Former President Joe Biden visited Ballina, County Mayo, in 2023, and the words he spoke there three years ago may have proved prophetic. On Sunday, Mayo finally ended a 75-year wait for All-Ireland glory with a 1-20 to 1-17 win over Kerry, lifting the Sam Maguire Cup at Croke Park in Dublin.
The phrase Biden echoed in Ballina was the same one that has long inspired Mayo supporters:
“Mayo for Sam”. For years, Mayo’s failure to win an All-Ireland Senior Football title was taken by some as evidence of a curse said to date back to 1951. Biden later repeated the words online to celebrate the county’s victory, saying:
“Mayo for Sam!”
Biden, who left office in January 2025 when Donald Trump became president, has often spoken about his Irish roots. Throughout his career, he frequently quoted Irish poets, and with two great-grandparents from Ireland he is regarded as one of the most Irish presidents in history.
He has also previously emphasised his deep-rooted connection to Mayo.
That connection was underscored again on Sunday when he congratulated the team, said the people of Mayo had earned the victory, and told them to
“enjoy every minute”. He also repeated the familiar rallying cry:
“Mayo for Sam!”
The curse story, or myth, centres on Ballina, the town Biden visited in 2023. Almost 100 years after his ancestors fled the devastating Irish potato famine, a supposed curse was placed on the Mayo Gaelic football team in the aftermath of their 1951 triumph.
According to the story, after Mayo won in 1951 and were travelling home to Castlebar on an open-back lorry, their celebrations interrupted a funeral taking place in Foxford, just outside Ballina. The presiding priest is said to have declared that Mayo would not win another All-Ireland title while any member of that team remained alive.
In the years that followed, Mayo failed to win a single All-Ireland title, despite reaching the final 11 times. In April 2023, the last member of the Mayo 1951 panel, Dr Mick Loftus, died.
How did Mayo win the final?
On Sunday afternoon in July 2026, in front of a packed Croke Park, Mayo finally brought the long wait to an end and secured the county’s fourth All-Ireland Senior Football title. It was an intense final that went down to the wire in front of a sold-out crowd of 82,300.
Mayo made a slow start and fell 1-6 to 0-3 behind early on. They rallied strongly, however, and were trailing by only a point at 1-8 to 0-10 at half-time.
The Westerners then surged clear in the third quarter, and Tommy Conroy’s late score sealed a famous victory over Kerry.
How did people react?
“Mayo for Sam”dominated Irish media on Sunday evening, and social media was filled with memes. Brian O’Driscoll and Shane Lowry both posted online to celebrate the win, while Liam Gallagher, whose mother’s family hails from Mayo, also congratulated the team.
The result drew comparisons with other long waits for silverware. In May 2026, Arsenal won the Premier League title after 22 years, and in June 2026, the New York Knicks won the NBA championship after 53 years. For Mayo fans, though, the wait had been even longer.
Key Facts
- Joe Biden visited Ballina, County Mayo, in 2023.
- Mayo beat Kerry 1-20 to 1-17 on Sunday in July 2026 at Croke Park.
- The win ended a 75-year wait for an All-Ireland Senior Football title.
- Mayo’s previous All-Ireland success came in 1951.
- The last member of the 1951 panel, Dr Mick Loftus, died in April 2023.
