The Club Championship was a competition for British rugby league clubs during the 1973–74 season. The competition was a replacement for the end-of-season playoff system which had been held between 1906 and 1973. Although named the Club Championship, it was considered a separate competition to the League Championship, which was awarded to league winners, Salford. The tournament was won by Warrington. It was replaced by the Rugby League Premiership after one season.
Qualification for the competition was determined by a merit points system. Points were awarded based on clubs final league position, and victories in knockout competitions during the season.
A preliminary knockout round also took place for the top 12 Second Division clubs, with three winners qualifying for the Club Championship. These three clubs were joined by the 13 teams who were awarded the most merit points.
- Qualified: Warrington (68), Leeds (64), St Helens (53), Salford (51), Featherstone Rovers (47), Rochdale Hornets (45), Bramley (43), Wakefield Trinity (42), Dewsbury (40), Castleford (40), Widnes (39), Wigan (38), Bradford Northern (30), Workington Town (28), Keighley (25), Hull (9)
- Failed to qualify: Leigh (24), Hull KR (22), Whitehaven (20), York (20), Halifax (18), Swinton (17), Oldham (17), Batley (10), Huddersfield (8), Barrow (6), New Hunslet (4), Huyton (4), Blackpool Borough (3), Doncaster (2)[1]
The draw was seeded based on the number of merit points awarded to each team, with the teams with the most points being awarded home advantage.[2] As Castleford and Dewsbury had been awarded the same number of points, a coin toss was used to determine their respective positions in the merit table.[3]
