All-Ireland Senior Football Championship records and statistics

This page details the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship records and statistics. The article discusses information for the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship from 1887 to the present.

Most successful counties

The most successful team (1887 – present) is Kerry.

Team	Inter-county football competitions
	All-Ireland Championship	Provincial Championship	Total
Kerry	37	75	131
Dublin	24	53	77
Galway	9	43	52

The figures in bold represent the most times this competition has been won.

Least successful counties

The following counties have never been represented in an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final: Carlow, Fermanagh, Kilkenny, Leitrim, Sligo, Westmeath, Wicklow, and Longford.

Kilkenny do not compete anymore, having won three Leinster Senior Football Championships in the distant past. Nowadays, Kilkenny dominate the sport of hurling instead. Carlow also compete at the highest level of hurling and have won an All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championship. Westmeath have enjoyed considerable success in hurling in recent years, winning a number of All-Ireland Senior B Hurling Championships and Christy Ring Cups, and their Gaelic football team won the 2004 Leinster Senior Football Championship Final.

As for the other teams, Fermanagh came close in 2004 — by reaching an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship semi-final replay — having defeated 1999 All-Ireland winners Meath, 2002 Munster Champions Cork, a Donegal team that reached the 2003 All-Ireland semi-finals and an Armagh team fresh from appearances in two consecutive All-Ireland Senior Football Finals.^[1] Wicklow senior Gaelic football team's most notable recent achievement was winning the 2012 NFL Division 4 final.

Against Kerry

• Kilkenny are the only county not to have encountered Kerry in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship.
• Only five counties have defeated Kerry in their first Championship meeting — Donegal (2012), Down (1960), Derry (1958), Dublin (1892) and Cork (1889).^[2]
  • Of these five Donegal, Down and Dublin enjoyed All-Ireland success.
    • Dublin beat Kerry in the 1892 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.
    • Down beat Kerry in the 1960 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.
    • Donegal defeated Kerry in the 2012 All-Ireland quarter-final before overcoming Cork and Mayo on the way to claiming the Sam Maguire Cup.

By decade

The most successful team of each decade, judged by number of All-Ireland Senior Football Championship titles, is as follows:^[3]

• 1890s: 6 for Dublin (1891-92-94-97-98-99)
• 1900s: 5 for Dublin (1901-02-06-07-08)
• 1910s: 4 for Wexford (1915-16-17-18)
• 1920s: 3 each for Dublin (1921-22-23) and Kerry (1924-26-29)
• 1930s: 5 for Kerry (1930-31-32-37-39)
• 1940s: 3 for Kerry (1940-41-46)
• 1950s: 3 for Kerry (1953-55-59)
• 1960s: 3 each for Down (1960-61-68) and Galway (1964-65-66)
• 1970s: 4 for Kerry (1970-75-78-79)
• 1980s: 5 for Kerry (1980-81-84-85-86)
• 1990s: 2 each for Down (1991-94) and Meath (1996–99)
• 2000s: 5 for Kerry (2000-04-06-07-09)
• 2010s: 2 for Dublin (2011-13), 1 each for Cork (2010), Donegal (2012) and Kerry (2014)

