South West Challenge Cup
| Founded | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Region | England (Devon FA) |
| Number of teams | 13 |
| Current champions | Blackpool |
| Website | http://southwestchallengecup.co.uk |
The South West Challenge Cup is an annual pre-season football tournament, held in North Devon, England in July and hosted by various non-league clubs in the area. Twenty-four clubs have participated in the tournament since its inception. It is currently known as the Joma South West Challenge Cup under a sponsorship deal with the sportswear company Joma.
The inaugural tournament took in July 2008 and was originally sponsored by Erreà in 2008 and 2009. The first winners were Eastleigh. The current champions are Blackpool.
In the group stage matches, each half lasts 40 minutes, before reverting to the standard 45 minutes for the knockout stages. The tournament features an unconventional points system through the group stages, which the tournament organisers state is "designed to encourage attacking football".
This year's tournament was sponsored by Spanish sportswear company Joma, who took over from Errea as the competition sponsor. There were five host clubs – Barnstaple Town (Mill Road, Barnstaple), Bideford (Sports Ground, Bideford), Holsworthy (Upcott Field, Holsworthy), Ilfracombe Town (Marlborough Park, Ilfracombe) and Torrington (Vicarage Field, Great Torrington).
The tournament consisted of thirteen teams playing to the usual format. All of the clubs were English, apart from Scottish side Kilmarnock. For the first time, the competition featured a Premier League club, Blackpool, who were promoted having won the 2010 Football League Championship play-off Final at the end of the season.
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