The John West Féile na nÓg is a Club festival for Gaelic football and Ladies Gaelic football at Under 14 level, involving teams from across the Association. The John West Féile na nÓg tournament takes place in a different host county each summer. 

Féile provides an opportunity for:

• Under 14 players to participate in an annual Festival of Hurling/Camogie, Handball and Gaelic Football/Ladies Gaelic football.
• Clubs to experience playing against teams from other Counties/Provinces/Countries.
• Clubs to foster links with other Clubs in other Counties/Provinces/Countries.
• Counties to celebrate Gaelic games by acting as hosts.

A core aim of Féile tournaments is to promote a philosophy whereby every player has the opportunity to participate and play in their respective Féile tournament at a level commensurate to their age, skills and strengths.

1. Participating Teams

John West Féile na nÓg competitions are composed of host and visiting teams. Host teams are drawn from the host region (Counties). Visiting teams participating at the National Finals of Féile na nÓg will be nominated by their County Bord na nÓg to represent their respective Counties. Both host clubs and visiting Counties are graded into their respective divisions. Normally the identity of the visiting teams is determined by the results of internal Féile na nGael competitions, however, due to the level of interest from host clubs, each visiting County is usually asked to nominate 2 – 3 representatives. All overseas units are also asked to nominate representatives to take part at Féile na nÓg.

In the 2019 John West Féile na nÓg boys football tournament, there were 104 host teams. These 104 host teams hosted visiting teams from across the 27 visiting Counties, plus Britain, Europe, North America, and Australia. In total, 13 overseas teams traveled to take part this year. In the girls football event, there were 64 host teams, with 64 visitors travelling from across Ireland, Britain and North America.

2. Competition Format

The Divisions are composed of 16 teams – 8 host clubs, and their 8 visiting teams.The number of host teams will determine the number of divisions that will be scheduled.

Since 2014, Féile na nÓg has introduced both Cup and Shield competitions in each Division. To facilitate this each division of 16 teams is divided into four groups (Groups A – D) of four teams (two host clubs and their visiting clubs). Each team plays each other team on a round robin basis. Upon completion of the three group games teams are ranked 1 – 4. Teams ranked 1st and 2nd proceed to the Cup quarter finals, while teams ranked 3rd and 4th proceed to the Shield quarter finals. Therefore, each participating team is guaranteed a minimum of four games – three group games, and either a Cup or Shield quarter final.

Thereafter, knockout quarter finals, semi-finals and finals take place in each of the Cup and Shield competitions.

3. Playing Numbers

Participating teams shall be 15-a-side, comprising of players who are over 10 and under 14 years of age on 1st January in the year of Féile. Panels in a 15-a-side division are composed of a minimum of 19 players, and limited to a maximum of 24 players.

Similarly, amalgamated teams are permitted to participate in Féile na nÓg, though again this is limited to those clubs that field as an amalgamated unit in their local Under 14 competitions in that year. It is not possible for either host or visiting clubs to request to amalgamate for the purposes of participation at Féile only.

Each team shall be accompanied by a maximum of 4 team mentors.

4. Competition Schedule

The final competition schedule is to be confirmed, however usually the schedule is as follows:

Friday:

Each team plays their first two group games

Saturday:

Each team plays their final group game

Each team plays their Cup or Shield quarter final

Sunday:

Cup and Shield semi finals

Cup and Shield finals