Gaelic football includes elements of rugby and soccer (association football), as well as its own distinctive characteristics. Each team has 15 players; points are scored when players propel the ball past their opponents’ goal line. Closely tied to Irish nationalism and national culture, Gaelic football is a central cultural activity in Ireland and an important sporting activity among emigrant Irish communities in Britain, North America, and Australasia.Within Ireland, spectating is also an important component of Gaelic football. The All-Ireland finals regularly attract capacity crowds of nearly 80,000 at Croke Park in Dublin, Ireland’s largest sporting stadium.Although it is played in several other countries, Gaelic football is a significant part of popular culture only in Ireland.

History

Gaelic football has its origins and primary roots in various forms of football played in Ireland since at least the 7^th century. The game assumed a distinctly Gaelic identity in the 1800s, when the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) was formed to organize Irish sports, codify their rules, and resist British sports such as soccer and rugby. The Irish Football Association formed in 1880 and the Combined Irish Rugby Union formed in 1881. As a result,English codes of football began to dominate in Ireland as other forms of English culture also expanded. The GAA was closely tied to the nationalist movement in Ireland, particularly the Irish Republican Brotherhood (IRB), and received support from many leading Irish nationalists. The first Gaelic football championship was held in 1887 between Young from Louth and Commercials from Limerick, who were victorious. From 1889, teams representing counties competed for the football championship.

The GAA is the largest sporting organization in Ireland today. It has over 2,800 affiliated clubs that have as members 182,000 football players and 97,000 hurlers. The membership of the GAA, at home and abroad, is over 800,000. Gaelic football is Ireland’s most popular participation sport with approximately 250,000 men and women playing, or about 20 percent of the adult population.

Rules and Play

Gaelic football is played on a field that is 140–160 yards (129–147 meters) long and 84–100 yards (77.5–92 meters) wide. At each end of the field there is a goal that looks like a combination of a soccer goal and rugby union or American football goalposts. Three points are scored for a goal when a player kicks the ball into the lower goal, as in soccer, and one point is scored when the ball is kicked between the posts above the crossbar. Scoring is rendered in the form of team A 2–7 and team B 1–9, which means that team A won the game 13–12 after adding three points for each goal recorded in the first column plus one point for each in the second. Teams consist of 15 players, including one goalkeeper.

Players can carry the ball but must bounce the ball off the turf or their feet after every four steps.Passing occurs through long and short kicks or by slapping or punching the ball with the hand to a nearby teammate; throwing is not allowed. Players may not pick up the ball from the ground unless they first get their toe under the ball. The ball may also be played on the ground or in the air as in soccer. Games consist of two 35-minute halves.

The All-Ireland championships are conducted in the summer, while the National League is played during the winter. Gaelic football competitions also occur in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, the United States, England, and Scotland.

Football and Politics

Gaelic football and other GAA sports were some of the first modern sports to be openly political in context. In 1887 the GAA prohibited participation by anyone who had played, watched, or supported “foreign” (meaning British) games,by any member of the British occupying forces,particularly the Royal Irish Constabulary and the Dublin Police,or by anyone who was suspected of working or spying for the British.With the formation of the Irish Free State in 1922, Gaelic football and other Irish games came to symbolize the expression of Irish culture, losing some of the overtly political associations. In Northern Ireland, however, Irish sports remained tied to the nationalist struggle of Irish Catholics who sought a united and independent Ireland.

Gaelic football competitions are important to members of emigrant Irish communities as they serve to maintain cultural ties to Ireland.While many Irish and Irish-descended people move into local sports such as American football or Australian football, the existence of Irish sporting competitions continues a link to Irish sporting culture and life. As with other elements of Irish culture, Gaelic football has spread to other communities within North America and Australasia as a subcultural activity. The similarities between Gaelic and Australian football, for example, allow talented players to participate in both games quite easily. The game and its identity, however, remain firmly Gaelic.