Hurling Classic and Irish Festival Tickets

Hurling Classic and Irish Festival tickets

Few sports excite spectators like the ancient Irish game of hurling. The "world's fastest field sport" is also the oldest field game in the world, and proof that some things only get better with time. Once fans are sated on this fiery combination of soccer, lacrosse and American football, they can turn to the live music, dancing and food of the concurrent Irish festival.

Hurling Classic and Irish Festival history

When Hurling Classic and Irish Festival tickets went on sale in 2015, it was the first chance in more than 60 years for fans to see live hurling in Boston. The event drew some 28,000 spectators to Fenway Park to watch a fierce battle between Dublin and Galway, and then dance the night away as the Dropkick Murphys, a Boston-grown Celtic-punk band, took the field to dish out their energetic tunes. Future crowds are expected to match or beat 2015's attendance, and the truly enthusiastic can purchase a VIP package that includes meet-and-greet opportunities and discounts on hotel and airfare costs.

Hurling Classic and Irish Festival background

Seasoned fans and neophytes alike can all enjoy hurling's fast-paced athleticism. The players use a wooden stick called a hurley, or in Irish camán, to balance or bounce a small ball - the sliotar - as they run the field, block or tackle each other, and try to get the sliotar into the H-shaped goal for points.

The Hurling Classic and Irish Festival features a variation of the game known as "Super 11s." During a typical hurling game, each team has 15 players on the field at a time, including the goalkeeper; but during a Super 11s game, each team fields just 11 players.

A Super 11s game is still played on the same field as regular hurling, which can be up to 160 yards long by 100 yards wide - but scoring is a little different. In a typical game of hurling the players have two choices: Hit the sliotar between the goalposts of the H-shaped goal, just above the crossbar, to score one point; or hit the sliotar underneath the crossbar and into the net, which the goalkeeper guards. The latter option is known as a "goal" and counts for three points. In a game of Super 11s, goals - that is, getting the sliotar under the crossbar, past the goalkeeper and into the net - are the only way to score points.

Similar to Hurling Classic and Irish Festival

For fans who cherish the music portion of the Hurling Classic and Irish Festival tour experience, it's impossible to go wrong with fiery, traditional Irish music from the likes of Dervish. Fans of traditional Irish sports will also enjoy a chance at tickets for the GAA All Ireland Football Championship Finals, another fast-paced and astonishingly athletic Celtic sport that is played all over the world.