NIFL Charity Shield

Last updated
NIFL Charity Shield
Founded1992
RegionNorthern Ireland
Number of teams2
Current champions Dungannon Swifts (2025)
Most successful club(s) Linfield – 4 titles
(3 outright, 1 shared)
Website NI Football League

The Northern Ireland Football League Charity Shield is the national association football super cup in Northern Ireland. It has been held on an occasional basis since its inauguration in 1992. It pits together the previous campaign's NIFL Premiership champions and Irish Cup winners, providing the opening match of the Irish League season.

Contents

Dungannon Swifts are the current holders, after they defeated Linfield 5–3 on penalties in the 2025 edition to win the competition for the first time. [1]

Sponsorship

McEwan's Lager sponsored the competition between 1992 and 1994, and Wilkinson Sword were sponsors from 1998 until 2000, both of whom also sponsored other competitions in Irish League football. The proceeds from the 2014 and 2015 editions were donated to the Northern Ireland Hospice. [2]

Format

The Shield is held in early August as a single match. In the 1992 and 1993 editions, the trophy was shared between the two competing sides for six months when both matches finished level at full-time. However, the rules were later changed to ensure an outright winner. In the 2014 edition, a penalty shoot-out was used to determine the winner when the match ended level after 90 minutes, without extra time being played.

Results

Key:

&Title was shared after match finished in a draw
pens.Scores level after extra time. A penalty shootout was required to determine the winner.
pens.Scores level after full time. A penalty shootout was required to determine the winner.


YearDateWinnerScoreRunner-upVenueAttendanceRef
19928 August Glenavon
Glentoran 		1–1&— Windsor Park, Belfast 2,000 [3]
199310 August Bangor
Linfield 		1–1&— Windsor Park, Belfast
19943 August Linfield 2–0 Bangor Windsor Park, Belfast
19988 August Cliftonville 1–0 Glentoran The Oval, Belfast 2,000 [4]
19998 August Portadown 2–1 Glentoran Mourneview Park, Lurgan 2,000 [5]
20005 August Linfield 2–0 Glentoran Windsor Park, Belfast 10,500 [6]
20142 August Cliftonville 0 – 0 ( a.e.t. )(4 – 2 pens.) Ballymena United Solitude, Belfast [7]
20151 August Glentoran 1–0 Crusaders Solitude, Belfast [8]
201630 July Glenavon 1–0 Crusaders Mourneview Park, Lurgan [9]
20175 August Linfield 3–1 Coleraine The Oval, Belfast [10]
20226 August Crusaders 2–0 Linfield Windsor Park, Belfast [11]
20231 July Crusaders 2–0 Larne Inver Park, Larne [12]
20245 July Larne 2–1 Cliftonville Inver Park, Larne [13]
20254 July Dungannon Swifts 0 – 0 (5 – 3 pens.) Linfield Windsor Park, Belfast [1]

Performance by club

TeamWinsYearsRunner-up
Linfield 4 (1 shared)1993 (shared), 1994, 2000, 20172022, 2025
Crusaders 22022, 20232015, 2016
Cliftonville 21998, 20142024
Glentoran 2 (1 shared)1992 (shared), 20151998, 1999, 2000
Glenavon 2 (1 shared)1992 (shared), 2016—
Larne 120242023
Portadown 11999—
Dungannon Swifts 12025—
Bangor 1 (shared)1993 (shared)1994
Ballymena United ——2014
Coleraine ——2017

References

  1. 1 2 "Swifts beat Linfield on penalties to win Charity Shield". BBC Sport. 4 July 2025. Retrieved 4 July 2025.
  2. ↑ "NI FOOTBALL LEAGUE CHARITY SHIELD". nifootballleague.com. 25 June 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
  3. ↑ "Quigley's Bolt For Lurgan Blues" . Sunday Life. 9 August 1992. p. 60.
  4. ↑ "Char Grilled...Reds Mac flying start" . Sunday Life. 9 August 1998. p. 75.
  5. ↑ "A Real "Off" Day" . Ireland's Saturday Night. 7 August 1999. p. 1.
  6. ↑ "No Charity From Blues" . Ireland's Saturday Night. 5 August 2000. p. 1.
  7. ↑ "Cliftonville beat Ballymena in Charity Shield shoot-out". BBC Sport . 2 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  8. ↑ "Glentoran beat Crusaders 1-0 in Charity Shield at Solitude". BBC Sport . 1 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  9. ↑ "Charity Shield: Ten-man Glenavon defeat Crusaders". BBC Sport . 30 July 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  10. ↑ "Charity Shield: Linfield defeat Bannsiders in Oval curtain-raiser". BBC Sport . 5 August 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
  11. ↑ "Charity Shield: Crusaders beat Linfield 2-0 in season curtain-raiser at Windsor Park". BBC Sport . 6 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.
  12. ↑ "NIFL Charity Shield: Jarlath O'Rourke and James Teelan goals see Crusaders defeat Larne 2-0". BBC Sport. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
  13. ↑ "Larne come from behind to win Charity Shield". BBC Sport. 5 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
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