This All-Ireland championship was delayed to the end of the year due to the
impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Gaelic games, with a straight knockout tournament for the first time since
2000. • were aiming to complete an unprecedented six-in-a-row, having won the All-Ireland in
2015,
2016,
2017,
2018 and
2019. • were aiming to win their first All-Ireland since
1951. Since then, they had lost nine finals in a row (1989, 1996, 1997, 2004, 2006, 2012, 2013, 2016, 2017). • This was the first final to take place in December since
1917. It is the latest in a year that the final has taken place (on several years up until 1926, the final was delayed to the year after it was supposed to take place). • Both the
Taoiseach and
President of Ireland were absent, another first. • The fifth meeting of Dublin and Mayo in the All-Ireland Senior Football Championship Final. The previous meetings were in
1921,
2013,
2016 and
2017: Dublin won all four. • 15 Dublin players had the opportunity to equal
Jack Lynch's six consecutive All-Ireland medals (hurling 1941–44, football 1945, hurling 1946). ==Paths to the final==