2026 Nicky Rackard Cup

The 2026 Nicky Rackard Cup will be the twenty-second edition of the Nicky Rackard Cup since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 2005 and is the fourth-tier of Hurling for senior county teams (the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship is the first-tier trophy). It is contested by six GAA county teams ranked 24–30 in the 2026 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. The competition runs from 12 April to 30/31 May 2026.

Roscommon, winner of the 2025 final, were promoted to the Christy Ring Cup, replaced by Tyrone who were relegated to this competition. New York were promoted from the Lory Meagher Cup.

The second-placed team from the round robin stage will play off against New York in the semi-final.

The top team from the round robin stage will then play off against the semi-final winner in the final to decide the winner of the competition. The Nicky Rackard Cup Final will be played on 30/31 May 2026 at Croke Park in Dublin.

The bottom team from the round robin stage will be relegated to the Lory Meagher Cup. New York will remain in the competition for three years, during which period they must win at least one semi-final to maintain their status, or be relegated back to the Lory Meagher Cup. As such, they cannot be relegated in 2026. If New York win the cup, they will not be promoted and no team will be relegated from the Christy Ring Cup

Team changes

To Championship Relegated from the Christy Ring Cup

Tyrone

Promoted from the Lory Meagher Cup

New York

From Championship Promoted to the Christy Ring Cup

Roscommon

Format

Cup format Initially six teams play the each other five teams in single round-robin matches. The second-placed team after the round robin games will compete against New York in the Nicky Rackard Cup Semi-Final. The top team after the round robin games compete in the Nicky Rackard Cup Final.

Promotion The Nicky Rackard Cup champions are automatically promoted to the following year's Christy Ring Cup and are replaced by the bottom-placed team in the Christy Ring Cup.

Relegation The bottom-placed team in the Nicky Rackard Cup are automatically relegated to the following year's Lory Meagher Cup and are replaced by the Lory Meagher Cup champions.

Once promoted, New York will have a 3-year period in which to win a semi-final or they will be automatically Relegated to the next lowest Tier. Should New York win a semi-final but remain in a given Tier, a new 3-year period will commence in which they must win a semi-final or be automatically Relegated to the next lowest Tier.

Teams by Province The participating teams, listed by province, with numbers in parentheses indicating final positions in the 2026 National Hurling League before the championship were:

Connacht (2)

Mayo (21) Sligo (29)

Leinster (1)

Louth (26)

Munster (0)

None participated

Ulster (3)

Armagh (28) Fermanagh (27) Tyrone (25) North America (1)

New York (DNP)

Teams

General Information CountyLast Cup TitleLast Provincial TitleLast All-Ireland TitlePosition in 2025 ChampionshipAppearance Armagh2012——3rd17th Fermanagh———6th9th Louth———5th18th Mayo20211909—Runners-Up7th New York———Champions (Lory Meagher Cup)1st Sligo2019——4th13th Tyrone2022——6th (Christy Ring Cup)16th

Personnel and kits CountyManager (s)Captain(s)Sponsor ArmaghKarl McKeeganBarry Shortt and Odhrán CurrySimplyfruit FermanaghDaithí Hand and Peter GalvinÓdhrán JohnstonBelter Tech LouthPaddy McArdle and Diarmuid MurphyConor ClancySTATSports MayoRay LarkinEoghan CollinsIntersport Elverys New YorkRichie HartnettJohnny GlynnNavillus Contracting SligoTom HennesseyKevin O'Kennedy and Andrew KilcullenClayton Hotels TyroneStephen McGarryAidan KellyMcAleer & Rushe

Group Stage

Table TeamQualification1 Tyrone550021-846-89 +4010Advance to Final2 Mayo540110-1289-76 +558Advance to Semi-Final3 Sligo53028-12410-67 +5164 Louth52036-788-106 -3445 Fermanagh51047-7110-122 -6026 Armagh (R)50059-8218-107 -520Relegated to Lory Meagher Cup

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

Round 4

Round 5

Knockout Stage

Bracket

Semi-Final

Final

Stadia and locations

CountyLocationProvinceStadium(s)CapacityNeutralDublinLeinsterCroke Park82,300 ArmaghArmaghUlsterAthletic Grounds18,500 FermanaghEnniskillenUlsterBrewster Park20,000 LouthDroghedaLeinsterDrogheda Park3,500 MayoCastlebarConnachtMacHale Park25,369 New YorkBronxUSAGaelic Park2,000 SligoSligoConnachtMarkievicz Park18,558 TyroneCarrickmoreUlsterPáirc Colmcille

Statistics

Top scorers

Overall

RankPlayerCountyTallyTotalMatchesAverage12345678910 In a single game RankPlayerCountyTallyTotalOpposition12345678910

Scoring events

Widest winning margin: 24 points Sligo 1–31 — 0–10 Louth (Round 2) Fermanagh 1–13 — 2–34 Mayo (Round 3) Most goals in a match: 9 Tyrone 8–15 — 1–22 Armagh (Round 5) Most points in a match: 47 Fermanagh 1–13 — 2–34 Mayo (Round 3) Most goals by one team in a match: 8 Tyrone 8–15 — 1–22 Armagh (Round 5) Most points by one team in a match: 34 Fermanagh 1–13 — 2–34 Mayo (Round 3) Highest aggregate score: 64 points Tyrone 8–15 — 1–22 Armagh (Round 5) Lowest aggregate score: 34 points Louth1–16 — 0–15 Fermanagh (Round 1) Hat-trick Heros: Liam Griffiths (Tyrone) 4-01 v Armagh (Round 5) AJ Willis (New York) 3-02 v Mayo (Semi-Final)

2026 Nicky Rackard Cup

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