The physical trophy the teams played for was called the Dunville Cup and this trophy is now presented to the winners of the Northern Ireland Football League Cup, which began in 1987.

[1] A cup tournament consisting solely of Belfast clubs had been mooted as early as 1892,[2] although it was not until two years later that the competition was organised.

In the 1911–12 season, all eight Irish League clubs participated (Derry Celtic and Glenavon joining the five Belfast teams and Shelbourne).

In the 1912–13 season, when the League expanded to ten clubs, only seven participated (the five Belfast teams plus Glenavon and Shelbourne.

From 1913 until its demise in 1976, all clubs who were members of the Irish League competed for the City Cup (excluding the war years).