Armagh City's Premier League fate was sealed when the IFA announced that the club was not successful in its application for a domestic licence.

As a result, Armagh City will not be considered for a place in the new Premier League to be established next year, which will see the number of top-level clubs reduced from 16 to 12. 

In a statement released on Thursday, the IFA confirmed that City had not met its criteria for the licence, which was assessed on Sporting , Infrastructure, Personnel & Administration, Legal and Financial matters.

Current league rivals Larne and Limavady Utd were also refused a licence, and will join City in a reformatted second-tier competition next year. The IFA have left open the possibility of appeal of the decision, to be heard on May 8th, and also said that they "recognise that others will be disappointed at being refused".

The IFA statement goes on to say "The Committee would however urge such clubs to work towards meeting the required standards in future seasons and acknowledge the efforts they have made to date."