2025 Challenge Cup
| Duration | 7 rounds |
|---|---|
| Number of teams | 69 |
| Broadcast partners |
|
| Biggest home win | West Hull 90–0 Edinburgh Eagles (18 January) |
| Biggest away win | Eastern Rhinos 4–66 Wests Warriors (12 January) |
The 2025 Challenge Cup, known for sponsorship reasons as the 2025 Betfred Challenge Cup, is the 124th edition of the Challenge Cup, the main rugby league knockout cup tournament in British rugby league, run by the Rugby Football League (RFL).
Background
[edit]Following discussions in 2024, it was announced that the format will be revised and there will now only be seven rounds of competition, down from the nine rounds used in recent seasons. The changes will see the Championship and League One clubs entering in round 2 (round 3 in 2024), and the Super League clubs entering in round 3 (round 6 in 2024), with all 12 super league teams playing away in round 3.[1]
The change follows criticism that the previous format favoured Super League clubs, and reducing the opportunities for smaller clubs to stage a tie against a big club.[2]
The competition started in January 2025, and will conclude with the final on 7 June at Wembley Stadium.[3]
Toulouse Olympique have declined to take part, as in previous years.[4]
Format and dates
[edit]| Round | Date | Clubs involved this round | Winners from previous round | New entries this round | Leagues entering at this round |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round 1 | 11–12 January | 34 | None | 34 | 34 UK based community teams |
| Round 2 | 25–26 January | 40 | 17 | 23 | All teams (except Toulouse) from the Championship (12) and League One (11) |
| Round 3 | 8–9 February | 32 | 20 | 12 | All 12 teams from the Super League |
| Round 4 | 15–16 March | 16 | 16 | None | |
| Quarter-finals | 5–6 April | 8 | 8 | ||
| Semi-finals | 10–11 May | 4 | 4 | ||
| Final | 8 June | 2 | 2 | ||
The 34 clubs in the first round comprise:[5]
- the three armed services clubs
- 15 from the National Conference League (NCL)
- one each from the Scottish, Welsh and Irish leagues
- GB Police
- 12 from other English regional leagues (outside the NCL)
First round
[edit]The draw for the first and second rounds of the competition were made on 2 December 2024.[6]
Wath Brow Hornets were originally drawn against West Bowling. On 6 January 2025 the Wath Brow club informed the RFL that they would concede the tie, citing "player safety" as the reason. The early rounds of the competition coincide with a period during which full contact training and playing is restricted for amateur teams that play during the summer by the RFL operational rules. Wath Brow considered that the risks to their players were too great to participate in the tie against West Bowling.[7] The RFL invited Cutsyke Raiders to replace Wath Brow. As Cutsyke play during the winter, the club is not affected by the no-contact period.[8]
A majority of the fixtures were postponed from the original weekend of 11/12 January due to bad weather but were rescheduled for the following weekend.[9]
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance[a] | |||
| Waterhead Warriors | 12–8[b] | Leigh Miners Rangers | 18 January 2025, 12:30[c] | Peach Road | S. Price | not recorded[d] |
| Rochdale Mayfield | 64–16 | Telford Raiders | 18 January 2025, 13:30[c] | Keswick Street | J. Pemberton | |
| British Army | 22–16 | RAF | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Aldershot Military Stadium | C. Hughes | |
| Crosfields | 52–0 | Maryport | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Hood Lane Recreation Ground | L. O'brien | |
| Dewsbury Moor | 20–12 | Haresfinch | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Dewsbury Moor Sports Club | J. Stearne | |
| Lock Lane | 50–10 | Doncaster Toll Bar | 18 January 2025, 14:30[c] | Lock Lane Sports Centre | L. Grundy | |
| Mirfield | 20–26 | Royal Navy | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Slipper Lane | S. Quarmby | |
| Stanley Rangers | 20–34 | Hunslet ARLFC | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Lee Moor Road | O. Taylor | |
| West Bowling | 48–16 | Cutsyke Raiders | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Horsfall Stadium | ||
| West Hull | 90–0 | Edinburgh Eagles | 18 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Johnny Whiteley Park | O. Salmon | |
| Ince Rose Bridge | 56–12 | Longhorns | 18 January 2025, 14:30[c] | Pinfold Street | ||
| Thatto Heath Crusaders | 28–24 | Orrell St James | 19 January 2025, 14:00[c] | Close St | A. Billington | |
| Hammersmith Hills Hoists | 4–18 | Siddal | 11 January 2025, 17:00 | Chiswick Rugby Football Club | S. Jenkinson | |
| Aberavon Fighting Irish | 16–32 | Blackbrook | 12 January 2025, 13:30 | Vivian Park | K. Young | |
| GB Police | 4-52 | York Acorn | 19 January 2025, 13:30[e] | Portico Vine ARLFC | T. Jones | |
| Eastern Rhinos | 4–66 | Wests Warriors | 12 January 2025, 14:30 | Northern Gateway Sports Park | M. McKelvey | |
| London Chargers | 12–28 | Oulton Raiders | 18 January 2025, 14:30[e] | Streatham-Croydon RFC | R. Apsee | |
| Source:[10][11] | ||||||
Second round
[edit]| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance | |||
| London Broncos | Goole Vikings | 25 January 2025, 12:30 | Priory Lane | R. Cox | ||
| Dewsbury Moor | Dewsbury Rams | 25 January 2025, 14:00 | Mount Pleasant | A. Belafonte | ||
