The 2020 Christy Ring Cup was the 16th staging of the Christy Ring Cup hurling championship since its establishment by the Gaelic Athletic Association in 2005. It is the third tier of hurling as of 2020.

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

were scheduled to compete in the Christy Ring Cup but didn't due to the

impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gaelic games As with other sports, the COVID-19 pandemic caused disruption to Gaelic games, primarily in Ireland but also elsewhere in the world. Competitions were cancelled, postponed or restructured, while some teams were withdrawn or were unable to pa ...

. The championship was scheduled to begin in May 2020 but was delayed until 24 October 2020. The rise in COVID-19 cases affected the tournament, with two first-round games conceded due to positive tests. were the winners, defeating in

the final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

following earlier wins against and . Both finalists were promoted to the Joe McDonagh Cup for 2021. The competition featured the first ever inter-county hurling penalty shootout, with Down qualifying for the final by causing an upset through knocking

Offaly County Offaly (; ga, Contae Uíbh Fhailí) is a county in Ireland. It is part of the Eastern and Midland Region and the province of Leinster. It is named after the ancient Kingdom of Uí Failghe. It was formerly known as King's County, in hono ...

out in the semi-final.

Team changes

To Championship

Relegated from the

Joe McDonagh Cup The Joe McDonagh Cup is an annual Inter county, inter-county hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA). It forms the second tier of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship and is the second highest level of inter- ...

Promoted from the

Nicky Rackard Cup The Nicky Rackard Cup (; often referred to as the Rackard Cup) is the fourth tier of the All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship. Each year, the champion team in the Nicky Rackard Cup is promoted to the Christy Ring Cup, and the lowest finishin ...

Sligo Sligo ( ; ga, Sligeach , meaning 'abounding in shells') is a coastal seaport and the county town of County Sligo, Ireland, within the western province of Connacht. With a population of approximately 20,000 in 2016, it is the List of urban areas ...

From Championship

Promoted to the

* Meath Relegated to the

Donegal Donegal may refer to: County Donegal, Ireland * County Donegal, a county in the Republic of Ireland, part of the province of Ulster * Donegal (town), a town in County Donegal in Ulster, Ireland * Donegal Bay, an inlet in the northwest of Ireland b ...

Format

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the normal structure of eight teams competing in two groups of four was abandoned. Seven teams competed in the 2020 Christy Ring Cup. London did not compete as the quarantine restrictions on travel meant that their participation was not feasible. The 2020 championship had a "back-door" structure designed to ensure that each team had at least two games. Offaly and Sligo conceded their round one games due to rising cases of COVID-19 and Sligo only managed to play one game before being eliminated. *Six teams play each in the three Round 1 games. One team receives a bye to Round 2A. *The three Round 1 winners, plus the team that received a bye, play in Round 2A. **The two Round 2A winners advance to the semi-finals. **The losers of the game between a Round 1 winner and the bye-receiving team goes into Round 2B. *The three Round 1 losers and one of the Round 2A losers play in Round 2B. **The Round 2B winners advance to the semi-finals. *The semi-finals are played between the two Round 2A winners and the two Round 2B winners. *The final is between the two semi-final winners.

Round 1

Winners advance to Round 2A. Losers advance to Round 2B. * Down received a bye in this round.

Round 2

Round 2A

The Round 1 winners and Down, who received a bye, competed in this round. Winners advance to Semi-Finals.

Round 2B

The Round 1 loser and one 'lucky loser' from round 2A,

Derry Derry, officially Londonderry (), is the second-largest city in Northern Ireland and the fifth-largest city on the island of Ireland. The name ''Derry'' is an anglicisation of the Old Irish name (modern Irish: ) meaning 'oak grove'. The ...

entered this round. Winners advance to Semi-Finals.

Semi-Finals

The Round 2A winners play the Round 2B winners. The winners advance to the final and were both promoted to the 2021 Joe McDonagh Cup.

Final

Down and

Kildare Kildare () is a town in County Kildare, Ireland. , its population was 8,634 making it the 7th largest town in County Kildare. The town lies on the R445, some west of Dublin – near enough for it to have become, despite being a regional cen ...

are promoted to the 2021 Joe McDonagh Cup.

Bracket

(Incomplete)

Statistics

Top scorers

;Overall ;In a single game

References

{{GAA 2020, state=expanded

Christy Ring Cup The Christy Ring Cup () is an annual hurling competition organised by the Gaelic Athletic Association. Originally introduced as a second-tier competition, it is currently the third tier overall in the inter-county hurling championship system. Eac ...

Christy Ring Cup