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Challenge Cup

The Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition and is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the Champions Cup 🏆. See below for Challenge Cup Predictions.

From its inception in 1996 to 2014, it was known as the European Challenge Cup. Following disagreements about the tournament’s format and division of revenue, the English and French leagues withdrew to form the EPCR. This organised the Challenge Cup and the Champions Cup since the 2014–15 season.

The Challenge Cup is currently contested between 18 teams. 16 qualify from the three main European domestic leagues (Premiership Rugby, Top 14, and United Rugby Championship). In 2023, the Cheetahs, a South African team with close historical connections to the URC, also took part in the Challenge Cup as an invited team. For the 2023-24 season, Georgia’s Black Lion were also invited to take part in the tournament.

HISTORY

The Challenge Cup began as the ‘European Conference’ (later renamed the European Shield) in 1996 with 24 teams from England, France, Italy, Romania, Scotland and Wales divided into four groups of six. Subsequently seven of the French teams made it to the quarter-finals with English club Northampton Saints filling the other berth. Predictably, the final was an all-French affair with Bourgoin beating Castres Olympique 18–9 to win the shield.

On 10 April 2014, following almost two years of negotiations, it was announced that the nine stakeholders to the new competition, the six unions and three umbrella club organisations had agreed the formation of the European Rugby Champions Cup, the European Rugby Challenge Cup and a new, third tournament, called the Qualifying Competition. On the same day, BT and Sky signed an agreement that divided coverage of the new European competitions. Both would split the pool matches, quarter-finals, and semi-finals equally, and both would broadcast the final. BT would receive first choice of English Premiership club matches in the Champions Cup. Sky would receive the same privilege for the Challenge Cup.

See below for the latest Challenge Cup predictions, results, rankings and tips for all the matches, all powered by the Algorithm and refreshed daily. 🤟

Predictions

The Algorithm’s latest predictions

Bookies Analysis

Identifying mispricings and opportunities

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