# 1939 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

The 1939 All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was the 53rd staging of Ireland's premier Gaelic football knock-out competition. Galway entered the championship as defending champions; however, they were beaten by Mayo in the Connacht final. Kerry were the winners.

## Format
### Provincial Championships format changes
#### Leinster Championship format change

2 Preliminary rounds instead of usual 1. Involved were Longford, Carlow, Westmeath & Wicklow of course the winners qualified for a quarterfinal to meet the stronger teams.

#### Munster Championship format change

In 1939 Kerry were given a bye to the Munster final, preliminary round was just a lone match between Cork vs Waterford, the winners of the game played in the quarterfinals along with Tipperary, Limerick and Clare, the winners of the game played in a lone Semifinal. The format was previously used in 1933 and was used again in 1941.

### All Ireland semifinals system

The All-Ireland Senior Football Championship was run on a provincial basis as usual in every 3rd year in rotation, with the four winners from Connacht, Leinster, Munster and Ulster advancing to the All-Ireland semi-finals. The draw for these games was as follows:
* Munster V. Connacht
* Ulster V. Leinster

## Provincial championships
### Connacht Senior Football Championship

| Semifinal | Semifinal | Final | Final |
| | | Galway | 0-03 |
| Mayo | 2-10 | Mayo | 2-06 |
| Sligo | 0-02 | | |

### Leinster Senior Football Championship

| Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 1 | Round 2 | Round 2 | Round 2 |
| | Longford | 0-17 | | | |
| 4-04 | Westmeath | | | | |
| 4-04 | Westmeath | | | | 3-04 |
| | | | Carlow | Carlow | 2-05 |
| Carlow | Carlow | 2-08 | Carlow | Carlow | 2-05 |
| Wicklow | Wicklow | 1-03 | | | |
| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| Wexford | Wexford | 0-06 | | | | | | |
| Longford | Longford | 0-04 | | | | | | |
| Longford | Longford | 0-04 | Wexford | Wexford | 1-07 | | | |
| | | | Louth | Louth | 0-07 | | | |
| Louth | Louth | 3-04 | Louth | Louth | 0-07 | | | |
| Dublin | Dublin | 1-06 | | | | | | |
| Dublin | Dublin | 1-06 | | | | Wexford | Wexford | 2-03 |
| | | | | | | Meath | Meath | 2-07 |
| Meath | Meath | 1-09 | | | | | | | Meath | Meath | 2-07 |
| Laois | Laois | 1-07 | | | | | | |
| Laois | Laois | 1-07 | Meath | Meath | 2-10 | | | |
| | | | Kildare | Kildare | 2-08 | | | |
| Kildare | Kildare | 2-11 | Kildare | Kildare | 2-08 | | | |
| Offaly | Offaly | 1-01 | | | | | | |

### Munster Senior Football Championship

| Preliminary round | Preliminary round | Preliminary round | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinal | Semifinal | Semifinal |
| | | | Clare | Clare | 1-08, 2-14 | | | |
| | | | Limerick | Limerick | 2-05, 0-03 | | | |
| | | | | | | Clare | Clare | 1-06 |
| | | | | | | Tipperary | Tipperary | 4-05 |
| | | | Tipperary | Tipperary | 1-09 | | | |
| Cork | Cork | 0-08 | Cork | Cork | 2-02 | | | |
| Waterford | Waterford | 0-07 | | | | | | |
| Final | Final | Final |
| Kerry | Kerry | 2-11 |
| Tipperary | Tipperary | 0-04 |

### Ulster Senior Football Championship

| Preliminary round | Preliminary round | Preliminary round |
| Down | Down | 1-06 |
| Antrim | Antrim | 1-05 |
| Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| | | | Armagh | Armagh | 1-06, 1-06 | | | |
| | | | Monaghan | Monaghan | 1-06, 0-02 | | | |
| | | | | | | Armagh | Armagh | 2-04, 1-04 |
| | | | | | | Cavan | Cavan | 2-06, 2-03 |
| Donegal | Donegal | 0-06 | | | | | | | Cavan | Cavan | 2-06, 2-03 |
| Down | Down | 1-01 | | | | | | |
| Down | Down | 1-01 | Donegal | Donegal | 0-04 | | | |
| | | | Cavan | Cavan | 5-12 | | | |
| Cavan | Cavan | 4-11 | Cavan | Cavan | 5-12 | | | |
| Tyrone | Tyrone | 1-02 | | | | | | |

## All-Ireland Senior Football Championship

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| 1M | Kerry | 0-04, 3-08 | | | |
| 1C | Mayo | 0-04, 1-04 | | | |
| 1C | Mayo | 0-04, 1-04 | 1M | Kerry | 2-05 |
| | | | 1L | Meath | 2-03 |
| 1L | Meath | 1-09 | 1L | Meath | 2-03 |
| 1U | Cavan | 1-01 | | | |

## Championship statistics
### Miscellaneous

* Meath win their second Leinster Title first since 1895.
* Kerry are now one behind Dublin with All Ireland titles.
* There were a number of first-time championship meetings; There were 2 first time championship meetings in the All Ireland Series at first in the semifinal stage a first meeting between Meath vs Cavan while the second was All Ireland final was the first championship meeting of Kerry vs Meath.
* The Ulster Final was originally scheduled for St Mary's Park, Castleblaney, however it had to be abandoned when spectators encroached onto the pitch, with Cavan leading by two points. The replay was fixed for Croke Park the following week as a double-header of the All-Ireland semi-final between Kerry and Mayo.