Leinster Championship action for 2026 begins later this month, with our Minor footballers being the first due into battle when they take on Wicklow at home on the evening of Tuesday March 24.
After that, it’ll be action all the way, with 20 guaranteed matches for Wexford sides over the following two months – and the prospect of even more, if the sides go well!
There follows a breakdown and explainer of what lies in store for our hurling and football teams at senior, U20, and minor levels. Please note that for many U20 and Minor matches, exact details have yet to be confirmed.
All details listed here are as per www.leinstergaa.ie at the time of posting on March 10, 2025.
Senior Hurling
The Senior Hurling Championship will follow its usual format, of a round-robin of six teams with the top two qualifying for the provincial final, and the third-placed team also going through to the All-Ireland stages. Wexford’s group fixtures are as follows:
- Saturday April 18: Away v Kildare (Cedral St. Conleth’s Park, 6.30 p.m.)
- Saturday April 25: Away v Kilkenny (UPMC Nowlan Park, 6.30 p.m.)
- Saturday May 9: Home v Dublin (Chadwicks Wexford Park, 4 p.m.)
- Saturday May 16: Away v Offaly (Glenisk O’Connor Park, 6 p.m.)
- Sunday May 24: Home v Galway (Chadwicks Wexford Park, 2 p.m.)
The Leinster Final will be in Croke Park on Saturday June 6, with a throw-in time of 6 p.m.
Senior Football
Our senior footballers will take on reigning provincial champions Louth at the quarter-final stage on Sunday April 19. The winners will play a semi-final against the winner of the quarter-final between Dublin and the victor of the preliminary round tie between Carlow and Wicklow.
The semi-finals are scheduled for the weekend of May 2/3, while the Leinster Final will be held on Sunday May 17.
The Tailteann Cup is to start on the weekend of either May 9/10 or May 16/17.
U20 Hurling
In U20 Hurling, Wexford have been placed in Group 1 of Tier 1 of the championship, along with Kilkenny, Galway, and a qualifier from Phase 1 of the competition (involving Meath, Antrim, Kildare, Kerry, Carlow, and Westmeath). The other Tier 1 group will consist of Dublin, Laois, Offaly, and another qualifier from Phase 1.
We will thus have three group games, as follows:
- Thursday April 2/Saturday April 4: Home v Galway (details TBC)
- Saturday April 11/Sunday April 12: Home v Kilkenny (details TBC)
- Wednesday April 22: Away v Qualifier 1 (details TBC)
The group winner will qualify directly for a semi-final, while teams finishing second and third will play a quarter-final against a team from the other two.
Quarter-finals are to be played on Bank Holiday Monday May 4; semi-finals on Wednesday May 13; and the Leinster Final will be played on Wednesday May 20.
U20 Football
In U20 Football, the Wexford team find themselves in Group 1, with Dublin, Louth, and Westmeath. Group games will be:
- Wednesday March 25: Home v Dublin (Chadwicks Wexford Park, 7.30 p.m.)
- Wednesday April 1: Home v Westmeath (details TBC)
- Wednesday April 8: Away v Louth (details TBC)
The second-placed team in the group will progress to a quarter-final, to be played on Wednesday April 15. Meanwhile, group winners will go directly to a semi-final, to be played on Wednesday April 22. The Final is scheduled for Wednesday April 29.
The teams that finish third and fourth in the group will be eliminated from the championship proper and will enter the Andrew Corden Cup. Quarter-finals of this competition will be Wednesday April 15; semi-finals will be Wednesday April 22; and the final will be Tuesday April 28.
Minor Hurling
In Minor Hurling, Wexford are in Group 2 of Tier 1 of the competition, alongside Galway and a qualifier from Phase 1 (which involves Antrim, Carlow, Down, Kerry, Kildare, Laois, Meath, Offaly, Westmeath, and Wicklow).
Group 1 will consist of Kilkenny, Dublin, and another qualifier. However, an unusual feature of this championship is that it will be run on the basis of “criss cross” fixtures, such that the teams in one group play the teams from the other group in the round-robin stage.
Our fixtures are thus:
- Saturday April 18: v Dublin (details TBC)
- Saturday April 25: v Qualifier 1 (details TBC)
- Saturday May 2: v Kilkenny (details TBC)
The exact details of those fixtures are to be announced after completion of Phase 1 of the competition on April 11.
The top two teams in each group will qualify for a semi-final to be played on Saturday May 9. The Final is scheduled for Saturday May 16.
Minor Football
In Minor Football, Wexford have been placed in a championship group with Carlow and Wicklow, from which two of the three teams will emerge. Kilkenny will also provide opposition to all three counties but this will count only towards a separate ‘South Leinster Shield’ competition, and Kilkenny cannot progress in the championship proper.
Our fixtures are:
- Tuesday March 24: Home v Wicklow (Chadwicks Wexford Park, 7.30 p.m.)
- Tuesday April 7: Winners of Wexford v Wicklow to play Carlow. Losers of Wexford v Wicklow to play Kilkenny.
- Tuesday April 14: Losers of Wexford v Wicklow to play Carlow. Winners of Wexford v Wicklow to play Kilkenny.
The two teams emerging from the group will proceed to a preliminary quarter-final to be played on Tuesday April 21. Quarter-finals will be on Tuesday April 28; semi-finals on Tuesday May 5; and the final on Friday May 22.
Losing quarter-finalists and losing semi-finalists will enter the Tier 2 All-Ireland competition. Teams that do not reach the quarter-finals will enter the Tier 3 All-Ireland competition.
