2017 County Championship matches. Following a series of financial "bailout" payments made by the England and Wales Cricket Board to Durham during the 2016 season, the county, which had finished fourth in Division One at the end of the season, were relegated to Division Two in place of the eighth place team, Hampshire. Durham were also placed under a salary cap administered by the ECB until 2020 and started the 2017 Championship season with a deduction of 48 points. Ahead of the season, each team played a first-class match against a MCC University team. The 2017 Championship was divided into two divisions, Division
County Londonderry white. There are many club teams competing in up to five leagues and three championships. The county team has won one All-Ireland Senior Football Championship (in 1993) and five National League titles. Hurling is also widely played but is not as popular as football. However, the county team is generally regarded as one of the top hurling sides in Ulster and in 2006 won the Nicky Rackard Cup – the third tier hurling competition in Ireland. In association football, the NIFL Premiership, which operates as the top division, has two teams in the county: Coleraine F.C. and Institute F.C., with