Warrington Wolves–Wigan Warriors rivalry

The Warrington Wolves–Wigan Warriors rivalry is a local rugby league rivalry based in Lancashire, England. The two clubs are some of the most successful in England, and annually compete in the Locker Cup to celebrate their rivalry.

History

The competitive history of the two clubs began on 18 January 1873 when the then two-month-old Wigan Warriors played their first match against Warrington Wolves. Both clubs were founding members of the NRFU, and have enjoyed a fierce rivalry throughout their history. Both sides also have other major rivalries, Warrington vs Widnes Vikings and Wigan vs St Helens, which at times has dampened the rivalry between them. However it was Wigan's dominance in during the late 1980s and 90s which caused the largest taming of the rivalry. It was only in 2009 and 2010 following Warrington's back-to-back victory in the Challenge Cup and the club's subsequently establishing themselves as a Super League Top Four Club which saw the rivalry heat up again as both teams started simultaneously competing for top honours. In the decade that followed, the clubs contested three Super League Grand Finals in 2013, 2016, and 2018. The rivalry has said to have been at its peak between 2011 and 2013.

Head to head

In all competitions, competitive and uncompetitive:

Meetings in major finals

1925–26 NFRL Division One Championship Final: Wigan 22–10 Warrington
1948–49 Lancashire Cup Final: Wigan 14–8 Warrington
1950–51 Lancashire Cup Final: Wigan 28–5 Warrington
1989–90 Challenge Cup Final: Wigan 36–14 Warrington
1985–86 Lancashire Cup Final: Wigan 34–8 Warrington
1986–87 Premiership Final: Wigan 8–0 Warrington
1987–88 Lancashire Cup Final: Wigan 28–16 Warrington
2013 Super League Grand Final: Wigan 30–16 Warrington
2016 Super League Grand Final: Wigan 12–6 Warrington
2018 Super League Grand Final: Wigan 12–4 Warrington
2024 Challenge Cup Final: Wigan 18-8 Warrington

Locker Cup

The Locker Cup is a friendly tournament contested by rugby league clubs Warrington Wolves and Wigan Warriors introduced in 1938. The single game tournament was played as a preseason friendly alternating between the club's home grounds annually until the switch to summer rugby in 1996. It was brought back for Magic Weekend 2019, but was cancelled a year later due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then it has been played for during the Super League season.
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