National Provincial Championship (2006-present)
The National Provincial Championship may refer to: * National Provincial Championship (1976–2005), original competition before reform into 14 sides * National Provincial Championship (2006–present) The National Provincial Championship, often simply called the NPC, is an annual round-robin rugby union competition in men's domestic New Zealand rugby. First played during the 2006 season, it is the second highest level of competition in N ...

National Provincial Championship (1976–2005)
The National Provincial Championship, often simply called the NPC, was an annual promotion and relegation rugby union competition in men's domestic New Zealand rugby. First played during the 1976 season, it was the highest level of competition in New Zealand until Super Rugby launched in 1996. It was organised by New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and ceased following the 2005 season. The league was restructured into two distinct competitions. The National Provincial Championship would include professional and semi-professional players, and consist of the top fourteen financial and best performing regional teams. For sponsorship reasons it was rebranded as the Air New Zealand Cup. The remaining teams would form a breakaway amateur competition known as the Heartland Championship. Twenty-eight teams had competed since the inception of the competition in 1976. Auckland were the most successful union with fifteen titles and Bay of Plenty were the inaugural champions. Six other teams had wo ...
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