Current season, competition or edition: 2023 Rugby League European Championship | |
Sport | Rugby league |
---|---|
Founded | 1935 |
No. of teams | 8 (as of 2023) |
Country | Europe |
Most recent champion(s) | France (9th title) |
Most titles | England (14 titles) |
Level on pyramid | 1 |
Relegation to | European Championship B |
Official website | Official website |
The Rugby League European Championship (formerly known as the European Cup and European Nations Cup) is a rugby league football tournament for European national teams that was first held in 1935.
Originally, the European Cup had three teams, with England, Wales and France each playing each other once. Unlike the Tri-Nations series, there was no final; the team finishing at the top of the group was deemed the winner. From 1949 to 1956, a fourth Other Nationalities team entered the European Cup.
In 2003 the tournament rights were acquired by the European Rugby League and saw an expansion of the tournament reflecting the then recent growth of the sport across Europe.