Challenge Cup (UK ice hockey)
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| Established | 1997 |
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| Current holder | Cardiff Devils (3rd title) |
| Most successful club | Nottingham Panthers (8 titles) |
The Challenge Cup, hosted annually by the Elite Ice Hockey League, is a cup competition for ice hockey clubs in the United Kingdom. It is one of three competitions ran each season by the Elite League, the others being the league championship and the playoff championship. Prior to the formation of the Elite League in 2003, the Challenge Cup was organised by the Ice Hockey Superleague.
First awarded during the 1997–98 season, the Challenge Cup has had numerous different formats depending on the number of teams participating and the format of other competitions run during a particular season. The first six finals were single games played at a pre-determined venue, and during the first eleven seasons of the Elite League finals were contested over two legs. The final returned to a single game in the 2014–15 season. The current holders of the trophy are the Cardiff Devils, who defeated the Sheffield Steelers 3-2 in the 2016-17 final. The Nottingham Panthers are the competition's most successful team, having won the title seven times, including five in succession between 2010 and 2014. The Sheffield Steelers come next, having been champions four times. The now-defunct Ayr Scottish Eagles, the Coventry Blaze and the Cardiff Devils have each won the cup twice.
In 1997 the Ice Hockey Superleague reduced the league schedule from the 42 rounds of the previous season to 28. The league had hoped to arrange a new competition involving teams from Europe, leading to the shortening of the regular season. When this failed to materialise, clubs were faced with a shortfall in their fixtures. With sponsorship from the Daily Express, the Challenge Cup was launched as a result. The competition was won by the Ayr Scottish Eagles, who defeated the Bracknell Bees 3–2 in the final at the Telewest Arena. The Eagles had already won the Benson & Hedges Cup and the Superleague title and would go on to complete a by winning the playoff championship.
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