This article is about the tournament in the Republic of Ireland. For the equivalent tournament in Northern Ireland, see Irish League Cup. The League of Ireland Cup is a football competition open to all League of Ireland clubs and sometimes invited clubs from the lower levels of the Republic of Ireland football league system. Occasionally, the sides invited have included junior league representative selections. The competition began in 1973, replacing the earlier League of Ireland Shield. Starting with the 2005 competition, the winner of this competition receives a place in the Setanta Cup.