88-613: The EPCR Challenge Cup is an annual rugby union competition organised by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). It is the second-tier competition for clubs based in European leagues behind the European Rugby Champions Cup . From its inception in 1996 to 2014, it was known as the European Challenge Cup and governed by European Rugby Cup (ERC). Following disagreements in the structure of
176-570: A British Isles team visited Australia and New Zealand—although a private venture, it laid the foundations for future British and Irish Lions tours; and the 1888–89 New Zealand Native football team brought the first overseas team to British spectators. During the early history of rugby union, a time before commercial air travel, teams from different continents rarely met. The first two notable tours both took place in 1888—the British Isles team touring New Zealand and Australia, followed by
264-497: A haka before each match, leading Welsh Rugby Union administrator Tom Williams to suggest that Wales player Teddy Morgan lead the crowd in singing the Welsh National Anthem, Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau , as a response. After Morgan began singing, the crowd joined in: the first time a national anthem was sung at the start of a sporting event. In 1905 France played England in its first international match. Rugby union
352-594: A limited number of games, and Cambridge and Oxford continued their annual University Match . The first officially sanctioned international rugby sevens tournament took place in 1973 at Murrayfield, one of Scotland's biggest stadiums, as part of the Scottish Rugby Union centenary celebrations. In 1987, the first Rugby World Cup was held in Australia and New Zealand, and the inaugural winners were New Zealand. The first World Cup Sevens tournament
440-415: A lineout throw is generally awarded to the opposition at the spot on the sideline where they left the field. Exceptions include a kick out "on the full" (i.e. the ball did not land in the field-of-play before going into touch) in which case the lineout would still take place on the sideline but back in line with where the ball was kicked, or when a team takes a free kick from a penalty where they would retain
528-534: A preferred or standard 68 metre width, this is often used unless a ground has been specifically designed to accommodate a 70-metre rugby field. 100 metres is the typical length, with a line (see below) often marked at halfway with "50" on it, representing 50 metres from each goal line. The variations have been allowed in the Laws, possibly to accommodate older grounds (perhaps even pre-metrification when yards and feet were specified) and developing nations. The field of play
616-609: A rectangular field called a pitch. The field has H-shaped goalposts at both ends. Rugby union is a popular sport around the world, played by people regardless of gender, age or size. In 2023, there were more than 10 million people playing worldwide, of whom 8.4 million were registered players. World Rugby , previously called the International Rugby Football Board (IRFB) and the International Rugby Board (IRB), has been
704-519: A single pool of 14 teams. No team would play a team in the same tier and no club would play another club from the same league. Each team was scheduled to play four matches with the top eight teams advancing to the knockout stage. The top eight teams were due to be joined in the round of 16 by the teams finishing between 5th and 8th in each pool of the 2020–21 European Rugby Champions Cup pool stage . The revised format announced in February 2021 would see
792-470: A successful penalty kick or a drop goal each score 3 points. The values of each of these scoring methods have been changed over the years. According to World Rugby's Laws of the Game, a typical rugby ground, formally known as the "playing enclosure", is formed by two major zones: The referee (and their assistants) generally have full authority and responsibility for all players and other officials inside
880-482: A team from the same league in the round of 16. Teams which won both their matches and were not awarded points due to COVID cancellations would be guaranteed home advantage. Therefore, Leicester Tigers , London Irish and Ospreys received home advantage. The draw for the round of 16 and quarter-finals took place on 9 March 2021 in Lausanne , Switzerland . Fixtures were announced on 16 March 2021. The draw for
968-549: A win, and two for a draw. Teams can also earn 1 try bonus point for scoring four or more tries, and 1 losing bonus point for losing a match by seven points or fewer. Following the completion of the pool stage, the top six teams in each pool will qualify for the knock-out stage. They are joined in the round of 16 by the teams placed 9th and 10th in each Champions Cup pool. The eight quarter-finalists are ranked – pool winners from 1 to 5, and runners-up from 6 to 8 – based on performance in their respective pool. The four pool winners with
