This year’s National Ploughing Championships had barely started when people began speculating about the location of next year’s event. With four years now done and dusted in Ratheniska, the Ploughing will be off to pastures new for 2025.

Rumours were swirling around the event site this week that the 2025 destination will be Tullamore, Co Offaly.

These rumours were mostly fuelled by Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) president Francie Gorman saying such to local radio on Tuesday. However, there are also whispers in Ratheniska about Carlow and Louth as a destination for 2025.

I read with interest in last week’s Ploughing supplement in this paper, comments by National Ploughing Association (NPA) assistant managing director Anna Marie McHugh that Galway, Louth and Dublin had been looked at as locations previously.

That said, given that the Tullamore Court Hotel is completely booked out this week next year, a return to Tullamore seems to be the front-runner for Ploughing 2025 at the moment.

One wonders if the event will ever move out of Leinster again. I’m sure we’ll know more in the coming weeks.