The Bateman Cup ran from 1922 to 1939 as a competition for the four provincial cup-winners, but did not continue after the Second World War.
The competition was revived in 1975 for the centenary of the Irish Rugby Football Union.
[1] In 2006, an All-Ireland Cup was instituted for the top teams in the All-Ireland League, and in 2010 this was changed to the old Bateman Cup format, with only the four provincial cup winners taking part, and the Bateman Cup trophy presented to the winners.
[2] The Bateman Cup was originally presented to the IRFU by Dr Godfrey Bateman, a member of a well-known West Cork family, in memory of his sons Reginald and Arthur who were killed during the First World War,[3] who played for Sir Patrick Dun's Hospital in the Dublin Hospitals Rugby Cup.
Source: IRFU (3 May 2014) † Lansdowne and Cork Constitution were declared joint winners of the 2019–20 competition as it was unfinished due to the COVID-19 pandemic with the 2020–21 competition cancelled completely Bold = Current Champions † Shared title