League of Ireland Shield
# League of Ireland Shield

The League of Ireland Shield (Irish: Sciath Sraithe na hÉireann) is a defunct Irish football tournament which was introduced when the League of Ireland started in 1921 and ran uninterrupted until 1972. It was played before the league season began and was seen as the third most important trophy in Irish football, after the league and FAI Cup. The winners of the Shield gained entry to the following season's Inter-Cities Fairs Cup until 1971–72.

It was played in a variety of formats; from complete round robin series to group stages followed by knock out games to complete knock out tournaments. It was replaced by the League of Ireland Cup in 1973, though returned for one season in 1983–84.

The LOI Shield should not be confused with the League of Ireland First Division Shield, a competition that ran in the 1980s and 1990s and, as the name suggests, was confined to First Division clubs.

## List of winners

| 1921–22: Shelbourne 1922–23: Shelbourne 1923–24: Bohemian 1924–25: Shamrock Rovers 1925–26: Shelbourne 1926–27: Shamrock Rovers 1927–28: Bohemian 1928–29: Bohemian 1929–30: Shelbourne 1930–31: Waterford 1931–32: Shamrock Rovers 1932–33: Shamrock Rovers 1933–34: Bohemian 1934–35: Shamrock Rovers 1935–36: St. James' Gate 1936–37: Waterford 1937–38: Shamrock Rovers 1938–39: Bohemian 1939–40: Bohemian 1940–41: St. James' Gate 1941–42: Shamrock Rovers 1942–43: Cork United 1943–44: Shelbourne 1944–45: Shelbourne 1945–46: Drumcondra 1946–47: Drumcondra | 1947–48: Cork United 1948–49: Shelbourne 1949–50 : Shamrock Rovers 1950–51: Drumcondra 1951–52 : Shamrock Rovers 1952–53: Waterford 1953–54: Limerick 1954–55: Shamrock Rovers 1955–56: Shamrock Rovers 1956–57: Shamrock Rovers 1957–58: Shamrock Rovers 1958–59: Waterford 1959–60: St Patricks Athletic 1960–61: Cork Celtic 1961–62: Drumcondra 1962–63: Shamrock Rovers 1963–64: Shamrock Rovers 1964–65: Shamrock Rovers 1965–66: Shamrock Rovers 1966–67: Dundalk 1967–68: Shamrock Rovers 1968–69: Waterford 1969–70: Cork Hibernians 1970–71: Shelbourne 1971–72: Dundalk 1972–73: Cork Hibernians 1983-84: Limerick City |
| - | - |

## Performance by club

| Club | Winners | Runners-up | Winning seasons |
| - | - | - | - |
| Shamrock Rovers | 18 | 9 | 1924–25, 1926–27, 1931–32, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1937–38, 1941–42, 1949–50, 1951–52, 1954–55, 1955-56, 1956–57, 1957–58, 1962–63, 1963-64, 1964–65, 1965–66, 1967–68 |
| Shelbourne | 8 | 5 | 1921–22, 1922–23, 1925–26, 1929–30, 1943–44, 1944–45, 1948–49, 1970–71 |
| Bohemians | 6 | 5 | 1923–24, 1927–28, 1928–29, 1933–34, 1938–39, 1939–40 |
| Waterford | 5 | 2 | 1930–31, 1936–37, 1952–53, 1958–59, 1968–69 |
| Drumcondra | 4 | 2 | 1945–46, 1946–47, 1950–51, 1961–62 |
| Dundalk | 2 | 6 | 1966–67, 1971–72 |
| Cork Hibernians | 2 | 2 | 1969–70, 1972–73 |
| Limerick | 2 | 2 | 1953–54, 1983-84 |
| Cork United | 2 | 1 | 1942–43, 1947–48 |
| St. James' Gate | 2 | – | 1935–36, 1940–41 |
| Cork Celtic | 1 | 3 | 1960–61 |
| St. Patrick's Athletic | 1 | 2 | 1959–60 |
| Transport | – | 3 | – |
| Athlone Town | – | 2 | – |
| Bray Unknowns F.C. | – | 1 | – |
| Cork F.C. | – | 1 | – |
| Dolphin F.C. | – | 1 | – |
| Drogheda United | – | 1 | – |
| Sligo Rovers | – | 1 | – |
| UCD | – | 1 | – |
