Cork set to start 2026 Munster SHC campaign away to Tipperary

As with 2025, Cork are set to begin next year’s Munster SHC campaign with a repeat of the previous season’s All-Ireland final.

Compared with this year’s provincial championship schedule, the draft programme for 2026 feature each round of fixtures moves forwards by one place in the order, with the opening set of games – Clare v Cork and Tipperary v Limerick in this instance – moved to the end. As usual, home and away order is also reversed for each game.

Cork’s win over Tipperary at SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh at the end of April was their second match of the round-robin and next spring the Rebels will travel to FBD Semple Stadium to take on the All-Ireland champions in their maiden outing.

In the round-robin era, Cork are unbeaten away to the Premier County, having drawn in 2018 (albeit after leading by nine points in the first half) and then won in 2022 and 2024 to secure qualification for the All-Ireland series – in both instances, the trip to Tipp was the last match of Cork’s schedule. However, the Leesiders have lost a Munster group game at the venue: in 2022, with Páirc Uí Chaoimh unavailable for the game at home to Clare, they nominated Thurles as their alternative.

On the same weekend as Tipp and Cork do battle, Clare will host Waterford – in 2025, these were the two counties to miss out on qualification.

Limerick are county not involved on the opening weekend and they will begin their challenge in the second round as they visit SuperValu Páirc Uí Chaoimh for a repeat of last year’s Munster final while Waterford welcome Tipperary to Walsh Park.

The third round of games is split so as to avoid having any county play on three consecutive weekends – Clare will take on Limerick in Ennis first (meaning they start with two home games and Limerick begin with two away) and a week after that, Cork go to Waterford.

The fact that the third set of fixtures is Tipperary’s ‘bye round’ means that they will have a three-week break before they clash with Clare in Thurles while Limerick play Waterford.

Cork sit out that penultimate round before their last match, a home assignment against Clare on the same day that Limerick clash with Tipp at TUS Gaelic Grounds.

As per the arrangement where the Munster and Leinster finals alternate between slots on the same weekend, next year’s Munster decider will take place on a Sunday afternoon.

2026 MUNSTER SHC FIXTURES (provisional)

Round 1: Tipperary v Cork, Clare v Waterford.

Round 2: Cork v Limerick, Waterford v Tipperary.

Round 3 (split over two weekends): Clare v Limerick, Waterford v Cork.

Round 4: Limerick v Waterford, Tipperary v Clare.

Round 5: Cork v Clare, Limerick v Tipperary.