The competition had its origins in the original Texaco Cup which began in 1970 as a competition for English, Scottish, Northern Irish and Irish clubs that had not qualified for European competitions. Irish and Northern Irish clubs competed in 1970-71 and 1971-72 but then withdrew due to political pressure at the time.[1] Texaco organised the Texaco (All-Ireland) Cup, a separate competition, for the Irish teams in 1973-74 and 1974-75.[2]
