Called the Setanta Cup - after sponsorship from the Dublin-based broadcaster - the top six teams in Ireland, three from each side of the border, will enter and contest a trophy with a prize fund of B1.3m over four years.
The top two teams in each league and the two domestic cup winners will also compete in a move that has been welcomed across Ireland.
The previous competition, the Blaxnit Cup, was held in the 1960s and 1970s but violence because of the political situation in Ireland saw it abandoned in 1979. The new tournament will be made up of two groups of three teams - including at least one from both associations - playing their pool rivals home and away. Each group winner will then qualify for the final.
To ease worries about fixture congestion, FAI chief executive Fran Rooney revealed: “There will be more games for the top clubs but I have already set up a review group to examine how we can plan out the fixture list to accommodate teams involved in Europe, the domestic league and cup and now the Setanta Cup.
“I do not see it as a problem. I think TV coverage is vital if we are to promote the game. The standard in the domestic league is very high and by getting it on television, it will reach a far greater audience.”
Jim Boyce, president of the Irish Football Association, said: “This certainly is the biggest ever tournament - north or south – and it has attracted great sponsorship and I am confident that huge crowds will flock to see these games.”