By county

#	County	Wins	Losses	Years won	Years runner up
1	Kerry	37	21	1903, 1904, 1909, 1913, 1914, 1924, 1926, 1929, 1930, 1931, 1932, 1937, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1946, 1953, 1955, 1959, 1962, 1969, 1970, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1997, 2000, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2014	1892, 1905, 1910, 1915, 1923, 1927, 1938, 1944, 1947, 1954, 1960, 1964, 1965, 1968, 1972, 1976, 1982, 2002, 2005, 2008, 2011
2	Dublin	24	13	1891, 1892, 1894, 1897, 1898, 1899, 1901, 1902, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1921, 1922, 1923, 1942, 1958, 1963, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1983, 1995, 2011, 2013	1896, 1904, 1920, 1924, 1934, 1955, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1984, 1985, 1992, 1994
3	Galway	9	13	1925, 1934, 1938, 1956, 1964, 1965, 1966, 1998, 2001	1919, 1922, 1933, 1940, 1941, 1942, 1959, 1963, 1971, 1973, 1974, 1983, 2000
4	Cork	7	17	1890, 1911, 1945, 1973, 1989, 1990, 2010	1889, 1891, 1893, 1894, 1897, 1899, 1906, 1907, 1956, 1957, 1967, 1987, 1988, 1993, 1999, 2007, 2009
5	Meath		9	1949, 1954, 1967, 1987, 1988, 1996, 1999	1895, 1939, 1951, 1952, 1966, 1970, 1990, 1991, 2001
6	Cavan	5	6	1933, 1935, 1947, 1948, 1952	1925, 1928, 1937, 1943, 1945, 1949
7	Wexford		3	1893, 1915, 1916, 1917, 1918	1890, 1913, 1914
8	Down		1	1960, 1961, 1968, 1991, 1994	2010
9	Kildare	4	5	1905, 1919, 1927, 1928	1926, 1929, 1931, 1935, 1998
10	Tipperary		1	1889, 1895, 1900, 1920	1918
11	Mayo	3	11	1936, 1950, 1951	1916, 1921, 1932, 1948, 1989, 1996, 1997, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2013
12	Offaly		3	1971, 1972, 1982	1961, 1969, 1981
	Louth			1910, 1912, 1957	1887, 1909, 1950
14	Tyrone		2	2003, 2005, 2008	1986, 1995
15	Roscommon	2	3	1943, 1944	1946, 1962, 1980
16	Donegal		1	1992, 2012	2014
17	Limerick		0	1887, 1896	—
18	Armagh	1	3	2002	1953, 1977, 2003
19	Derry		1	1993	1958
20	London	0	5	—	1900, 1901, 1902, 1903, 1908
21	Laois		2		1889, 1936
	Antrim				1911, 1912
23	Waterford		1		1898
	Clare				1917
	Monaghan				1930

By province

Most successful provinces

• Cavan and Down are the Ulster teams with the most All-Ireland Senior Football Championship titles.
• Dublin are the Leinster team with the most All-Ireland Senior Football Championship titles.
• Galway are the Connacht team with the most All-Ireland Senior Football Championship titles.
• Kerry are the Munster team with the most All-Ireland Senior Football Championship titles.
• Galway were the first team to have won an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship title "through the back door" - i.e. after losing in the Connacht Championship.

#	Province	Total*	Winners	Losers	% Success Rate	Winners by county	Losers by county
1	Munster	91	50	41	54%	Kerry (37), Cork (7), Tipperary (4), Limerick (2)	Kerry (21), Cork (17), Clare (1), Tipperary (1), Waterford (1)
2	Leinster	84	46	38	55%	Dublin (24), Meath (7), Wexford (5), Kildare (4), Offaly (3), Louth (3)	Dublin (13), Meath (9), Kildare (5), Wexford (3), Offaly (3), Louth (3), Laois (2)
3	Ulster	34	17	17	50%	Cavan (5), Down (5), Tyrone (3), Donegal (2), Armagh (1), Derry (1)	Cavan (6), Armagh (3), Tyrone (2), Antrim (2), Derry (1), Monaghan (1) Down (1), Donegal (1)
4	Connacht	40	14	26	35%	Galway (9), Mayo (3), Roscommon (2)	Galway (12), Mayo (11), Roscommon (3)

• Total = Appearances in an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final

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Provinces with highest number of different winning counties

• The provinces providing the highest number of different winning counties are Leinster and Ulster, with six each: Dublin, Meath, Wexford, Kildare, Offaly and Louth in Leinster and Cavan, Down, Tyrone, Donegal, Armagh and Derry in Ulster.

Finals featuring two teams from the same province

• Only on three occasions has the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final been contested by two teams from the same province:
  • Ulster: Tyrone vs Armagh (2003)
  • Munster: Kerry vs Cork (2007)
  • Munster: Kerry vs Cork (2009)

Final records and statistics

Success rates

100%

• One county currently have a 100% record in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.
  • Limerick
    • Note: Limerick won the first ever All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final and its 100% success rate has only ever been threatened once - in 1896. It remained intact.

