Change was denied at the GAA’s Special Congress as ‘proposal B’ failed to reach the 60% requirement.
After a 74-minute debate on the topic, 85 delegates voted in favour of the ‘League as Championship’ motion and 83 against, leaving the majority just short of 51%.
With 168 delegates present, 101 would have been required to vote in favour in order for it to be introduced.
With proposal A, which would see the provincial structure remain at the heart of the Championship but with counties moving provinces (90% against), also soundly beaten it means that the pre-2018 qualifier system will be in place for 2022, with the Tailteann Cup included for Division Three and Four teams.
There were 22 speakers over the course of the debate, 10 in favour and 12 against, the majority of which hailed from Ulster.
More to follow...
Motions 18 and 19 and been the subject of intense debate within the GAA community in recent weeks as a dramatic overhaul of the All-Ireland Football Championship was considered.
One proposal within this motion is for the football Championship to return to its traditional provincial and All-Ireland series with the Qualifiers coming back into the mix as well as a new second-tier Championship for eliminated teams from Division Three and Division Four - something that was due to come into place in 2020 before the Covid-19 pandemic struck.
A second proposal - known as Proposal B - proposes wholesale changes to the current football Championship format.
In short, Proposal B would see a league-based Championship take place with each team guaranteed seven games.
It would also consign the provincial championships to a pre season slot with no bearing on the All-Ireland series; the slot the National Leagues currently hold.
The top five placed Division 1 teams, top three from Division 2 and winners of Division 3 and 4 will all progress to the All-Ireland series.
The Division 3 and 4 winners will take on 2nd and 3rd in Division 2 in Preliminary All-Ireland quarter-finals with the two winners progressing to the last eight.
Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts
