All-Ireland champions Mayo rid 'the curse' and write a better story

For decades, one story followed Mayo football wherever it went. It was a story of heartbreak, near misses, and, above all, the so-called ‘Mayo Curse’. While the legend found a home in Foxford, the local priest, Fr Padraig Costello, never believed it.

“I certainly didn't believe in the curse,” he told The Mayo News.

He recalls meeting the Mayo manager when someone brought up the infamous tale. Andy Moran’s response was refreshingly simple.

“It wasn't the curse,” he said. “We just weren't good enough on the day.”

That, Father Costello says, was always his own view. The story of the curse grew over the years, changing as it was retold.

It was said to have begun when the victorious Mayo team crossed the River Shannon after their 1951 All-Ireland triumph. Different versions emerged, with the supposed curse eventually becoming associated with Foxford.

“But it was never the curse, really,” he says. Instead, he believes this year's All-Ireland victory came down to something far more real.

“The players are absolutely brilliant.”

He is full of praise not only for the players but for the management team and everyone involved in the success.

“They've brought such great joy to our county - not just to Mayo, but right across the country and overseas,” he says.

Although many have suggested that Mayo's victory finally ‘broke the curse’, Father Costello sees it differently. To him, there was never anything to break.

“The curse was supposed to be that a priest put a curse on the team,” he says. “There's absolutely no way a priest could have put a curse on anyone. We pray for blessings, not curses.”

Before every big game, his prayer was always the same.

“I simply prayed that they would play to the best of their ability.”

On the final weekend, that prayer was answered.

“And that’s exactly what they did, they played to the best of their ability,” he says.

Through his monthly visits to elderly parishioners since arriving in Foxford in 2009, he has witnessed firsthand how deeply Mayo football has lived in people's hearts. For many, the wait stretched back to 1951. They never stopped hoping they would see another All-Ireland title.

“Some of them are gone to their rest now," he says, "but I'm sure they're smiling down on us.”

The day after the victory, as he visited homes across the parish, he found an overwhelming sense of happiness.

“There was such great joy in every house.”

Football, he believes, has a remarkable ability to unite people.

"It certainly brings people together in a wonderful way."

He believes now that Mayo has turned the page. “For years, people looked back to 1951,” he says. "There were great players then, and they brought great joy to us."

“But now it's the team of 2026 that youngsters will be looking up to.”

The curse never defined Mayo.

The people did.

And now, so does a team that has given an entire county, and generations who waited for this day, a new chapter to celebrate.