The 2025/26 Champ Rugby season is fast approaching, with the fixtures for the newly formatted competition now confirmed, with qualification and play-off games adding aspiration and jeopardy excitement at the conclusion to the season.
Matches kick off on the weekend of 4October, and the final regular season matches will take place on the weekend of 9 May 2026. All teams will play each other in home and away fixtures over 26 rounds.
The upcoming season will include 14 teams, with Worcester Warriors and newly promoted Richmond joining the 12 teams from last season.
Champ Rugby will live stream games this season, with at least one fixture per round available on YouTube, increasing the visibility of the league and showcasing its rising talent, community pride and elite performances.
London Scottish open their Championship campaign against Caldy at Paton field on Saturday 4th October. A week later the Exiles welcome Nottingham to the RAG on Friday 10th October for the first home fixture of the season.
Derby day will take place against Richmond on Saturday 27th December and Saturday 2nd May. Two massive games to get in the diary!
Changes to the season structure announced in May mean that at the end of the 26-round Champ Rugby regular season, the table will be split into qualification stages. The teams ranked from third to sixth will participate in the quarterfinals to earn entry into the semi-finals, where the winners will take on the top two ranked sides.
The winners of the semi-finals enter the final to determine the Champ Rugby champion.
The overall winner will then face the bottom Premiership Rugby club in a promotion/relegation play-off, in both a home and away leg, to determine which league they will play in for the following campaign, subject to meeting the minimum standards criteria.
At the bottom end of the table, the team that finishes in 14th place will be relegated to National 1. The teams that finish in 12th and 13th will face off in a one-legged fixture, with the loser taking part in a play-off against the runner-up of National 1 to determine who will play in Champ Rugby for the following season. This play-off will be a one-legged fixture, with the winner joining the champion of National League 1 in Champ Rugby, subject to the teams meeting Champ Rugby Minimum Operating Standards.
Chair of the Champ Rugby Board, Simon Gillham, said: “The upcoming Champ Rugby season is an exciting prospect, with a new format ready to test the teams.
“We are delighted to welcome Worcester Warriors and Richmond into the league, two clubs that are steeped in history and who will add to the competitiveness of Champ Rugby.
“The quality of rugby in last year’s competition was clear, and we only expect that to improve this year, given the exciting format changes to Champ Rugby. “Aspiration and jeopardy in the form of the new playoff system will create a brilliant narrative for the league and something that supporters will undoubtably get behind. We can’t wait to see how the season unfolds.”
