Major change to Wexford Senior hurling championship for 2026

There is a major change coming to the Wexford Senior hurling championship for 2026…

A Wexford GAA County Board meeting took place in the Ferrycarrig Hotel on the evening of Tuesday January 13^th, 2026.

The main purpose of the meeting was to consider motions in respect of 2026 club competitions.

Previously, it meant that a team could lose all their group games, finish 6th, and still win the Championship. Although there were of course benefits to winning games, the format came in for some criticism as some argued that it did not place enough jeoprady on Championship matches.

Unlike last year, for the 2026 adult club hurling season, those who finish last in their groups (Group A and Group B) will be placed directly into the relegation final.

The change to the structure of the adult hurling championships was put forward by Oulart-The Ballagh GAA Club. It was then agreed alongside the Hurling Advisory Committee.

Adult Hurling Championships 2026

There will remain two groups of six in each grade but the change means that the following will apply after the group stage:

Top three in each group qualify for quarter-finals.
4^th plays 5^th in preliminary quarter-finals.
Teams finishing in 6^th place exit the championship proper and go directly to a Relegation Final.
In the quarter-finals, group winners play one of the winners of the preliminary quarter-finals (repeat pairings to be avoided where possible). Runner-up in Group A plays 3^rd in Group B, and runner-up in Group B plays 3^rd in Group A.
Open draw for semi-finals. Repeat pairings from group stage are allowed.