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#17327726175171056-538: Is Chatswood Oval in Sydney, Australia, an elliptically shaped cricket ground which is the home of Gordon rugby club, that has curved dead-ball lines to maximise the available in-goal space. Where multiple sports share a field (e.g. a rugby league and a rugby union club sharing one field), lines may be overlaid on top of each other, sometimes in different colours. However, particularly for television, rugby union line markings are generally painted white. Some exceptions include
1144-408: Is considered "out-of-bounds" for the ball and the players, normally resulting in the non-infringing team receiving possession of the ball at a restart. The perimeter area can be divided into two areas: For the purposes of determining if a ball is "out-of-bounds" (i.e. has left the playing area), the perimeter area extends indefinitely away from the playing area. When a ball or player goes into touch,
1232-445: Is divided by a solid "halfway" line, drawn perpendicular to the sidelines at their midpoint. A 0.5m line is marked perpendicular to the halfway lines at its midpoint, designating the spot where the kickoffs shall be taken. The areas between each goal line and the halfway line are known as "halves" as in other football codes. A pair of solid lines are also drawn perpendicular to the sidelines, 22 metres (formerly 25 yards) from each end of
1320-533: Is the list of coaches, captain and stadiums with their method of qualification for each team. Teams were placed into one of the two tiers, with the higher ranked clubs being put in Tier 1. The nature of the tier system meant that no draw was needed this year. Brackets show each team's ranking and their league. e.g. 9 Top 14 indicates the team was the ninth placed team from the Top 14. The preliminary stage would consist of
1408-440: Is the third and final row of the forward positions, who are often referred to as the loose forwards. The three positions in the back row are the two flankers and the number 8 . The two flanker positions, known as the blindside flanker and openside flanker, are the final row in the scrum. They are usually the most mobile forwards in the game. Their main role is to win possession through 'turn overs'. The number 8 packs down between
1496-768: The Challenge Cup . 18 teams qualify for the EPCR Challenge Cup in 2023–24. 16 of these teams automatically qualified from the English Premiership Rugby , the French Top 14 and the United Rugby Championship , the 17th and 18th teams are invited to participate. Until 2019–20 the 19th and 20th teams qualified via a Qualifying Competition, organised by European Professional Club Rugby and Rugby Europe . For
1584-885: The Bunnings NPC in New Zealand, the League One in Japan and the Currie Cup in South Africa. Other transnational club competitions include the United Rugby Championship of club teams from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa and Wales, European Rugby Champions Cup in Europe, and Super Rugby in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific Islands. Primitive forms of football included harpastum , played by
1672-672: The COVID-19 pandemic . A revised format to finish the tournament was announced on 24 February 2021. Fourteen teams will qualified for the 2020–21 European Challenge Cup from Premiership Rugby , the Pro14 and the Top 14 , as a direct result of their domestic league performance having not qualified for the Heineken Champions Cup. Although, the two South African Pro14 teams are not eligible. The distribution of teams was: Below
1760-574: The EPCR package (both Champions and Challenge Cups) available on Rugby Pass. Rugby union Rugby union football , commonly known simply as rugby union or often just rugby , is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in England in the first half of the 19th century. Rugby is based on running with the ball in hand. In its most common form, a game is played between two teams of 15 players each, using an oval-shaped ball on
1848-399: The western Europe leagues had been invited to participate in the tournament. The Cheetahs , a South African team who won the 2023 Currie Cup will play in the cup, using Amsterdam as their home base. Also, for the 2023–24 season, Georgia's Black Lion team will play in the cup, as holders of the third-tier Rugby Europe Super Cup . Many more teams had applied to play in the 2024 season of
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#17327726175171936-636: 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. All 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. The following year's competition had an increased entry with eight groups of four teams. Colomiers continued
