# Galway–Mayo Gaelic football rivalry

The Galway–Mayo rivalry is a Gaelic football rivalry between Irish county teams Galway and Mayo, who first played each other in 1901. It is considered to be one of the biggest rivalries in Gaelic games. Mayo's home ground is MacHale Park in Castlebar, while Galway play their home games in Salthill's Pearse Stadium or St Jarlath's Park in Tuam.
The Tribesmen have enjoyed greater success in the All-Ireland, having won nine titles to Mayo's three. The rivalry has historically been good-natured but has taken on a harder edge since the turn of the millennium, with the mood between supporters souring.

## History

The rivalry between the teams has been added to by Mayo students attending the St Jarlath's College boarding school in Tuam.
One of the oldest rivalries in Gaelic football, the fixture was first contested in the 1901 Championship with Mayo winning by 2-4 to 0-3 on the day. The game, which took place in Claremorris on 9 November 1902, was the first official final of the Connacht Championship. The Connacht GAA Council was founded on the same day.
Mayo were the first of the two to contest an All-Ireland final, when they faced Wexford in the 1916 final. Galway became the first to win the tournament in the 1925 Championship (though the Championship itself was not completed until 1926). The 1930s was the greatest era of dominance for the two teams; between 1932 and 1942 Galway and Mayo contested eight All-Ireland senior finals, with Galway winning titles in 1934 and 1938, and Mayo winning their maiden title in 1936. The teams were also two of the strongest teams in the country in the 1950s and 1960s, with Mayo winning in 1950 and 1951, and Galway winning in 1956, 1964, 1965 and 1966. In that era, each team regularly gave the other their toughest game of the year. Following Galway's 1966 triumph however, no Connacht team would win an All-Ireland for another 32 years.
The rivalry has historically been characterised as relatively friendly, with many Galway and Mayo players from the 1950s–60s teams having attended the same schools and players from the border areas having family ties in the other county. This is in contrast to the more bitter rivalries in the sport like Cork–Kerry or Armagh–Tyrone. The good-natured rivalry has also been attributed to the similarities between the two counties and the shared socio-economic challenges they have faced through the years. With a total of nearly 40,000 people emigrating from the two counties from 1951 to 1966, their shared success in football was considered one of the few bright spots in that era.
The friendliness of the contest has been tested in recent years however. Following defeats for Mayo in the 1996 and 1997 All-Ireland finals, Galway knocked Mayo out in the opening round of the 1998 Championship and went on to win the title. Galway, who were managed by Mayo-man John O'Mahony, also won the title in 2001. Galway's win, on the back of Mayo's two defeats and under the stewardship of a Mayo native, left a sour taste. When the team knocked Galway out of the 1999 Championship, the win was celebrated "as if it was an All-Ireland."
Mayo dominated the Connacht Championship in the early 2010s, winning five-in-a-row and inflicting a record defeat on Galway in Pearse Stadium in 2013. During this period of dominance, Mayo reached the All-Ireland finals of 2012 and 2013 but were beaten on both occasions. Their winning streak in Connacht was broken by Galway in 2016 and the Tribesmen won again when they faced each other in 2017. However, in both seasons Mayo went on to reach the All-Ireland final, while Galway were eliminated in the quarter-finals. The tension between the two teams was heightened by this level of competition, and this was reflected in the stands. Galway's All-Ireland-winning captain Ray Silke described the mood between the supporters as having "gone a little bit dark over the last while."

