Pre-championship
Prior to the opening of the championship Kilkenny were installed as the favourites to retain the All-Ireland title for a third consecutive year. The last time they achieved this was in 1913, however, no final took place that year and Kilkenny were awarded the title as Limerick refused to play. Since then they failed to capture the 'three-in-a-row', in spite of having the opportunity in 1933, 1976 and 1984. National League champions Tipperary and runners-up Galway were regarded as the two teams that would provide the strongest challenges to Kilkenny's supremacy. Cork at 4/1, regarded as a team in decline, and Wexford at 6/1 formed the next grouping of teams who hoped to claim the All-Ireland crown. Offaly, a team who claimed three Leinster titles in succession in the late 1980s but failed to reach the All-Ireland final, were regarded as outsiders at 16/1. Antrim, Down, Limerick and Dublin were rank outsiders at 25/1 each.
Read more about this topic: All-Ireland Senior Hurling Championship 1994