2026 RFL 1895 Cup
 London Broncos celebrating winning the final | |
| Duration | March – August 2026 |
|---|---|
| Number of teams | 19 |
| Winners | London Broncos |
| Runners-up | Widnes Vikings |
The 2026 RFL 1895 Cup was the seventh staging of the RFL 1895 Cup, a rugby league competition for English and Welsh clubs competing outside of Super League. The merger of the Championship and League One made the competition solely for Championship clubs.
The cup was won by London Broncos who beat Widnes Vikings 32–10 in the final on 31 August 2026.
Format
[edit]The tournament for 2026 had a slightly revised format from previous years, with just the single preliminary round, down from two preliminary rounds in 2025.
The final was not played at Wembley Stadium, as had been the case for previous seasons. After the semi-finals had been played, the venue for the final was announced as the Halliwell Jones Stadium, the home of Super League team Warrington Wolves.[1]
Preliminary round
[edit]The preliminary round comprised three ties, drawn from the 16 teams no longer in the 2026 Challenge Cup.[2] The ties were played over the weekend of 14/15 March.[3]
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance | |||
| London Broncos | 36–10 | Barrow Raiders | 15 March 2026, 15:00 | Richmond Athletic Ground | A. Belafonte | |
| Swinton Lions | 0–50 | Sheffield Eagles | 15 March 2026, 15:00 | Heywood Road | R. Cox | 230 |
| Workington Town | 12–28 | Newcastle Thunder | 15 March 2026, 15:30 | Derwent Park | D. Arnold | 602 |
| Source:[4] | ||||||
First round
[edit]Drawn concurrently with the preliminary round on 15 February, the first round comprised eight ties; the winners of the preliminary round, the 10 teams who were not drawn for the preliminary round, and the three teams who qualified for the fourth round of the Challenge Cup – Goole Vikings, Keighley Cougars and Oldham.[2] The ties were played over the weekend of 18/19 April.[3]
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance | |||
| Doncaster | 64–0 | Salford | 18 April 2026, 15:00 | Eco-Power Stadium | D. Arnold | 735 |
| Dewsbury Rams | 10–50 | Widnes Vikings | 19 April 2026, 15:00 | Crown Flatt | C. Kendall | |
| Goole Vikings | 40–10 | Whitehaven | 19 April 2026, 15:00 | Victoria Pleasure Grounds | L. Bland | |
| London Broncos | 62–6 | Keighley Cougars | 19 April 2026, 15:00 | Richmond Athletic Ground | A. Williams | |
| Newcastle Thunder | 34–20 | Batley Bulldogs | 19 April 2026, 15:00 | Crow Trees Ground | K. Moore | |
| North Wales Crusaders | C–C | Midlands Hurricanes | Tie cancelled due to ongoing off-field issues at North Wales Crusaders. Midlands Hurricanes received a bye to the quarter finals.[5] | |||
| Oldham | 72–24 | Hunslet | 19 April 2026, 15:00 | Bower Fold | S. Mikalauskas | 740 |
| Rochdale Hornets | 32–18 | Sheffield Eagles | 19 April 2026, 15:00 | Spotland Stadium | R. Cox | 245 |
| Source:[6] | ||||||
Quarter-finals
[edit]The quarter-final draw was made on 19 April. The ties were played over the weekend of 16/17 May.
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance | |||
| Oldham | 34–40 | Midlands Hurricanes | 15 May 2026, 19:45 | Boundary Park | D. Arnold | 1,004 |
| Rochdale Hornets | 24–6 | Goole Vikings | 17 May 2026, 15:00 | Spotland Stadium | S. Mikalauskas | 395 |
| Widnes Vikings | 30–20 | Newcastle Thunder | 17 May 2026, 15:00 | Robin Park Arena | M. Lynn | 596 |
| London Broncos | 52–20 | Doncaster | 17 May 2026, 15:30 | Richmond Athletic Ground | R. Cox | |
| Source:[7] | ||||||
Semi-finals
[edit]The semi-final draw was made on 18 May. The ties were played over the weekend of 13/14 June. Rochdale were drawn at home against Widnes but with ground work being carried out at Spotland Stadium, both teams agreed to move the fixture to Widnes' Halton Stadium.[8]
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance | |||
| Midlands Hurricanes | 24–62 | London Broncos | 13 June 2026, 14:00 | Avery Fields | M. Lynn | 519 |
| Widnes Vikings | 52–0 | Rochdale Hornets | 14 June 2026, 15:00 | Halton Stadium | S. Mikalauskas | 2,190 |
| Source:[9] | ||||||
Final
[edit]The final was played on 31 August.
| Home | Score | Away | Match Information | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date and Time | Venue | Referee | Attendance | |||
| London Broncos | 32–10 | Widnes Vikings | 31 August 2026, 15:00 | Halliwell Jones Stadium | T. Grant | 4,829 |
| Source: | ||||||
References
[edit]- ↑ "Halliwell Jones Stadium confirmed as cup final host". Warrington Guardian. 18 June 2026. Retrieved 31 August 2026.
- 1 2 "Format and dates for 1895 Cup finally revealed". Total RL. 13 February 2026. Retrieved 13 February 2026.
- 1 2 Bower, Aaron (15 February 2026). "RFL 1895 Cup: Preliminary, First Round draws made in competition". Love Rugby League. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
- ↑ "1895 Cup: preliminary round". Rugby Leaguer & League Express. No. 3523. 16 March 2026. pp. 22–23.
- ↑ "North Wales Crusaders call off Sunday's cup clash with Midlands Hurricanes". North Wales Chronicle. 15 April 2026. Retrieved 15 April 2026.
- ↑ "1895 Cup: round one". Rugby Leaguer & League Express. No. 3528. 20 April 2026. p. 34.
- ↑ "1895 Cup: Quarter finals". Rugby Leaguer & League Express. No. 3532. 18 May 2026. p. 30.
- ↑ Olawumi, Ben (18 May 2026). "1895 Cup semi-final draw made as London Broncos face away trip". Love Rugby League. Retrieved 18 May 2026.
- ↑ "1895 Cup: Semi-finals". Rugby Leaguer & League Express. No. 3536. 15 June 2026. p. 34.