## Senior results

* Galway win
* Mayo win
* Match was a draw

## Championship

Galway vs Mayo :
| Date | Venue | Score | Competition |
| 9 November 1902 | Claremorris | 2-4 – 0-3 | Connacht Final |
| 26 March 1905 | Claremorris | 0-7 – 0-4 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 7 April 1907 | Claremorris | 2-16 – 0-1 | Connacht Final |
| 12 July 1908 | Tuam | 3-6 – 0-1 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 30 October 1910 | Ballina | 1-4 – 0-5 | Connacht Final |
| 24 September 1911 | Claremorris | W – L | Connacht Final |
| 21 July 1912 | Roscommon | 4-4 – 0-3 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 28 September 1913 | Castlerea | 1-2 – 0-3 | Connacht Final |
| 3 September 1916 | Athlone | 2-6 – 2-2 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 7 October 1917 | Castlerea | 1-4 – 1-1 | Connacht Final |
| 22 September 1918 | Castlerea | 0-4 – 0-1 | Connacht Final |
| 5 July 1919 | Tuam | 1-3 – 1-2 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 18 July 1920 | Castlerea | 2-4 – 0-3 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 18 June 1922 | Tuam | 0-6 – 0-1 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 4 May 1924 | Tuam | 0-3 – 0-2 | Connacht Final |
| 19 October 1924 | Balla | 0-1 – 0-1 | Connacht Final |
| 9 November 1924 | Tuam | 2-6 – 0-5 | Connacht Final Replay |
| 18 October 1925 | Tuam | 1-5 – 1-3 | Connacht Final |
| 11 July 1926 | Roscommon | 3-2 – 1-2 | Connacht Final |
| 17 July 1927 | Tuam | 1-5 – 1-4 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 21 July 1929 | Roscommon | 1-6 – 0-4 | Connacht Final |
| 29 June 1930 | Boyle | 0-7 – 0-1* | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 5 June 1931 | Castlerea | 3-5 – 1-4 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 17 July 1932 | Castlerea | 3-5 – 1-3 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 23 July 1933 | Castlerea | 1-7 – 1-5 | Connacht Final |
| 22 July 1934 | Castlerea | 2-4 – 0-5 | Connacht Final |
| 21 July 1935 | Roscommon | 0-12 – 0-5 | Connacht Final |
| 19 July 1936 | Roscommon | 2-4 – 1-7 | Connacht Final |
| 2 August 1936 | Roscommon | 2-7 – 1-4 | Connacht Final Replay |
| 18 July 1937 | Roscommon | 3-5 – 0-8 | Connacht Final |
| 17 July 1938 | Roscommon | 0-8 – 0-5 | Connacht Final |
| 16 July 1939 | Roscommon | 2-6 – 0-3 | Connacht Final |
| 21 July 1940 | Roscommon | 1-7 – 0-5 | Connacht Final |
| 29 June 1941 | Tuam | 0-10 – 1-5 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 20 June 1943 | Kiltimagh | 3-6 – 1-5 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 18 June 1944 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-11 – 1-3 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 22 July 1945 | Roscommon | 2-6 – 1-7 | Connacht Final |
| 18 July 1948 | Roscommon | 2-4 – 1-7 | Connacht Final |
| 25 July 1948 | Roscommon | 2-10 – 2-7 | Connacht Final |
| 15 July 1951 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 4-13 – 2-3 | Connacht Final |
| 4 July 1954 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 2-4 – 1-5 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 17 June 1956 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 5-13 – 2-5 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 29 June 1958 | St Jarlath’s Park, Tuam | 2-9 – 0-6 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 12 June 1960 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 2-5 – 1-6 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 11 June 1961 | St Jarlath’s Park, Tuam | 0-10 – 0-6 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 16 June 1963 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 2-8 – 1-6 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 19 July 1964 | St Jarlath’s Park, Tuam | 2-12 – 1-5 | Connacht Final |
| 17 July 1966 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 0-12 – 1-8 | Connacht Final |
| 25 June 1967 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 3-13 – 1-8 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 21 July 1968 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 2-10 – 2-9 | Connacht Final |
| 13 July 1969 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 0-11 – 1-8 | Connacht Final |
| 3 August 1969 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-11 – 1-8 | Connacht Final Replay |
| 27 June 1971 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 1-7 – 0-7 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 8 July 1973 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-17 – 2-12 | Connacht Final |
| 16 June 1974 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 3-11 – 0-13 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 21 June 1981 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 2-8 – 1-9 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 11 July 1982 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 3-17 – 0-10 | Connacht Final |
| 17 July 1983 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-13 – 1-9 | Connacht Final |
| 8 July 1984 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 2-13 – 2-9 | Connacht Final |
| 12 July 1987 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 0-8 – 0-7 | Connacht Final |
| 25 June 1989 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 1-8 – 1-8 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 9 July 1989 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 2-13 – 1-8 | Connacht Semi-Final Replay |
| 1 July 1990 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 2-11 – 1-12 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 23 June 1991 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 3-11 – 0-6 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 14 June 1992 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 1-11 – 1-11 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 21 June 1992 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 0-15 – 1-6 | Connacht Quarter-Final Replay |
| 23 July 1995 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 0-17 – 1-7 | Connacht Final |
| 21 July 1996 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-11 – 3-9 | Connacht Final |
| 25 May 1997 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 1-16 – 0-15 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 24 May 1998 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-13 – 2-6 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 18 July 1999 | St Jarlath's Park, Tuam | 1-14 – 1-10 | Connacht Final |
| 2 June 2002 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 0-12 – 1-7 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 6 July 2003 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 1-14 – 0-13 | Connacht Final |
| 27 June 2004 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 0-18 – 1-9 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 10 July 2005 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 0-10 – 0-8 | Connacht Final |
| 16 July 2006 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 0-12 – 1-8 | Connacht Final |
| 20 May 2007 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 2-10 – 0-9 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 13 July 2008 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 2-12 – 1-14 | Connacht Final |
| 19 July 2009 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 2-12 – 1-14 | Connacht Final |
| 26 June 2011 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-12 – 1-6 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 19 May 2013 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 4-16 – 0-11 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 13 July 2014 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 3-14 – 0-16 | Connacht Final |
| 14 June 2015 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 1-15 – 2-8 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 18 June 2016 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-12 – 0-12 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 11 June 2017 | Pearse Stadium, Salthill | 0-15 – 1-11 | Connacht Semi-Final |
| 13 May 2018 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-12 – 0-12 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 6 July 2019 | Gaelic Grounds, Limerick | 2-13 – 1-13 | Round 4 Qualifier |
| 15 November 2020 | Pearse Stadium, Galway | 0-14 - 0-13 | Connacht Final |
| 25 July 2021 | Croke Park, Dublin | 2-14 - 2-8 | Connacht Final |
| 24 April 2022 | MacHale Park, Castlebar | 1-14 – 0-16 | Connacht Quarter-Final |
| 25 June 2023 | Pearse Stadium, Galway | 0-12 - 1-10 | All-Ireland Preliminary Quarter-finals |
| 5 May 2024 | Pearse Stadium, Galway | 0-16 - 0-15 | Connacht Final |