary were nominated to play in the All-Ireland final in their absence.
b. ^ A refixture of the All-Ireland Final was needed following an objection and a counter-objection.
c. ^ The 1899 final was left unfinished with Tipperary being awarded the title.
d. ^ Dublin withdrew from the field with ten minutes remaining. after Cork were awarded a disputed goal. Cork were awarded the title.
e. ^ Cork withdrew from the field in protest at rough play by the Wexford team. Cork were awarded the title.
f. ^ The 1888 Championship was unfinished owing to a tour of the United States by hurlers, footballers and athletes.
The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest-tier competition for inter-county hurling in Ireland and has been contested in every year except one since 1887.
The 1941 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 55th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The championship ended on 28 September 1941.
The 1942 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 56th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The championship began on 3 May 1942 and ended on 3 September 1942.
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1973 was the 87th series of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Ireland's premier hurling knock-out competition. Limerick won the championship, beating Kilkenny 1-21 to 1-14 in the final at Croke Park, Dublin.
The 1983 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 97th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The draw for the 1980 fixtures took place in September 1979. The championship began on 29 May 1983 and ended on 4 September 1983.
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 2008 was the 122nd since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. The first matches of the season were played on 25 May 2008, and the championship ended on 7 September 2008. Kilkenny went into the 2008 championship as defending champions, having won their thirtieth All-Ireland title the previous year.
The 1988 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 102nd staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The championship began on 22 May 1988 and ended on 4 September 1988.
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1945 was the 59th series of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Ireland's premier hurling knock-out competition. Tipperary won the championship, beating Kilkenny 5-6 to 3-6 in the final.
The 1938 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 52nd staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament. The championship began on 1 May 1938 and ended on 4 September 1938.
The 1890 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the fourth staging of the All-Ireland hurling championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. The championship began on 3 August 1890 and ended on 16 November 1890.
The 1889 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the third staging of the All-Ireland hurling championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. The championship began on 27 July 1889 and ended on 3 November 1889.
The 1888 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the second staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. The championship began on 27 May 1888; however, no All-Ireland final took place and the championship remains unfinished due to the North American invasion tour of Irish athletes, an unsuccessful attempt to raise funds for a revival of the Tailteann Games.
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1925 was the 39th series of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, Ireland's premier hurling knock-out competition. Tipperary won the championship, beating Galway 5-6 to 1-5 in the final.
This page details statistics of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship.
The 1971 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship was the 41st staging of the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1928. The championship ran from 16 May to 5 September 1971.
The 2016 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 129th staging of the All-Ireland championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1887. It is the top tier of senior inter-county championship hurling.
The 2019 All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship was the 89th staging of the All-Ireland Minor Hurling Championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 1928. The championship began on 27 April 2019 and ended on 18 August 2019.
The 2021 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 134th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament, since its establishment in 1887. The championship began on 26 June and ended on 22 August 2021.
The 2022 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 135th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament, since its establishment in 1887. The provincial fixtures were released on 27 November 2021. The championship began on 16 April 2022 and ended on 17 July 2022.
The 2023 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship was the 136th staging of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship, the Gaelic Athletic Association's premier inter-county hurling tournament, since its establishment in 1887. The championship began in April 2023 and ended on 23 July 2023.