The Betfred Women’s Challenge Cup competition returns in March, where teams will begin their #RoadToWembley for a second time.
The Women’s Challenge Cup was momentous in 2023, as for the first time in history, the cup final was staged at Wembley Stadium alongside the two Men’s Finals – highlighting a ground-breaking step for the women’s game. As a remarkable success, and attracting a record crowd of 8,338, the 2024 Women’s Challenge Cup Final will return to Wembley this year, where fans can be part of another enthralling spectacle, ahead of the Men’s Challenge Cup Final and AB Sundecks 1895 Cup.
Following the Women’s Betfred Challenge Cup fixtures announcement, we take a look at five group ties to watch out for.
St Helens v Warrington Wolves (Round One)
Over in Group 3, current Challenge Cup winners St Helens will look to defend their trophy and this mission will start when they take on Warrington Wolves in the first round of the group stages.
Saints lifted the trophy for a third year running in 2023, following a 22-8 victory over Leeds Rhinos at Wembley Stadium, breaking the record attendance for a Women’s Challenge Cup Final. Prior to this, their first Challenge Cup win would take place in 2021, where they enjoyed an empathic 34-6 win over York at the Leigh Sports Village, in what would become their treble-winning year. This was before going on to retain the Challenge Cup for a second year running, with an 18-8 win over Leeds at Elland Road.
Warrington looked extremely promising in the group stages of the 2023 cup competition and enjoyed convincing wins over the Castleford and London Women. Their Challenge Cup run would soon come to a halt however, following two heavy defeats to St Helens, in their final group stage match, as well as the quarter-finals.
The Wolves will feel a sense of vengeance over this and have the opportunity to seek revenge in what is set to be an enticing and tense Round One tie. Will Saints be able to retain the Challenge Cup trophy for a fourth consecutive year?
York Valkyrie v Sheffield Eagles (Round One)
Women's Grand Final Winners York Valkyrie boast a glittering trophy cabinet in recent times, but there is one significant trophy missing from the shelves.
The York side are currently experiencing a dominant period in Women’s Rugby League – having comfortably secured the League Leaders’ Shield consecutively in 2022 and 2023 and becoming Champions following their first Grand Final win last year, in front of a jubilant home crowd.
The Valkyrie experienced a taste of a Challenge Cup Final in 2021, before losing out to then treble-winners St Helens. And the closest York have come to a Challenge Cup win however, is winning the Challenge Cup Shield in 2017 – an additional competition formed for teams knocked out of the early rounds of the Challenge Cup between 2012-2019. As the side await to get their hands on a desperately desired Challenge Cup, this tie promises to be a thrilling encounter, as York are likely to embark on a firm mission.
This Group 1 cup tie is also important for another reason, as Sheffield Eagles Women are set to make their debut in the 2024 Challenge Cup. The Eagles have made rapid progression since forming in 2021, enjoying an incredible debut campaign in 2022, where they topped the League One table and claimed promotion in the league’s Grand Final. They will be relishing the chance to play in the sport's historic competition, so should not be underestimated in their inaugural cup match.
Leigh Leopards v Leeds Rhinos (Round One)
Leigh Leopards will be looking for retribution when they host Leeds Rhinos Women in their first Group 4 clash, following their cup heartbreak last year. The sides faced each other in quarter-finals of the 2023 Challenge Cup, but Leigh were heavily defeated by a strong Rhinos outfit.
Leeds, who went on compete in the Challenge Cup Final of that year, were left devastated by another loss to winners St Helens. Beaten by the Saints side two years on the bounce, as well as suffering a semi-final loss to them in 2021, the Rhinos will be determined to take the trophy this time around for the first time since 2019.
The Rhinos have also signed England international Shona Hoyle for the 2024 season – an individual who could prove to be a valuable addition to the side, especially where the cup is concerned, as she helped Saints win the Challenge Cup Final against Leeds in 2023.
Cardiff Demons v Salford Red Devils (Round Two)
Onto Round Two and Cardiff Demons will host Salford Red Devils in the second set of group fixtures. Coming into this game, Cardiff will have already faced a tough test against Women’s Super League side Barrow Raiders, whereas Salford will have entertained their local rivals Wigan on home soil.
Both sides last met in the 2023 Challenge Cup, where they were also placed in the same group. Expansionists Cardiff managed to impressively progress to the quarter-finals before losing to York, but Salford would disappointingly finish the group stages on zero points.
As two teams currently competing outside of the Women’s Super League, the Challenge Cup offers an opportunity for the Demons and Devils to test themselves with the best and is an additional rugby league tournament in their calendars. And the Demons could be the ones to watch in this competition, following their successful cup stint last time out.
Ultimately, this Group 2 tie could make for an interesting watch, as both teams will be keen to progress as far as they possibly can in the Challenge Cup.
York Valkyrie v Featherstone Rovers (Round Three)
Back to Group 1, and this year sees Featherstone Rovers compete in Women’s Super League, after being automatically promoted as the league's winners from Women’s Super League Group 2 in 2023.
The Rovers side have vast experience of reaching finals over the years, with their last Challenge Cup Final being in 2017, where they were defeated by Bradford. Featherstone also suffered a disappointing cup run in 2023, finishing third in the group ties and missing out on the knockout stages.
Not only a Challenge Cup tie, but also a fierce local derby – could this all-important third match of the group stages end up having bearing on the final standings?
A full list of the group stage fixtures can be found here.
The Women’s 2024 Betfred Challenge Cup is part of a Finals Day triple-header at Wembley Stadium on Saturday 8 June, alongside the final of the Betfred Men’s Challenge Cup and the AB Sundecks 1895 Cup. Tickets are available online from only £15 Adults and £7.50 Under 16s, with family packages also available starting from just £18.75 for one Adult and two Under 16s.