2024-456: The 1830s, "running in" with the ball in hand was allowed but subject to hacking and "collaring". Former Rugby School student Albert Pell is credited with having formed the first "football" team while a student at Cambridge University . Major private schools each used different rules during this early period, with former pupils from Rugby and Eton attempting to carry their preferred rules through to their universities. A significant event in
2112-691: The 2007–08 Challenge Cup when Spanish Champions CR El Salvador took part. Northampton Saints won the 2009 final after beating Bourgoin 15–3 at the Twickenham Stoop ; that season Northampton avoided relegation, they finished 2nd in the regular season of the Guinness Premiership , reached the Heineken Cup quarter-finals and won the Anglo-Welsh Cup the next season. Northampton became the eighth English club to win
2200-428: The 2014–15 season, this took the form of 2 two-legged play-off matches, with the aggregate winner of each taking one of the two Rugby Europe spots in the draw, and it involved the 2 best teams from Italy's Top12, plus a Romanian and Georgian selections. An expanded format, which was expected to feature more matches and more nations, for qualification into the 2015–16 European Rugby Challenge Cup , and subsequent seasons,
2288-607: The 2015–16 Challenge Cup would begin in January. The expanded format includes clubs from Rugby Europe member unions Russia, Spain and Portugal alongside representatives from the Italian Eccellenza, and is being jointly organised by EPCR, Rugby Europe, and the Federazione Italiana Rugby (FIR). The teams in the competition are split into two pools. Each team participates in a pool stage, before
2376-726: The Champions Cup, with Sky receiving the same privilege for the Challenge Cup. Subsequently, BT have signed an exclusive deal for the Challenge Cup between 2018–19 and 2021–22. Following the introduction of the European Rugby Challenge Cup, organisers decided to introduce a Champions League -style sponsorship system, including 3–5 principal partners, in lieu of one title sponsor. European markets: Other markets: For Australia, Europe (unsold markets), and Southeast Asia, all matches of
2464-542: The French dominance of the European Shield, defeating Agen 43–5 in the final. The absence of English and Scottish clubs in 1998–99 saw the competition reduced to 21 teams divided into three groups of seven teams with representative sides of Spain and Portugal taking part. Once again, a French team was triumphant, with Montferrand beating Bourgoin 35–16 in the final held in Lyon. With English and Scottish clubs back in
2552-628: The Heineken Cup. London Wasps beat Bath 48–30 to win the renamed Parker Pen Challenge Cup at the Madejski Stadium , Reading. In 2003–04, the Welsh Rugby Union voted to create regions to play in the Celtic League and represent Wales in European competition. Henceforce Wales entered regional sides rather than the club sides which had previously competed. With a reduction from nine professional clubs to just five, there
2640-513: The Laws: Generally, points where the dashed lines intersect other lines will be marked with a "T" or cross shape, although the extensions of dashed lines are generally not drawn within 5 metres of the goal lines or sidelines, to allow a clear demarcation of the field of play's boundaries. The Laws require the playing area to be rectangular in shape, however variations may be permitted with the approval of relevant unions. A notable example
2728-820: The New Zealand team touring Europe. Traditionally the most prestigious tours were the Southern Hemisphere countries of Australia, New Zealand and South Africa making a tour of a Northern Hemisphere, and the return tours made by a joint British and Irish team. Tours would last for months, due to long traveling times and the number of games undertaken; the 1888 New Zealand team began their tour in Hawkes Bay in June and did not complete their schedule until August 1889, having played 107 rugby matches. Touring international sides would play Test matches against international opponents, including national, club and county sides in
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2816-476: The Romans, where two opposing teams competed to throw a large ball into an opposition net, fighting for possession of the ball. Medieval Irishmen played caid , carrying an inflated bladder and using arched trees as goals. The Welsh played an inter-parish game using a wooden ball called cnapan . Frenchmen played soule and Georgians played lelo. "Football" as a game was well established by 1803 at Rugby School and by
