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The History of the European Challenge Cup

The European Challenge Cup began in 1996, when it was known as The European Shield. The first event finished in an all-French final with Bourgoin beating Castres. The championship has been notable for the constantly changing format, with six changes in nine years. The last five years have seen British rugby union teams dominate the competition, with Sale taking their second title in 2005.

Here are some of the highlights of The European Challenge Cup's history:

1996: The first European Shield tournament consisted of rugby union teams from England, France, Romania, Ireland, Scotland, Italy and Wales. They were divided into four groups of six, with eight teams entering the knockout stages. Bourgoin won the first title.

1997: The format of the European Shield changed with eight groups consisting of four teams playing each other. The winners of each group went into the quarter-finals. Colomiers beat Agen in the final.

1998: National Spanish and Portuguese teams were admitted into the competition for the first time. The format changed to three groups of seven rugby union teams.

2000: The first year in which there was no change of format. NEC Harlequins ended the French run of dominance in the European Shield competition by beating RC Narbonne.

2001: The name of the competition changed to the Parker Pen Shield, and a new system was introduced, in which thirty-two rugby union teams were divided into eight groups of four to compete for the shield. The Sale Sharks beat Pontypridd to take the title.

2002: The competition was renamed the Parker Pen Challenge Cup and the format was changed once again to a straight knockout affair. Wasps beat Bath by 20 points to win.

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