City Cup
Organising bodyIrish Football Association
Founded1894
Abolished1976
RegionNorthern Ireland Northern Ireland (1921–1976)
Ireland Ireland (1895–1921)
Most successful club(s)Linfield (24 titles)

The City Cup was a football cup competition which involved teams from Northern Ireland (and prior to 1921, teams from Ireland). The tournament ran from 1894 and ceased to exist in 1976. The physical trophy the teams played for was called the Dunville Cup and this trophy is now presented to the winners of the Northern Ireland Football League Cup, which began in 1987.[1]

History

A cup tournament consisting solely of Belfast clubs had been mooted as early as 1892,[2] although it was not until two years later that the competition was organised.[3] While the City Cup began as a competition for Belfast clubs only, from 1905 to 1911 Dublin-based club Shelbourne also participated. In the 1911–12 season, all eight Irish League clubs participated (Derry Celtic and Glenavon joining the five Belfast teams and Shelbourne). In the 1912–13 season, when the League expanded to ten clubs, only seven participated (the five Belfast teams plus Glenavon and Shelbourne. From 1913 until its demise in 1976, all clubs who were members of the Irish League competed for the City Cup (excluding the war years).

During 1915 to 1919, the City Cup was known as the Belfast City Cup and reverted to being a Belfast-only competition and is not recognised as an "official" competition for this period but as a wartime competition; during 1940 to 1947, it was not played at all.

Format

The format for the City Cup varied throughout its history, but most commonly it was organised on a league basis, by which each participating club played each other and the team with the most points won the cup.

The format over the years was as follows:

Years No. of seasons Format
1894–1915, 1919–40, 1947–69 64 league
1969–70 1 group system plus final
1970–71 1 league
1971–76 5 group system plus final

List of winners and runner-ups

League format

Season Winner Runner-up
1894–95 Linfield (1) Cliftonville
1895–96 Linfield (2) Distillery
1896–97 Glentoran (1) Cliftonville
1897–98 Linfield (3) Belfast Celtic
1898–99 Glentoran (2) Linfield
1899–1900 Linfield (4) Distillery
1900–01 Linfield (5) Cliftonville
1901–02 Linfield (6) Glentoran
1902–03 Linfield (7) Belfast Celtic
1903–04 Linfield (8) Distillery
1904–05 Distillery (1) Glentoran
1905–06 Belfast Celtic (1) Cliftonville
1906–07 Belfast Celtic (2) Cliftonville
1907–08 Linfield (9) Glentoran
1908–09 Shelbourne (1) Glentoran
1909–10 Linfield (10) Distillery
1910–11 Glentoran (3) Belfast Celtic
1911–12 Glentoran (4) Distillery
1912–13 Distillery (2) Glenavon
1913–14 Glentoran (5) Linfield
1914–15 Glentoran (6) Linfield
1919–20 Linfield (11) Belfast Celtic
1920–21 Glenavon (1) Glentoran
1921–22 Linfield (12) Glentoran
1922–23 Queen’s Island (1) Distillery
1923–24 Queen’s Island (2) Glentoran
1924–25 Queen’s Island (3) Glentoran
1925–26 Belfast Celtic (3) Queen’s Island
1926–27 Linfield (13) Belfast Celtic
1927–28 Belfast Celtic (4) Linfield
1928–29 Linfield (14) Ballymena
1929–30 Belfast Celtic (5) Glentoran
1930–31 Belfast Celtic (6) Linfield
1931–32 Glentoran (7) Belfast Celtic
1932–33 Belfast Celtic (7) Linfield
1933–34 Distillery (3) Belfast Celtic
1934–35 Derry City (1) Linfield
1935–36 Linfield (15) Portadown
1936–37 Derry City (2) Linfield
1937–38 Linfield (16) Derry City
1938–39 Portadown (1) Linfield
1939–40 Belfast Celtic (8) Derry City
1947–48 Belfast Celtic (9) Glentoran
1948–49 Belfast Celtic (10) Linfield
1949–50 Linfield (17) Derry City
1950–51 Glentoran (8) Linfield
1951–52 Linfield (18) Glentoran
1952–53 Glentoran (9) Linfield
1953–54 Coleraine (1) Glentoran
1954–55 Glenavon (2) Distillery
1955–56 Glenavon (3) Coleraine
1956–57 Glentoran (10) Distillery
1957–58 Linfield (19) Glentoran
1958–59 Linfield (20) Glenavon
1959–60 Distillery (4) Glenavon
1960–61 Glenavon (4) Ballymena United
1961–62 Linfield (21) Portadown
1962–63 Distillery (5) Linfield
1963–64 Linfield (22) Glentoran
1964–65 Glentoran (11) Derry City
1965–66 Glenavon (5) Crusaders
1966–67 Glentoran (12) Linfield
1967–68 Linfield (23) Crusaders
1968–69 Coleraine (2) Derry City
1970–71 Bangor (1) Distillery

Finals

Key:

pens. Scores level after extra time. A penalty shootout was required to determine the winner.