2904-537: The United States , Canada and Eastern Europe , its growth occurring during the expansion of the British Empire and through French proponents ( Rugby Europe ) in Europe. Countries that have adopted rugby union as their de facto national sport include Fiji , Georgia, Madagascar , New Zealand, Samoa , Tonga , and Wales . International matches have taken place since 1871 when the first game
2992-480: The Wallabies (Australia's national team) who often have yellow markings. Local clubs may use black, yellow, or other colours on grass, with other surfaces possibly requiring different marking techniques. Unlike association football, where on-field advertising is strictly forbidden in the laws, World Rugby allows sponsors logos to be painted on the playing surface. This is another way in which clubs can make money in
3080-431: The backs and the forwards is that the backs are expected to have superior kicking and ball-handling skills, especially the fly-half, scrum-half, and full-back. The half-backs consist of two positions, the scrum-half and the fly-half , also known in the Southern Hemisphere as half-back and first five-eighth respectively. The fly-half is crucial to a team's game plan, orchestrating the team's performance. They are usually
3168-422: The ball is kicked into touch by a player who had at least one foot on or behind their own 22-metre line, the line-out formed at the spot where the ball crossed the touch-line instead of being taken in line with the spot from where it was kicked. Additional broken or dashed lines (of 5 metre dash lengths, according to the Laws ) are drawn in each half or on each side of, the field, each with specific purposes under
3256-417: The ball. Forwards play a vital role in tackling and rucking opposing players. Players in these positions are generally bigger and stronger and take part in the scrum and line-out. The forwards are often collectively referred to as the 'pack', especially when in the scrum formation. The front row consists of three players: two props (the loosehead prop and the tighthead prop) and the hooker . The role of
3344-400: The best pool record receive home advantage for the quarter-finals against one of the four lower-ranked teams, in a 1v8, 2v7, 3v6, 4v5 format. Unlike the later formats of the old European Challenge Cup, no teams will drop down into the competition from the Champions Cup. The winners of the quarter-finals will contest the two semi-finals, the semi-final matches will be determined by criteria, and
3432-591: The case of Northern Hemisphere rugby, or provincial/state sides in the case of Southern Hemisphere rugby. Between 1905 and 1908, all three major Southern Hemisphere rugby countries sent their first touring teams to the Northern Hemisphere: New Zealand in 1905, followed by South Africa in 1906 and Australia in 1908. All three teams brought new styles of play, fitness levels and tactics, and were far more successful than critics had expected. The New Zealand 1905 touring team performed
3520-588: The clubs that had favoured the Rugby Rules formed the Rugby Football Union in 1871, and their code became known as " rugby football ". In 1895, there was a major schism within rugby football in England in which numerous clubs from Northern England resigned from the RFU over the issue of reimbursing players for time lost from their workplaces. The split highlighted the social and class divisions in
3608-402: The competition in 1999, there were 28 teams split in seven groups of four and London Irish and Bristol reached the semi-finals of the competition, but couldn't prevent another all-French final with Section Paloise crowned champions after a 34–21 defeat of Castres. The competition structure remained unchanged for the 2000–01 season, although no team from Romania participated. The semi-final draw
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3696-544: The competition in 9 seasons. The competition organiser, European Rugby Cup, announced several changes to the Challenge Cup effective in 2009–10: Cardiff Blues benefited from the new format in its first year, winning the first ever Challenge Cup for the club and were also the first Welsh Club to win any European club tournament. Cardiff beat Toulon 28–21 in the final at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille , which
3784-496: The early development of rugby football was the production of a written set of rules at Rugby School in 1845, followed by the Cambridge Rules that were drawn up in 1848. Formed in 1863, the national governing body The Football Association (FA) began codifying a set of universal football rules. These new rules specifically banned players from running with the ball in hand and also disallowed hacking (kicking players in
3872-486: The field are divided into eight forwards (two more than in rugby league ) and seven backs . There are typically significantly more forwards on the bench than backs with, for example, South Africa having a 7-1 split in favour of forwards in their August 2023 match against New Zealand in Twickenham. A 6-2 or 5-3 split is more common. The main responsibilities of the forward players are to gain and retain possession of
