Cillian O'Connor has opted out of the Mayo set-up for the 2025 campaign in a blow to Kevin McStay's side.
The 32-year-old has informed the Mayo management team of his decision to take a year out, but isn't retiring.
O'Connor, the championship's all-time top scorer, was used sparingly by Mayo in the 2024 championship, starting only the group phase games against Cavan and Roscommon and being relegated to the subs bench against Dublin and in the fateful last-12 showdown with Derry in Castlebar.
The Ballintubber star has been Mayo's leading attacker since making his debut as a teenager in 2011, winning back-to-back Young Footballer of the Year awards in 2011 and 2012.
A two-time All-Star winner, O'Connor surpassed Colm Cooper's championship scoring record in 2019, a record he still holds. In 2020, he established a new scoring record in a single game, racking up 4-09 in Mayo's All-Ireland semi-final win over Tipperary.
Watch the Leinster Club SFC final, St Mary's Ardee (Louth) v Cuala (Dublin), on Saturday from 5.25pm on RTÉ Player