Season Winner Score Runner-up Venue Attendance
1969–70 Glentoran (13) 2–1 Bangor Windsor Park, Belfast
1971–72 Ballymena United (1) 1–0 Ards The Oval, Belfast
1972–73 Glentoran (14) 2–0 Coleraine Ballymena Showgrounds, Ballymena
1973–74 Linfield (24) 0 2 – 2 (a.e.t.) (3 – 1 pens.) Coleraine Ballymena Showgrounds, Ballymena
1974–75 Glentoran (15) 3–1 Linfield Windsor Park, Belfast
1975–76 Bangor (2) 0 0 – 0 (a.e.t.) (3 – 1 pens.) Coleraine Seaview, Belfast

Performance by club

Club Winners Runners-up Winning Years Runners-up Years
Linfield 24 15 1894–95, 1895–96, 1897–98, 1899–1900, 1900–01, 1901–02, 1902–03, 1903–04, 1907–08, 1909–10, 1919–20, 1921–22, 1926–27, 1928–29, 1935–36, 1937–38, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1957–58, 1958–59, 1961–62, 1963–64, 1967–68, 1973–74 1898–99, 1913–14, 1914–15, 1927–28, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1936–37, 1938–39, 1948–49, 1950–51, 1952–53, 1962–63, 1966–67, 1974–75
Glentoran 15 14 1896–97, 1898–99, 1910–11, 1911–12, 1913–14, 1914–15, 1931–32, 1950–51, 1952–53, 1956–57, 1964–65, 1966–67, 1969–70, 1972–73, 1974–75 1901–02, 1904–05, 1907–08, 1908–09, 1920–21, 1921–22, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1929–30, 1947–48, 1951–52, 1953–54, 1957–58, 1963–64
Belfast Celtic 10 7 1905–06, 1906–07, 1925–26, 1927–28, 1929–30, 1930–31, 1932–33, 1939–40, 1947–48, 1948–49 1897–98, 1902–03, 1910–11, 1919–20, 1926–27, 1931–32, 1933–34
Distillery 5 9 1904–05, 1912–13, 1933–34, 1959–60, 1962–63 1895–96, 1899–00, 1903–04, 1909–10, 1911–12, 1922–23, 1954–55, 1956–57, 1970–71
Glenavon 5 3 1920–21, 1954–55, 1955–56, 1960–61, 1965–66 1912–13, 1958–59, 1959–60
Queen’s Island 3 1 1922–23, 1923–24, 1924–25 1925–26
Derry City 2 5 1934–35, 1936–37 1937–38, 1939–40, 1949–50, 1964–65, 1968–69
Coleraine 2 4 1953–54, 1968–69 1955–56, 1972–73, 1973–74, 1975–76
Bangor 2 1 1970–71, 1975–76 1969–70
Portadown 1 2 1938–39 1935–36, 1961–62
Ballymena United 1 1 1971–72 1960–61
Shelbourne 1 0 1908–09 —
Cliftonville 0 5 — 1894–95, 1896–97, 1900–01, 1905–06, 1906–07
Crusaders 0 2 — 1965–66, 1967–68
Ballymena 0 1 — 1928–29
Ards 0 1 — 1971–72

Belfast City Cup

Due to World War I, from the 1915–16 to 1918–19 seasons the City Cup was competed for by Ulster-based clubs only and was known as the "Belfast City Cup".

Key:

& Title was shared after test match finished in a draw


Season Winner (number of titles) Score Runner-up
1915–16[4] Glentoran (1) League format Belfast United
1916–17[5][6] Glentoran (2) Linfield
1917–18[7] Linfield (1) Glentoran
1918–19[8] Belfast Celtic (1)
Glentoran (3) 		—

Performance by club

Club Winners Runners-up Winning Years Runners-up Years
Glentoran 3 (1 shared) 1 1915–16, 1916–17, 1918–19 (shared) 1917–18
Linfield 1 1 1917–18 1916–17
Belfast Celtic 1 (shared) 0 1918–19 (shared) —
Belfast United 0 1 — 1915–16

References

  1. ^ "Irish League Archive Region=Northern Ireland City Cup". Irish League Archive. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  2. ^ "Another Cup Competition". Ulster Football and Cycling News. 21 October 1892. p. 3.
  3. ^ "Notes". Ulster Football and Cycling News. 6 July 1894. p. 6.
  4. ^ "Belfast City Cup Table". Belfast Telegraph. 6 March 1916. p. 4.
  5. ^ "Belfast City Cup Table". Belfast News Letter. 29 January 1917. p. 2.
  6. ^ "City Cup Competition, Glentoran v Linfield". Belfast News Letter. 12 May 1917. p. 2.
  7. ^ "Belfast City Cup Competition". Ireland's Saturday Night. 2 March 1918. p. 3.
  8. ^ "City Cup Test Match, Scenes at Windsor Park". Belfast Telegraph. 20 May 1919. p. 5.

External links

City Cup
Association football in Northern Ireland
Association football cup competitions in Ireland
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