3960-401: The field of play and called the 22-metre lines, or "22"s. An area at each end, also known as the "22", is bounded by, but does not include, the sidelines, goal line and 22-metre line. In this area, a defensive player who cleanly catches a ball kicked by the other team, without the ball having already touched the ground after the kick, is entitled to claim a free kick, or " mark ". Additionally, if
4048-512: The field to accommodate fitter and faster (or heavier) players. Fixed cameras on tripods and advertising hoardings are often the main culprits for injuring players in the perimeter area. 2020%E2%80%9321 European Rugby Challenge Cup The 2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup is the seventh edition of the European Rugby Challenge Cup , an annual second-tier rugby union competition for professional clubs. Including
4136-473: The first French winners of the title for seven years after they beat Bath in the 2006–07 competition ; Clermont also reached the Top 14 final this year after finishing poorly the previous couple of years. Beaten 2007 finalists Bath won the 2007–08 tournament after beating fellow English club Worcester Warriors in the final in Kingsholm Stadium , Gloucester . Spanish representation resumed in
4224-612: The first team from Ireland to win the Challenge Cup. Northampton Saints won the last edition of the European Challenge Cup in 2014, beating Bath 30–16 in the final. On 10 April 2014, following almost two years of negotiations, a statement was released under the aegis of European Professional Club Rugby announcing that the nine stakeholders to the new competition, the six unions and three umbrella club organisations (Premiership Rugby, Ligue Nationale de Rugby and Regional Rugby Wales), had signed Heads of Agreement for
4312-425: The first to receive the ball from the scrum-half following a breakdown, lineout, or scrum, and need to be decisive with what actions to take and be effective at communicating with the outside backs. Many fly-halves are also their team's goal kickers. The scrum-half is the link between the forwards and the backs. They receive the ball from the lineout and remove the ball from the back of the scrum, usually passing it to
4400-537: The fly-half. They also feed the scrum and sometimes have to act as a fourth loose forward. There are four three quarter positions: two centres (inside and outside) and two wings (left and right). In the Southern Hemisphere, the inside centre is commonly referred to as the second five-eighth, while the outside centre is simply known as the centre. The centres will attempt to tackle attacking players; whilst in attack, they should employ speed and strength to breach opposition defences. The wings are generally positioned on
4488-509: 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
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#17327726175174576-414: The goal lines, equivalent to American football's "end zones". The in-goal areas must be between 6 and 22 metres (6.6 and 24.1 yards) deep and cover the full width of the field. A ball grounded in this area by an attacking player will generally result in a try being awarded, unless there has been a previous infringement, or the player has gone out-of-bounds whilst in possession of the ball. The perimeter area
4664-422: The governing body for rugby union since 1886, and currently has 116 countries as full members and 18 associate members. In 1845, the first laws were written by pupils at Rugby School; other significant events in the early development of rugby include the decision by Blackheath F.C. to leave The Football Association in 1863 and, in 1895, the split between rugby union and rugby league . Historically rugby union
4752-414: The most important attributes of a good full-back are dependable catching skills and a good kicking game. Rugby union is played between two teams – the one that scores more points wins the game. Points can be scored in several ways: a try , scored by grounding the ball in the in-goal area (between the goal line and the dead-ball line), is worth 5 points and a subsequent conversion kick scores 2 points;
4840-414: The outside of the backline. Their primary function is to finish off moves and score tries. Wings are usually the fastest players in the team and are elusive runners who use their speed to avoid tackles. The full-back is normally positioned several metres behind the back line. They often field opposition kicks and are usually the last line of defence should an opponent break through the back line. Two of
