GAA to debate moving All-Ireland football final to new month

More movement in the GAA calendar could be upon us.

The GAA's Central Council is set to debate over whether or not the current Allianz Football League Finals format should be kept, and thus pushing back the date of the All-Ireland Football Final. Should the Council ratify the proposal, it would see the All-Ireland Football Final return to August for the first time since 1901. It is thought the proposal is likely to be passed, with the four divisional League Finals set to be retained ahead of the 2024 season. County boards have been seeking an additional week of rest to be placed in between the end of the league campaign and the beginning of the championship season. This is despite the results of a lengthy consultative process carried out by the GAA, which saw the majority of counties admit to favouring the scrapping of the league finals in favour of a traditional league system. [caption id="attachment_292373" align="alignnone" width="640"] It would be the first time since 1901 that the All-Ireland Football Final took place in August. (Credit: Sportsfile)[/caption]

GAA seek to reshape sporting calendar:

As part of this process, an additional survey was undertaken which has suggested starting the 2024 inter-county season a week earlier in January, to allow for league finals to take place at the end of March rather the first week of April. This would also see All-Ireland club finals played a week earlier, along with provincial club championships also starting earlier, although this would not begin to take affect until 2025. According to RTE Sport, counties were also offered the chance to scrap pre-season provincial tournaments but they were heavily in favour of keeping the existing schedule. Therefore, in order to find the additional one-week's worth of rest time, counties have been presented with the possibility of extending the All-Ireland Championship by one week. Should this come to pass at the GAA's annual congress, it would bring about a logistical nightmare in the capital, with the first weekend in August already a traditionally busy one given the bank holiday weekend. Numerous counties have reportedly voiced their objections to this proposal, although no alternative way to provide the additional week's rest has been suggested. Related Articles:

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