| All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship | |
|---|---|
Current season or competition: 2024 All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship | |
| Irish | Craobh Shinsir Iomána na hÉireann |
| Code | Hurling |
| Founded | 1887 |
| Region |  Ireland (GAA) |
| Trophy | Liam MacCarthy Cup |
| No. of teams | 17 |
| Title holders |  Clare (5th title) |
| Most titles |  Kilkenny (36 titles) |
| Sponsors | Bord Gáis Energy Centra Eir |
| TV partner(s) | RTÉ BBC Northern Ireland |
| Motto | Be there. All the way |
| Official website | gaa.ie/hurling/all-ireland |
The GAA Hurling All-Ireland Senior Championship, known simply as the All-Ireland Championship, is an annual inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It is the highest-tier competition for inter-county hurling in Ireland and has been contested in every year except one since 1887.
The final, formerly held in September, then August and now controversially[citation needed] moved to July, is the culmination of a series of games played during July and August, with the winning team receiving the Liam MacCarthy Cup. The All-Ireland Championship has been played on a straight knockout basis for the majority of its existence, whereby a team's first loss eliminated them from the championship. In more recent years, the qualification procedures for the championship have changed several times. Currently, qualification is limited to teams competing in 3 feeder competitions; three teams from the Leinster Senior Hurling Championship, three teams from the Munster Senior Hurling Championship and two teams who qualify to the All-Ireland preliminary quarter-finals from the second-tier Joe McDonagh Cup. Annual promotion and relegation allows teams outside these competitions (teams from the Christy Ring Cup - tier 3, the Nicky Rackard Cup - tier 4 and the Lory Meagher Cup - tier 5) to eventually reach the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship.
Seventeen teams currently participate in the All-Ireland Championship, with the most successful coming from the provinces of Leinster and Munster. 13 different teams have won the title, 10 of whom have been champions more than once. Kilkenny are the competition's most successful team, having been All-Ireland champions on 36 occasions. Kilkenny, Cork and Tipperary are considered "the big three" of hurling and hold 94 championships between them. The current title holders are Clare, who defeated Cork by 3–29 to 1–34 in the 2024 final. This was Clare's fifth All Ireland hurling title, and their first since 2013.
The All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship final was listed in second place by CNN in its "10 sporting events you have to see live", after the Olympic Games.[1]
- ^ Donnelly, Shawn (2 April 2012). "10 sporting events you have to see live: Because the real glory of athletic competition is being able to say, "I was there!"". CNN. Archived from the original on 5 April 2012. Retrieved 2 April 2012.