4928-440: The playing area and perimeter area, although depending on how large the perimeter is, other surfaces such as dirt, artificial turf, etc. may be used outside of a "sliding" perimeter from the bounds of the playing area. For the most part, the "playing area" is where the majority of play occurs. The ball is generally considered live whilst in this area, so long as players do not infringe, with special rules applied to specific zones of
5016-442: The playing area. The playing area consists of: A typical "field of play" is generally 100 metres long by 68–70 metres wide for senior rugby, depending on the specific requirements of each ground. The Laws require the field of play to be between 94 and 100 metres (103 and 109 yards) long, with a width of between 68 and 70 metres (74 and 77 yards). As other football codes, such as association football and rugby league, have specified
5104-432: The playing enclosure. Fences or ropes (particularly at amateur clubs) are generally used to mark the extent of this area, although in modern stadia this may include the entire arena floor or other designated space. The Laws, above all, require that the playing enclosure's surface be safe, whilst also permitting grass, sand, clay, snow or conforming artificial turf to be used; the surface would generally be uniform across both
5192-719: The pre-1995 period of rugby union was marked by frequent accusations of " shamateurism ", including an investigation in Britain by a House of Commons Select committee in early 1995. Following the introduction of professionalism trans-national club competitions were started, with the Heineken Cup in the Northern Hemisphere and Super Rugby in the Southern Hemisphere. The Tri Nations , an annual international tournament involving Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, kicked off in 1996. In 2012 , this competition
5280-610: The predecessor competition, the original European Challenge Cup, this was the 25th edition of European club rugby's second-tier competition. The tournament began in December 2020. The final, originally scheduled to be held at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille, took place on 21 May 2021 at Twickenham Stadium . On 11 January 2021 EPCR announced the competition was suspended temporarily due to new restrictions surrounding
5368-415: The professional era and is also often used by host nations, professional leagues and tournaments as additional revenue streams, particularly when games are broadcast. In recent years, augmented reality technology has been used to replace painting to protect the surface or save costs on painting fields, producing a similar effect for broadcast albeit sometimes with poorer results. The in-goal areas sit behind
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#17327726175175456-425: The right to throw-in. The perimeter area should be clear and free of obstructions and heavy, solid objects which could pose a danger to players for at least 5 metres from the playing area, according to the Laws. Players often leave the playing area whether accidentally or due to being forced off of the field, sometimes sliding or needing to slow down from a sprint. Many venues at elite levels leave larger spaces around
5544-421: The season in the Challenge Cup. The 2011–12 competition was dominated by French sides, with all four semi-finalists coming from that country. Biarritz , which had parachuted in from the Heineken Cup , defeated Toulon to claim their first Challenge Cup. The 2012–13 season again saw the Challenge Cup claimed by a team that parachuted in from the Heineken Cup . This time, the victor was Leinster , which became
5632-590: The shins), both of which were legal and common tactics under the Rugby School's rules of the sport. In protest at the imposition of the new rules, the Blackheath Club left the FA followed by several other clubs that also favoured the "Rugby Rules". Although these clubs decided to ban hacking soon afterwards, the split was permanent, and the FA's codified rules became known as " association football " whilst
5720-427: The sport in England. Although the rules of the game were not a factor in the split, the breakaway teams subsequently adopted some rule changes and this became the separate code of " rugby league ". The RFU's code thereafter took on the name "rugby union" to differentiate it from rugby league, but both versions of the sport are known simply as "rugby" throughout most of the world. The first rugby football international
5808-432: The tallest players in the team and specialise as line-out jumpers. The main role of the lock in line-outs is to make a standing jump, often supported by the other forwards, to either collect the thrown ball or ensure the ball comes down on their side. Locks also have an important role in the scrum, binding directly behind the three front row players and providing forward drive. The back row, not to be confused with 'Backs',
