The 2025 World Club Challenge is in jeopardy, after one Super League team announced they would not go ahead with the event should they win their title.
Held annually, the WCC sees the winner of the NRL Premiership take on the winner of the Super League, uniting the two leagues from across the globe.
But this year's event may not happen, if grand finalists Wigan win their league this year.
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World Club Challenge 2025 in jeopardy
The 2025 Super League grand final will be contested by heavyweights Wigan and Hull KR, but the Warriors have announced that they will not contest the World Club Challenge should they win.
This is due to a scheduling conflict, which would result in significant travel for Wigan.
The Penrith Panthers announced that they would not travel to England to play either of the two Super League teams, as they are scheduled to travel to Las Vegas instead for the opening of next year's NRL season.
This would mean Wigan would need to travel to Australia to play the WCC - but they are also lined up to play in Vegas, and the team has said travelling from the UK to America and then Australia was a bridge too far.
If Melbourne had won, they would have travelled to England to play, and Hull KR would have no problem travelling to Australia, but the combination of Wigan and Penrith will likely result in the event not being played next year.
Ironically, it was Penrith and Wigan that contested the 2024 edition of the WCC, with the Englishmen taking out the title 16-12 in England.
