Key dates for 2025 Championship and League 1 seasons with Super 8s reintroduced
The 2025 Championship and League 1 campaigns are taking shape
The full fixture lists for the 2025 Championship and League 1 campaigns have now been released, meaning fans across the country and beyond are getting their diaries out to make plans for the upcoming campaign.
Just to make life that bit easier, we thought we’d compile all of the key dates you’ll need in 2025 in one place…
* It’s worth noting that the format of the 1895 Cup for 2025 is still to be decided, as is the schedule for that competition. When fixtures are decided, we will slot the round dates into this calendar accordingly.
Saturday, January 25 – Sunday, January 26: Challenge Cup Second Round
As announced back in June, the Challenge Cup will undergo a revamp in 2025 with everything circling around Super League clubs entering the competition earlier.
Round Two of the game’s oldest cup competition will see the clubs from the Championship and League 1 enter, except French outfit Toulouse Olympique.
The draw will be done on December 2, 2024.
Whoever York draw, the Knights will play their Round Two tie out in early February having double-booked themselves in for a friendly against Hull KR in Amsterdam on the weekend above.
Saturday, February 8 – Sunday, February 9: Challenge Cup Third Round
Super League clubs will enter the Challenge Cup here, and every Super League club will play away from home.
The aim is for more clubs in the Championship and League 1 – as well as those from the community game – to get a big money spinner on home soil against Super League sides.
Saturday, February 15 – Sunday, February 16: Championship season begins
Round One in the second tier…
- Toulouse Olympique v Widnes Vikings
- Barrow Raiders v Hunslet
- Bradford Bulls v London Broncos
- Featherstone Rovers v Doncaster
- Sheffield Eagles v Halifax Panthers
- Oldham v York
Sunday, February 23: League 1 season begins
Round One in the third tier…
- Workington Town v Cornwall
- Dewsbury Rams v North Wales Crusaders
- Goole Vikings v Midlands Hurricanes
- Rochdale Hornets v Keighley Cougars
- Swinton Lions v Whitehaven
Saturday, March 15 – Sunday, March 16: Challenge Cup Fourth Round
Regardless of how many Championship or League 1 clubs remain in the competition, the Challenge Cup Fourth Round takes centre stage this weekend.
There are NO league games in either the second tier or the third tier.
Saturday, September 20 – Sunday, September 21: Championship Elimination Play-offs & first round of Super 8s
The Championship play-offs begin this weekend, and so to do the Super 8s.
Back in March, LoveRugbyLeague brought you the news that the Super 8s would be returning.
In 2025, these will decide promotion and relegation between the Championship and League 1.
The top four teams in League One and the lowest-ranked four teams in the Championship will all enter the Super 8s.
Each of the eight will play the four teams from the opposite division – two at home and two away – over the course of four weekends.
At the end of those four weekends, the top two in the Super 8s standings secure a spot in the Championship for 2026 while the bottom four will be plying their trade in League 1 come 2026.
For those clubs in 3rd and 4th places in the Super 8s standings, there will be a Million Pound Game-style winner-takes-all play-off clash. We’ll touch on that shortly.
The overall aim is to have two divisions of 12 come 2026.
Saturday, September 27 – Sunday, September 28: Championship play-off semi-finals & second round of Super 8s
The Championship play-offs and Super 8s continue.
In the play-offs, as has been the case for the last few years, home advantage in the semi-finals will go to the teams that ended the ‘regular’ campaign 1st and 2nd.
Saturday, October 4 – Sunday, October 5: Championship Grand Final & third round of Super 8s
The Championship Grand Final will be played at the home of whichever club involved finished higher in the ‘regular’ campaign.
Whoever wins the Grand Final are the champions of the Championship, but they won’t be guaranteed promotion with IMG’s gradings system coming into play oncemore.
The Super 8s continue.
Saturday, October 11 – Sunday, October 12: Fourth round of Super 8s
The Super 8s continue.
Saturday, October 18/Sunday, October 19: Super 8s 3rd v 4th place play-off (Million Pound Game equivalent)
Come the end of the four rounds of fixtures in the Super 8s, whoever ends up 3rd and 4th will compete in a winner-takes-all clash.
Just like the Million Pound Game when that was around, the winner will be promoted (or remain in the Championship) for 2026 while the loser will be relegated (or remain in League 1 for 2026).
This play-off will be held at the home of the 3rd-placed team.