5896-483: The top 8 teams after 2 pool games advance to the round of 16 along with the eight teams placed between 9th and 12th in each pool of the Champions Cup. The knockout stage commenced with a round of 16 consisting of the top 8 ranked teams from the preliminary stage and the teams placed between 9th and 12th in each Champions Cup pool. Due to the truncation of the preliminary stage, a draw was used to determine matches in both round of 16 and quarter-finals but no team would face
5984-403: The tournament became a knock-out competition. This involved 32 clubs from eight nations, half of them seeded and drawn against an un-seeded team on a home and away basis. The name Parker Pen Shield was now applied to a reprechage knock-out tournament for those teams that did not qualify for the second round of the Challenge Cup. The Parker Pen Challenge Cup winner now automatically qualified for
6072-522: The tournament's format and division of revenue, the English and French leagues withdrew to form the EPCR, which organized the Challenge Cup and the Champions Cup since the 2014–15 season. The Challenge Cup is currently contested between 18 teams; 16 of which qualify from the three main European domestic leagues ( Premiership Rugby , Top 14 , and United Rugby Championship ). In 2023–24, two teams outside of
6160-424: The two locks at the back of the scrum. The role of the number 8 in the scrum is to control the ball after it has been heeled back from the front of the pack, and the position provides a link between the forwards and backs during attacking phases. The role of the backs is to create and convert point-scoring opportunities. They are generally smaller, faster and more agile than the forwards. Another distinction between
6248-426: The two play-off winners. For the pool stage there are two pools of ten teams. The teams are ranked based on domestic league performance the previous season, and arranged into three tiers. Teams are then drawn from the tiers into pools at random. Teams will play two other teams in their pool twice, both at home and away and match points will be awarded depending on the result of each game. Teams receive four points for
6336-504: The two pool winners compete in a two-legged play-off against the teams currently competing in the Challenge Cup from the previous season. The winners, on aggregate, of these two play-offs will take up the two final places in the Challenge Cup. In 2017, the competition was rebranded as the European Rugby Continental Shield, and introduced a final to be held as part of the main finals weekend and contested by
6424-453: The two props is to support the hooker during scrums, to provide support for the jumpers during line-outs and to provide strength and power in rucks and mauls. The third position in the front row is the hooker. The hooker is a key position in attacking and defensive play and is responsible for winning the ball in the scrum. Hookers normally throw the ball in at line-outs. The second row consists of two locks or lock forwards. Locks are usually
6512-560: The winners of the semi-finals will contest the final, which is usually held in May. Because of the Coronavirus Pandemic the 2020/2021 competition took on a revised format. 2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup A similar format remained for the 2021/22 season, however, the number of teams was increased from 14 to 15 and an additional six will join from the Champions Cup. 2021–22 European Rugby Challenge Cup The format revision
6600-432: Was abandoned in 2005 due to restructuring of the European Challenge Cup. The competition reverted to being a league format followed by knock-out phase with five pools of four teams and home and away matches. Romanian interest returned to the competition in the form of București Rugby who had been formed to represent Romania in European competition, however, there was no representation from Spain or Portugal. Clermont were
6688-443: Was also the first final to have no English involvement for 10 years. England made a triumphant return to the final in 2011, with Harlequins defeating Stade Français 19–18. with a try in the last five-minutes by Argentinian wing, Gonzalo Camacho. This meant Harlequins became the first team to win the Challenge Cup three times and with this entered the Heineken Cup. The final was also notable in that it involved two teams that began
6776-485: Was an all-English and all-French affair to leave Harlequins and Narbonne contesting the first final on English soil. Harlequins ended French dominance of the European Shield, defeating RC Narbonne 27–26 after extra time in the final. There was a new sponsor and a name change in 2001. The new Parker Pen Shield saw 32 teams divided into eight groups of four competing for the title. For the first time there were two Spanish club teams (Valladolid RAC and UC Madrid) and Romania
