Holders Kerry will begin the defence of their Lidl Ladies National Football League Division 1 crown with a glamour clash against TG4 All-Ireland champions Dublin on the opening weekend of the 2026 campaign.

Kerry will make the trip to the capital on Saturday, January 24th for a live TV outing on TG4 (2.45pm), as the winners of the last three TG4 All-Ireland Senior championship titles face off in what promises to be an intriguing tussle. 

Dublin claimed Brendan Martin Cup glory in 2025 and 2023, with Kerry crowned champions in 2024. 

Kerry go into the new season as League title holders, with Dublin chasing a first top-flight success since 2021. 

What promises to be a hugely-competitive Division 1 also contains Armagh, runners-up in 2025 and winners a year previously, Cork, Galway, Kildare, Meath and Waterford. 

Cork and Galway were both relegated last year but bounced back at the first attempt by gaining promotion from Division 2. 

In the opening round of Division 1 fixtures in 2026, with three games scheduled for Sunday, January 25th, Cork will host Kildare, Meath entertain Galway, and Waterford make the trip to Armagh. 

Round 2 will feature two provincial derbies – and both will be live on TG4 on Monday, February 2nd.

Meath will play host to Dublin at 2pm, followed by the meeting of Kerry and Waterford at 3.45pm. 

On the previous day, Sunday, February 1st, Kildare will take on Armagh, with Cork at home to Galway. 

All four divisions will each contain eight teams in 2026, with the top two teams in Divisions 1, 2 and 3 progressing straight to their respective finals, while there are semi-finals scheduled for Division 4 on Sunday, March 29th.

The Divisions 1 and 2 Finals will be played at Parnell Park on Saturday, April 11th, with the Divisions 3 and 4 Finals scheduled for Sunday, April 12th.

Division 2 will contain Cavan (promoted from Division 3 as champions), Donegal, Mayo (relegated from Division 1), Monaghan, Tipperary, Tyrone (relegated from Division 1), Westmeath and Wexford (promoted from Division 3). 

Division 3 is made up of Antrim (promoted from Division 4 as champions), Clare (relegated from Division 2), Down, Fermanagh (promoted from Division 4), Laois, Limerick, Louth and Roscommon (relegated from Division 2). 

And Division 4 will feature Carlow (relegated from Division 3), Derry, Kilkenny, Leitrim, Longford, Offaly (relegated from Division 3), Sligo and Wicklow. 

The LGFA and TG4 have also confirmed a number of other live TV fixtures in the 2026 Lidl National Leagues.

The Dublin-Kerry clash gets the schedule underway on Saturday, January 24th, followed by the aforementioned provincial derby double-header on Monday, February 2nd.

On Saturday, February 7th, Waterford’s home tie with Dublin (4.45pm) is scheduled for live TV coverage, followed by Galway’s home game with Armagh (4.15pm) on Saturday, February 21st.

The Leinster derby between Kildare and Meath on Saturday, February 28th (7.35pm) will be live on TG4, with a live pick on Saturday, March 21st to be confirmed.

Live coverage of Round 7 fixtures, fixed for Sunday, March 29th, will be revealed in due course.

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