Current season, competition or edition: 2024 Heartland Championship | |
 | |
| Formerly | National Provincial Championship (1976–2005) |
|---|---|
| Sport | Rugby union |
| Founded | October 1975 |
| First season | 1976 |
| CEO | Mark Robinson |
| No. of teams | 12 |
| Country |  New Zealand |
| Headquarters | Wellington, New Zealand |
| Most recent champion(s) | Thames Valley (2024) |
| Most titles | Hawke's Bay Taranaki (7 titles) |
| TV partner(s) | Sky Sport |
| Sponsor(s) | Bunnings |
| Related competitions | Farah Palmer Cup National Provincial Championship |
| Official website | provincial.rugby |
The Heartland Championship is an annual round-robin rugby union competition in men's domestic New Zealand rugby. First played in 1976, it is the third highest level of competition in New Zealand alongside the Ranfurly Shield. It is organised by New Zealand Rugby (NZR) and since 2021, it has been known as the Bunnings Heartland Championship after Bunnings, its naming rights sponsor. A concurrent women's tournament is also held, the Farah Palmer Cup.
Following the 2005 season the league was restructured into a two-tier competition. The Heartland Championship would include semi-professional and amateur players, and consist of the bottom twelve populated and performing regional teams. For sponsorship reasons it was rebranded as the AA Rewards Heartland Championship. The remaining teams would continue to exist in the newly reformed professional competition known as the National Provincial Championship.[1]
Twenty-nine teams have competed since the inception of the competitions second division in 1976. Hawke's Bay and Taranaki are historically the most successful unions with seven titles each and Whanganui is the most successful team during the modern-era, having won six from eleven finals. Sixteen other teams have won titles from both periods: South Canterbury (6), Southland (5), Mid Canterbury (4), North Otago (3), Bay of Plenty (2), Marlborough (2), Nelson Bays (2), Northland (2), Thames Valley (2), Waikato (2), Wairarapa Bush (2), Central Vikings (1), Counties Manukau (1) East Coast (1), King Country (1) and North Harbour (1).
- ^ "NZRU releases eligibility criteria for new competitions". All Blacks. 4 November 2004. Archived from the original on 13 February 2005. Retrieved 5 October 2022.