6864-801: Was an amateur sport, but in 1995 formal restrictions on payments to players were removed, making the game openly professional at the highest level for the first time. Rugby union spread from the Home Nations of the United Kingdom and Ireland , with other early exponents of the sport including Australia , New Zealand , South Africa and France . The sport is followed primarily in the United Kingdom, Ireland, France, New Zealand, Australia, Pacific Islands - Fiji , Tonga , Samoa , Georgia , Oceania , Southern Africa , Argentina , and in recent times also, Italy , Japan , South America ,
6952-412: Was expected to be announced 15 September 2014. However, on 5 September 2014, it was announced that no such competition would take place during the 2014–15 season, and negotiations continue to create the new competition as soon as possible. Subsequently, on 22 December 2014, EPCR announced negotiations for a new format for the competition had now been completed, and the Qualifying Competition for entry into
7040-463: Was extended to include Argentina , a country whose impressive performances in international games (especially finishing in third place in the 2007 Rugby World Cup) was deemed to merit inclusion in the competition. As a result of the expansion to four teams, the tournament was renamed The Rugby Championship. Each team starts the match with 15 players on the field and typically seven or eight substitutes but this varies at amateur level. The 15 players on
7128-467: Was first introduced in 1996, reflecting the historical depth of those two leagues. However, teams from Ireland, Wales and Scotland have all made the final of the Challenge Cup, with the trophy twice being won by Cardiff Rugby from Wales, and once by the Irish provincial side Leinster . European rugby competition began with the launch of the Heineken Cup in the summer of 1995. The Challenge Cup began as
7216-704: Was held at Murrayfield in 1993. Rugby Sevens was introduced into the Commonwealth Games in 1998 and was added to the Olympic Games of 2016. Both men and women's Sevens took place at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo. Rugby union was an amateur sport until the IRB declared the game "open" in August 1995 (shortly after the completion of the 1995 World Cup), removing restrictions on payments to players. However,
7304-599: Was included as an event in the Olympic Games four times during the early 20th century. No international rugby games and union-sponsored club matches were played during the First World War, but competitions continued through service teams such as the New Zealand Army team . During the Second World War no international matches were played by most countries, though Italy, Germany and Romania played
7392-428: Was no Welsh entry in that year's competition. Romania also did not take part in the Challenge Cup. Harlequins won the cup with a 27–26 last-second victory over Montferrand at the Madejski Stadium to become the first side to win the tournament twice. Sale eased to victory in the 2005 final 27–3 over a disappointing Pau side. In 2006, Gloucester edged out London Irish 36–34 after extra time. The Parker Pen Shield
7480-584: Was played between Scotland and England at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh. The Rugby World Cup , first held in 1987, is held every four years. The Six Nations Championship in Europe and The Rugby Championship in the Southern Hemisphere are other important international competitions that are held annually. National club and provincial competitions include the Premiership in England, the Top 14 in France,
7568-652: Was played on 27 March 1871 between Scotland and England in Edinburgh . Scotland won the game by one goal and one try to one goal. By 1881 both Ireland and Wales had representative teams and in 1883 the first international competition, the Home Nations Championship had begun. 1883 is also the year of the first rugby sevens tournament, the Melrose Sevens , which is still held annually. Two important overseas tours took place in 1888:
7656-463: Was removed from the 2022/23 season, so with the introduction of South African sides to the EPCR, 16 teams now qualify based on domestic league performance, with two further team invited. For the 2023–24 EPCR Challenge Cup season, the invited teams will be the South African team, Cheetahs , and Black Lion from Georgia. The competition has been dominated by English and French clubs since it
7744-536: Was represented. Only one French club reached the quarter-finals along with five English and two from Wales and for the first time no French club reached the semi-finals after Pau lost to London Irish. For the first time, a Welsh team, Pontypridd , made it to the final but Sale Sharks emerged victorious, coming from behind to win 25–22 at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford. The league format was abandoned in 2002 and
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