2021 All-Ireland SFC to start on April 17th - Horan
December 22, 2020
GAA president John Horan at 2020 Congress
GAA president John Horan has outlined that teams will not be allowed to return to training until mid-January as plans for a split season in 2021 were confirmed yesterday.
It will see the Allianz Leagues commencing at the end of February and the All-Ireland championships finish in July, with the hurling final taking place on the weekend of July 11th and the football decider down for the weekend of July 18th.
Speaking to RTE Sport, Mr Horan also confirmed the start dates for the All-Ireland senior hurling and football championships.
Updated / Monday, 21 Dec 2020
16:24
Feargal McGill, GAA director of player, club and games development
The GAA s director of player, club and games administration Feargal McGill said finishing the inter-county schedule before the club campaign begins is a no-brainer as the association confirmed plans to have a split season in 2021.
The Allianz Leagues will begin at the end of February and the championship will be wrapped up in July, with the club championships commencing thereafter. They ll incorporate county, provincial and the All-Ireland series until mid-December when the All-Ireland club football semi-finals will be played.
Explaining the decision on Monday, McGill said: I think if you took a short-term view you would say there is no guarantee we will be able to play club games in the first quarter of the year.
We think county first is a no-brainer to be quite honest
December 21, 2020
Feargal McGill, Director of Player, Club and Games Administration at 2019 Congress
The GAA s director of player, club and games administration Feargal McGill has described the decision to conclude the inter-county schedule before the club campaign begins as a no-brainer .
It was confirmed earlier today that the GAA will be opting for a split season in 2021 which will see the Allianz Leagues commencing at the end of February and the All-Ireland championship finish in July, with the hurling championship final taking place on the weekend of July 11th and the football decider down for the weekend of July 18th.
New League structure as GAA master calendar for 2021 revealed
Both the Liam MacCarthy and Sam Maguire Cups will be played on a qualifier basis, although the Tailteann Cup will be in place for Division 3 and 4 teams
Photo by Piaras Ó Mídheach/Sportsfile
Sat, 19 Dec, 2020 - 10:06
John Fogarty The 2021 GAA master calendar will commence with the Allianz Leagues in the last weekend of February, collective senior inter-county training officially permitted from January 15.
As reported by the Irish Examiner last month, the football league is to be played on a regional basis, each of the four divisions split into two based on geography. In Division 1, 2020 winners Kerry will be in the south group with Dublin, Galway, and Roscommon while Cork join Clare, Laois, and Kildare in the equivalent in Division 2.
The GAA will finally confirm the structure for the 2021 club and inter-county calendar early next week.
RTÉ Sport understands that the 2021 season will commence with inter-county first, with the championship series running until the middle of July.
From there, club championships will commence and will incorporate county, provincial and All-Ireland series until mid-December when All-Ireland club football semi-finals will be held.
It s expected the template will be unveiled on Monday after weeks of intense debate and scrutiny at executive and management level.
Having been set for launch three weeks ago, the template was put on hold as concerns were expressed about the financial viability of staging an inter-county season first with the ongoing lack of gate receipts a huge concern for some.