The Northern Ireland Football League Charity Shield is the national association football super cup in Northern Ireland. It has been held on an occasional basis since its inauguration in 1992. Similar to the English FA Community Shield, it pits together the previous campaign's Irish League champions and Irish Cup winners, providing the opening match of the Irish League season.
| Founded | 1992 |
|---|---|
| Region |  Northern Ireland |
| Number of teams | 2 |
| Current champions | Crusaders (2023) |
| Most successful club(s) | Linfield – 4 titles (3 outright, 1 shared) |
| Website | NI Football League |
Crusaders are the current holders, after they defeated Larne 2–0 in the 2023 edition to win the competition for the second time and second consecutive season.[1]
Sponsorship
editMcEwan's Lager sponsored the competition between 1992 and 1994, and Wilkinson Sword were sponsors from 1998 until 2000, both of whom also sponsored other competitions in Irish League football. The proceeds from the 2014 and 2015 editions were donated to the Northern Ireland Hospice.[2]
Format
editThe Shield is held in early August as a single match. In the 1992 and 1993 editions, the trophy was shared between the two competing sides for six months when both matches finished level at full-time. However, the rules were later changed to ensure an outright winner. In the 2014 edition, a penalty shoot-out was used to determine the winner when the match ended level after 90 minutes, without extra time being played.
Results
editKey:
| & | Title was shared after match finished in a draw |
| pens. | Scores level after extra time. A penalty shootout was required to determine the winner. |
| Year | Date | Winner | Score | Runner-up | Venue | Attendance | Ref |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1992 | 8 August | Glenavon Glentoran | 1–1& | — | Windsor Park, Belfast | 2,000 | [3] |
| 1993 | 10 August | Bangor Linfield | 1–1& | — | Windsor Park, Belfast | ||
| 1994 | 3 August | Linfield | 2–0 | Bangor | Windsor Park, Belfast | ||
| 1998 | 8 August | Cliftonville | 1–0 | Glentoran | The Oval, Belfast | 2,000 | [4] |
| 1999 | 8 August | Portadown | 2–1 | Glentoran | Mourneview Park, Lurgan | 2,000 | [5] |
| 2000 | 5 August | Linfield | 2–0 | Glentoran | Windsor Park, Belfast | 10,500 | [6] |
| 2014 | 2 August | Cliftonville | 0 – 0 (a.e.t.) (4 – 2 pens.) | Ballymena United | Solitude, Belfast | [7] | |
| 2015 | 1 August | Glentoran | 1–0 | Crusaders | Solitude, Belfast | [8] | |
| 2016 | 30 July | Glenavon | 1–0 | Crusaders | Mourneview Park, Lurgan | [9] | |
| 2017 | 5 August | Linfield | 3–1 | Coleraine | The Oval, Belfast | [10] | |
| 2022 | 6 August | Crusaders | 2–0 | Linfield | Windsor Park, Belfast | [11] | |
| 2023 | 1 July | Crusaders | 2–0 | Larne | Inver Park, Larne | [1] |
Performance by club
edit| Team | Wins | Years | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linfield | 4 (1 shared) | 1993 (shared), 1994, 2000, 2017 | 2022 |
| Crusaders | 2 | 2022, 2023 | 2015, 2016 |
| Cliftonville | 2 | 1998, 2014 | — |
| Glentoran | 2 (1 shared) | 1992 (shared), 2015 | 1998, 1999, 2000 |
| Glenavon | 2 (1 shared) | 1992 (shared), 2016 | — |
| Portadown | 1 | 1999 | — |
| Bangor | 1 (shared) | 1993 (shared) | 1994 |
| Ballymena United | — | — | 2014 |
| Coleraine | — | — | 2017 |
| Larne | — | — | 2023 |
External links
editReferences
edit- ^ a b "NIFL Charity Shield: Jarlath O'Rourke and James Teelan goals see Crusaders defeat Larne 2-0". BBC Sport. 1 July 2023. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- ^ "NI FOOTBALL LEAGUE CHARITY SHIELD". nifootballleague.com. 25 June 2014. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ "Quigley's Bolt For Lurgan Blues". Sunday Life. 9 August 1992. p. 60.
- ^ "Char Grilled...Reds Mac flying start". Sunday Life. 9 August 1998. p. 75.
- ^ "A Real "Off" Day". Ireland's Saturday Night. 7 August 1999. p. 1.
- ^ "No Charity From Blues". Ireland's Saturday Night. 5 August 2000. p. 1.
- ^ "Cliftonville beat Ballymena in Charity Shield shoot-out". BBC Sport. 2 August 2014. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
- ^ "Glentoran beat Crusaders 1-0 in Charity Shield at Solitude". BBC Sport. 1 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
- ^ "Charity Shield: Ten-man Glenavon defeat Crusaders". BBC Sport. 30 July 2016. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
- ^ "Charity Shield: Linfield defeat Bannsiders in Oval curtain-raiser". BBC Sport. 5 August 2017. Retrieved 6 August 2017.
- ^ "Charity Shield: Crusaders beat Linfield 2-0 in season curtain-raiser at Windsor Park". BBC Sport. 6 August 2022. Retrieved 6 August 2022.