Rugby League in Yorkshire refers to the sport of

rugby league Rugby league football, commonly known as just rugby league and sometimes football, footy, rugby or league, is a full-contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular field measuring 68 metres (75 yards) wide and 11 ...

in relation to its participation and history within

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other English counties, functions have ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. The traditional county is the largest in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and as thus has many rugby clubs, professional and amateur.

History

Rugby league was founded in Yorkshire in 1895 at the George Hotel in

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a market town in the Kirklees district in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confluence into ...

when 22 clubs broke away from the Rugby Football Union to form the

Northern Rugby Football Union Northern may refer to the following: Geography * North, a point in direction * Northern Europe, the northern part or region of Europe * Northern Highland, a region of Wisconsin, United States * Northern Province, Sri Lanka * Northern Range, a ...

which later changed its name to the

Rugby Football League The Rugby Football League is the governing body for professional rugby league in England, and until 1995 for the whole British Isles. The name Rugby Football League previously also referred to the main league competition run by the organisati ...

. The first winners of the newly formed league, the NRFU Championship were Bradford based team Manningham FC in 1895. Between 1896 and 1900 teams either played in the Yorkshire or Lancashire League depending on geographical location but still competed in the Challenge Cup. In the early years of the competition

were a dominant force, winning multiple league titles between 1910s and 1940s. In the Super League era,

Bradford Bulls The Bradford Bulls are a professional rugby league club in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England, playing in the Championship. They have won five Challenge Cups, six league championships and three World Club Challenges. The team jersey is predom ...

were one of the dominant forces in the early years winning four titles between 1997 and 2005.

Leeds Rhinos The Leeds Rhinos are a professional rugby league club in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The club was formed in 1870 as Leeds St John's and play in the Super League, the top tier of English rugby league. They have played home matches at Headin ...

became the most successful team in Yorkshire winning eight Super League titles and winning 14 Challenge Cups.

Competitions

Yorkshire League

The Yorkshire League was founded in 1895 for teams in Yorkshire to compete in.

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...

and

dominated the league before it was abandoned in 1970 due to the amount of fixtures being played.

Yorkshire Cup

The Yorkshire Cup was a cup competition for teams in Yorkshire. The competition ran from 1905–1992 when it folded due to the number of fixtures in the calendar and the

(RFL) not seeing it as being a part of the future of modern rugby league.

War of the Roses

The War of the Roses, was the inter-county

matches between representative teams from

and

Lancashire Lancashire ( , ; abbreviated Lancs) is the name of a historic county, ceremonial county, and non-metropolitan county in North West England. The boundaries of these three areas differ significantly. The non-metropolitan county of Lancash ...

, the areas where rugby league has traditionally been most popular in England. The fixture was abandoned in 2003 after poor attendances and lack of interest from players and the media.

Rugby league clubs in Yorkshire

The table below lists clubs located within the traditional borders of Yorkshire in the top three tiers of the

British rugby league system The British rugby league system is based on a five-tier structure administered by the Rugby Football League. There is no system of automatic promotion and relegation between all five tiers although teams have moved between them in the past. Since ...

: from the top division (the Super League), down to tier 3 of League 1.

Locations

West Yorkshire

West Yorkshire has the most clubs in the whole of Yorkshire with 11 teams based in the region. Traditionally,

and

Huddersfield Giants Huddersfield Giants are an English professional rugby league club from Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, the birthplace of rugby league, who play in the Super League competition. They play their home games at the John Smiths Stadium which is sha ...

have been the two most successful,

also became a dominant force in rugby league during the Super League era along with Leeds.

East Riding of Yorkshire

Two teams are based in the East Riding of Yorkshire and both play in

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from the North Sea and south-ea ...

. Traditionally

Hull F.C. Hull Football Club, commonly referred to as Hull or Hull F.C., is a professional rugby league football club established in 1865 and based in West Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The club plays in the Super League competition and were ...

are said to represent the West side of the city and

Hull Kingston Rovers Hull Kingston Rovers are a professional rugby league club based in Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire, England, that competes in the Super League, the top tier of British rugby league. The club has won five league championships, and one Challen ...

represent the East side of the city with the boundary being the River Hull.

South Yorkshire

Two clubs compete and are based in South Yorkshire; Sheffield Eagles and

Doncaster Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...

. Doncaster play at the

Keepmoat Stadium The Eco-Power Stadium (formerly known as Keepmoat Stadium) is a multi-purpose stadium in Doncaster, England, with a capacity of 15,231. It cost approximately £20 million to construct, as part of the wider Lakeside Sports Complex that i ...

in Doncaster whereas Sheffield play at the Sheffield Olympic Legacy Stadium in Sheffield. Sheffield Eagles are the most successful of the two teams having won the 1996 Challenge Cup. Doncaster have yet to win any major honours.

North Yorkshire

The only side in North Yorkshire is currently York City Knights (previously

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

) but sides have existed in Ripon and Scarborough.