| O'Byrne Cup | |
|---|---|
| Irish | Corn Uí Bhroin |
| Code | Gaelic football |
| Founded | 1954; 71 years ago (1954) |
| Region | Leinster (GAA) |
| Trophy | O'Byrne Cup |
| No. of teams | 11 |
| Title holders | Longford (5th title) |
| Most titles | Kildare (11 titles) |
| Sponsors | Dioralyte |
| Official website | https://leinstergaa.ie/competitions/obyrne-cup-s-f-2023/ |
The O'Byrne Cup is a Gaelic football competition organized by the Leinster GAA and first staged in 1954.
History
The competition is named in honour of Matt Byrne (b. 14 February 1870), a former Wicklow GAA club and county officer. By virtue of a quirk in translation, the Corn Uí Bhroin became known as the O'Byrne cup even though Matt had never used an 'O' in his surname. Byrne was a native of Baltinglass and taught at the local national school. Deeply involved in GAA activities at all levels throughout his life, he was regarded as a good footballer in his youth and an excellent handballer. He was the first secretary of the Maurice Davins' club in Baltinglass and served as a member of the Wicklow County Board for over 50 years, mostly as registrar. He represented Wicklow on Leinster and Central Councils and served as President of the Irish Handball Council from 1941-44. Byrne died on 21 September 1947.
The competition is contested by the eleven Leinster county teams (excluding Kilkenny), although Third-level College teams have taken part occasionally. The competition is, together with the Walsh Cup and Kehoe Cup, part of a Leinster GAA Series which takes place each January. The most recent O'Byrne Cup winners were Longford, who beat Dublin in the 2024 final.
The O'Byrne Shield was introduced in 2006 for teams knocked out at the first-round stage of the competition. It was later abandoned in 2013 due to the introduction of group stages in the competition, but re-introduced in 2024 when the O'Byrne Cup reverted to straight knockout format.
Recent developments
In September 2024, GAA delegates voted to remove the O'Byrne Cup from the 2025 fixtures calendar on a one-year trial basis.
Top winners
| Team | Wins | Years won | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Kildare
|
11 | 1962, 1968, 1970, 1973, 1976, 1982, 1989, 2003, 2011, 2013, 2014 |
| 2 |  Dublin
|
10 | 1956, 1958, 1960, 1966, 1999, 2007, 2008, 2015, 2017, 2022 |
 Meath
|
10 | 1967, 1974, 1977, 1983, 1992, 2001, 2004, 2006, 2016, 2018 | |
| 4 |  Offaly
|
6 | 1954, 1961, 1981, 1993, 1997, 1998 |
| 5 |  Laois
|
5 | 1978, 1987, 1991, 1994, 2005 |
 Longford
|
5 | 1965, 2000, 2020, 2023, 2024 | |
| 7 |  Westmeath
|
4 | 1959, 1964, 1988, 2019 |
 Louth
|
4 | 1963, 1980, 1990, 2009 | |
| Wicklow
|
4 | 1955, 1957, 1986, 1996 | |
| 10 |  DCU
|
2 | 2010, 2012 |
| 11 |  Carlow
|
1 | 2002 |
 Wexford
|
1 | 1995 |
List of finals
‡ Wexford awarded title as Westmeath refused to play extra time.
O'Byrne Shield
Top winners
| Team | Wins | Years won | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Laois
|
3 | 2008, 2009, 2012 |
| 2 | Longford
|
2 | 2006, 2007 |
| 3 | Carlow
|
1 | 2010 |
| 3 | Dublin
|
1 | 2011 |
| 3 | Louth
|
1 | 2024 |
References
- "Longford - O'Byrne Cup History". Longford Gaelic Stats.
- "Friday night lights on cards for Leinster championship showdowns". Irish Independent. 20 July 2012.
- "Leinster GAA set to reformat O'Byrne Cup as knockout competition for 2024". Irish Independent. 11 October 2023.
- "All-Ireland Football Championship revamp on the way but not until 2026 as pre-season competitions will be scrapped for 2025". Irish Independent. 7 September 2024.
- "O'Byrne Cup final: SENIOR FOOTBALLERS PROVE TO BE EXTRA SPECIAL". Hogan Stand. 25 January 2015. Retrieved 25 January 2015.
- "O'Byrne Cup final: Kildare retain crown". Hogan Stand. 26 January 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2014.
- "Westmeath kicked out of O'Byrne Cup". Irish Press. 14 March 1995.
| O'Byrne Cup | |
|---|---|
|
| Inter-county competitions under administration by the Leinster Council | |
|---|---|
| Gaelic football | |
| Hurling | |