| Hunslet ARLFC | West Hull | 25 January 2025, 14:00 | The Oval, Leeds | S. Jenkinson | ||
| Lock Lane | Hunslet | 25 January 2025, 14:00 | Lock Lane Sports Centre | C. Hughes | ||
| Featherstone Rovers | Waterhead Warriors | 25 January 2025, 14:00 | Post Office Road[a] | A. Billington | ||
| Wests Warriors | British Army | 25 January 2025, 14:00 | Twyford Avenue Sports Ground | M. McKelvey | ||
| York Acorn | Oulton Raiders | 25 January 2025, 14:00 | Thanet Road | J. Hughes | ||
| Whitehaven | Swinton Lions | 25 January 2025, 15:00 | Recreation Ground | S. Mikalauskas | ||
| Oldham | Rochdale Mayfield | 26 January 2025, 12:30 | Boundary Park | W. Turley | ||
| Cornwall | North Wales Crusaders | 26 January 2025, 13:00 | The Memorial Ground | A. Williams | ||
| Royal Navy | Workington Town | 26 January 2025, 13:00 | United Services Recreation Ground | J. Pemberton | ||
| Blackbrook | Ince Rose Bridge | 26 January 2025, 14:00 | Blackbrook Rugby & Recreation Club | M. Clayton | ||
| Midlands Hurricanes | Siddal | 26 January 2025, 14:00 | Alexander Stadium | K. Moore | ||
| Barrow Raiders | Crosfields | 26 January 2025, 15:00 | Craven Park | S. Houghton | ||
| Bradford Bulls | Doncaster | 26 January 2025, 15:00 | Odsal Stadium | C. Worsley | ||
| Halifax Panthers | Thatto Heath Crusaders | 26 January 2025, 15:00 | The Shay | D. Arnold | ||
| Newcastle Thunder | Batley Bulldogs | 26 January 2025, 15:00 | Crow Trees Ground | T. Jones | ||
| Rochdale Hornets | Widnes Vikings | 26 January 2025, 15:00 | Spotland | M. Lynn | ||
| Sheffield Eagles | West Bowling | 26 January 2025, 15:00 | Olympic Legacy Park | A. Sweet | ||
| Keighley Cougars | York Knights | 2 February 2025, 15:00[b] | Cougar Park | |||
| Source: | ||||||
Third round
[edit]The draw for the third round took place live on BBC Sport, on 14 January 2025. The draw was made by RFL vice president Danika Priim, and BetFred owner Fred Done.[13]
- ^ Waterhead were drawn at home but agreed to play at Featherstone as their own ground was unusable.[12]
- ^ Postponed by one week due to York's commitments in the Amsterdam Challenge
Broadcast matches
[edit]| Round | Match | Date | Broadcast method |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | British Army v RAF | 18 January | Broadcast live on BFBS.[14] |
| Waterhead Warriors v Leigh Miners Rangers | 18 January | Broadcast live on BBC Red Button.[15] | |
| Thatto Heath Crusaders v Orrell St James | 19 January | Streamed live on The Sportsman.[15] | |
| 2nd | London Broncos v Goole Vikings | 25 January | Broadcast live on BBC Red Button.[16] |
| Royal Navy vs Workington Town | 26 January | Broadcast live on BFBS.[17] | |
| Keighley Cougars v York Knights | 2 February | Streamed live on The Sportsman.[12] |
References
[edit]- ^ "Challenge Cup to undergo major revamp as Super League role changes". Love Rugby League. 25 June 2024.
- ^ Cook, Sam (25 June 2024). "RFL reveal new Challenge Cup format from 2025 with Super League clubs impacted". Serious About Rugby League. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
- ^ "Challenge Cup: Super League clubs to join competition earlier in 2025". BBC Sport. 25 June 2024.
- ^ "Challenge Cup draw and round dates revealed as competition adopts new format for 2025". Love Rugby League. 6 November 2024. Retrieved 6 November 2024.
- ^ "2025 Betfred Challenge Cup First and Second Round Draw Details Confirmed". www.rugby-league.com. RFL. 10 November 2024. Retrieved 10 November 2024.
- ^ "2025 Challenge Cup Rounds 1 and 2 draws made as road to Wembley begins with mouthwatering ties". Love Rugby League. 2 December 2024. Retrieved 2 December 2024.
- ^ Hodgson, Phil (6 January 2025). "Club drops out of Challenge Cup – with concerning reason given – Total Rugby League". Total RL. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
- ^ "RFL confirm Challenge Cup revamp and new entrant after Wath Brow exit". Love Rugby League. 6 January 2025. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
- ^ "Betfred Challenge Cup First Round – Update". RFL. 9 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
- ^ "Challenge Cup - Round One". Rugby Leaguer & League Express. No. 3463. 13 January 2025. p. 19.
- ^ "Challenge Cup - Round One". Rugby Leaguer & League Express. No. 3464. 20 January 2025. pp. 22–23.
- ^ a b "Three Challenge Cup ties to be broadcast as The Sportsman reveals its picks". Total Rugby League. 21 January 2025. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
- ^ "Challenge Cup Third Round draw made as Super League clubs all discover potential opponents". Love Rugby League. Retrieved 14 January 2025.
- ^ Dixon, Kyle (6 January 2025). "BFBS Sport to show live coverage of Saturday's British Army v RAF Challenge Cup clash". BFBS. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
- ^ a b Walker, Callum (7 January 2025). "New team enters Challenge Cup to replace Wath Brow Hornets as another two kick-off times changed – Total Rugby League". Total RL. Retrieved 7 January 2025.
- ^ "BBC make Challenge Cup Second Round broadcast pick as First Round update delivered". Love Rugby League. 13 January 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
- ^ Dixon, Kyle (20 January 2025). "Challenge Cup: How to watch Royal Navy's clash at home to Workington Town live". BFBS. Retrieved 20 January 2025.