• Historic 100% success rates (when a team won their first All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final before losing a final at a later time) are:
  • Tipperary (1889-1918)
  • Dublin (1891-1896)
  • Kildare (1905-1926)
  • Roscommon (1943-1946)
  • Down (1960-2010)
  • Donegal (1992-2014)

0%

• On the opposite end of the scale, three counties have appeared in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final on one occasion. All three lost.
  • Waterford (1898)
  • Clare (1917)
  • Monaghan (1930)

• Three counties have appeared in the final more than once, losing on each occasion:
  • Laois (1889, 1936)
  • Antrim (1911, 1912)
  • London (1900, 1901, 1902, 1903, 1908)
    • Note: In each of London's four appearances in the Final, they have been the beneficiaries of byes to that stage. From the 1900 Championship to the 1903 Championship, the GAA ran the competition between teams based in Ireland first, with the winners of the 'Home Final' going on to play London in the 'Grand Final'. In 1908 London qualified for the Final by winning the Semi-Final

Losing streaks

• Cork and Mayo are serial losers of All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Finals.
  • Cork have appeared in 24 Finals and lost 17.
  • Mayo have appeared in 14 Finals and lost 11.
• Mayo hold the current Championship record for consecutive losing All-Ireland Senior Football Final appearances—this stands at seven.^[4] Cork have previously also lost 7 consecutive final appearances between 1890 and 1911.

Biggest winning margins

• The most one sided All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Finals and their margins of victory:
  • 19 points – 1911: Cork 6-06 – 1-02 Antrim
  • 18 points – 1936: Mayo 4-11 – 0-05 Laois
  • 17 points – 1978: Kerry 5-11 – 0-09 Dublin
  • 15 points – 1930: Kerry 3-11 – 0-02 Monaghan
  • 15 points – 1889: Tipperary 3-06 – 0-00 Laois
  • 13 points – 2006: Kerry 4-15 – 3-05 Mayo

Longest gap between appearances

• Counties that waited more than two decades between appearances in an All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final.
  • 63 years: Kildare (1935-1998)
  • 47 years: Laois (1889-1936)
  • 44 years: Meath (1895-1939)
  • 38 years: Louth (1912-1950)
  • 38 years: Mayo (1951-1989)
  • 35 years: Derry (1958-1993)
  • 34 years: Cork (1911-1945)
  • 25 years: Armagh (1977-2002)
  • 24 years: Armagh (1953-1977)
  • 23 years: Down (1968-1991)

Disciplinary

In 1943, Joe Stafford of Cavan became the first player to be sent off in an all-Ireland senior football final. Many others have been sent off since then, including John Donnellan of Galway and brothers Derry O'Shea and John 'Thorny' O'Shea of Kerry in the 1965 final, Charlie Nelligan of Kerry in the 1978 final, Páidí Ó Sé of Kerry in the 1979 final, Brian Mullins, Kieran Duff, Ray Hazley of Dublin and Tomás Tierney of Galway in the 1983 final, Gerry McEntee of Meath in the 1988 final replay, Tony Davis of Cork in the 1993 final, Charlie Redmond of Dublin in the 1995 final, Liam McHale of Mayo and Colm Coyle of Meath in the 1996 final replay, Nigel Nestor of Meath in the 2001 final and Diarmuid Marsden of Armagh in the 2003 final.

Fastest goal

Garry McMahon's goal after 35 seconds of the 1962 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final is the fastest in All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final history.^[5]

• Other early goals include:
  • 1993 - Joe Kavanagh (5 minutes)
  • 2004 - Alan Dillon (4 minutes)
  • 2005 - Dara Ó Cinnéide (6 minutes)
  • 2012 - Michael Murphy (3 minutes)
  • 2014 - Paul Geaney (49 seconds)

See also

• All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship records and statistics
• Ulster Senior Football Championship records and statistics

References

All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Trophy Leinster Connacht Munster Ulster Records and statistics Winning captains Winning managers Winning players Losing players Winning teams Seasons 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Finals 1887 1888 1889 1890 1891 1892 1893 1894 1895 1896 1897 1898 1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Connacht Championship Leinster Championship Munster Championship Ulster Championship