The 2008
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...
(also known as the Carnegie Challenge Cup for sponsorship reasons) was the 107th staging of the most prestigious knock-out competition in the world 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 112 ...
, featuring teams from across Europe, including England, Scotland, Wales, France and Russia. It began in February 2008.
Teams from the
National League
The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...
were given byes to round three, and teams from the
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of w ...
entered in round four. Teams from outside the UK were introduced at various stages.
St. Helens successfully defended their title after beating
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 wer ...
28 - 16 in the final.
Round 1
:''(week ending 3 February, 3 fixtures played Saturday 9 February (indicated with *), 1 on Saturday 16 February (indicated with **))''
*** - Match abandoned after Hunslet Old Boys had 4 players sent off. Hunslet Old Boys were subsequently thrown out of the competition.
Round 2
:''(weekend of 23 – 24 February)''
Russian team Vereya joined in this round. Vereya were runners-up in the Russian Championship to
Lokomotiv Moscow
FC Lokomotiv Moscow (''FC Lokomotiv Moskva'', russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб "Локомотив" Москва, ) is a Russian professional football club based in Moscow. Lokomotiv have won the Russian Premier League on three oc ...
. Lokomotiv Moscow joined in the third round.
Round 3
:''(weekend of 8 – 9 March)''
The
National Leagues teams, together with
Lokomotiv Moscow
FC Lokomotiv Moscow (''FC Lokomotiv Moskva'', russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб "Локомотив" Москва, ) is a Russian professional football club based in Moscow. Lokomotiv have won the Russian Premier League on three oc ...
, Pia, Lezignan and Toulouse joined in this round.
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of w ...
teams joined in Round 4.
Round 4
:''(Weekend of 18 – 20 April)''
Super League
The Super League (officially known as the Betfred Super League due to sponsorship from Betfred and legally known as Super League Europe), is the top-level of the British rugby league system. At present the league consists of twelve teams, of w ...
teams joined in Round 4. From Round 4 onwards, the competition was a straightforward
knock-out
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking ...
, with no more teams joining.
All fixtures taken fro
BBC Sport
Round 5
:''(weekend of 9 – 12 May)''
Quarter finals
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Semi finals
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Final
UK Broadcasting rights
Selected matches were televised solely by the
BBC.
1 Except East and Yorkshire.
2 Except East, Northern Ireland and Yorkshire.
3 Except Yorkshire.
References
External links
Rugby Football League
{{2008 in rugby league
Challenge Cup
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...
Challenge Cup
The Challenge Cup is a knockout rugby league cup competition organised by the Rugby Football League, held annually since 1896, with the exception of 1915–1919 and 1939–1940, due to World War I and World War II respectively. It involve ...