Irish Hockey League

The National league was first played for during the 2008/2009 season with EY becoming the Title Sponsor in 2015.

Between 2008–09 and 2014–15 the league used pool stages and play-offs to determine the league champion. Teams were divided into two pools with the winners and runners-up in each pool then qualifying for the semi-finals. The league title was then decided by a final. Teams continued to play in their respective provincial leagues and qualified for the next season’s national league via their position in the provincial league. However for the 2015–16 season the league was re-organised. The pool stages were abandoned and replaced with a full league programme consisting of 18 rounds of home and away matches. In addition the play-offs were effectively replaced by a new competition, the EY Champions Trophy. The clubs playing in the National League no longer entered their senior teams in provincial leagues.

The Champions League Trophy competition started in 2015/16. In its current format the first and second place teams in the Irish Hockey League (IHL) qualify for a semi final place while the next 4 teams playoff to reach the semi finals. Semi finals and final takes place over a weekend at the end of the season.  The winners of the Champions Trophy go to EuroHockey League, the first European Competition. The winners of the IHL go to the EuroHockey Club Trophy II which is the second European competition.  If the same team wins both the IHL and Champions Trophy, then 2nd place in the Champions Trophy represents Ireland at the EuroHockey Club Trophy. 

Prior to 2008/2009 the winners of each provincial league played against each other in a semi final and final play off over a weekend at the end of the season with the winners representing Ireland in Europe.