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The Powergen Cup, previously the ''' John Player Cup''' the ''' Pilkington Cup''', ''' Tetley's Bitter Cup''' was the English Rugby Union knock-out cup competition allowing entrants from all members of the Rugby Football Union . Bath have won it ten times, twice as many as the second most successful club, Leicester Tigers . Some have argued that due to player burnout the Powergen Cup should be scrapped. ANGLO-WELSH CUP Starting in 2005-06, the Powergen cup will feature a new format including the twelve teams from the Guinness Premiership and the four regional Welsh clubs. Teams from National Division One and below will now play for the Powergen National Trophy . In place of the knock-out format, the 16 sixteen clubs are placed in four pools with 3 English clubs and 1 Welsh club. The pool stages of the Anglo-Welsh Cup tournament feature one game against each team. The winners of each of the four groups progress to the semi-finals. The pools will stay as they are for next season as well, and those teams which played two of their three matches home, will switch and play two of their three matches away). In addition to increased TV revenue (the revised Powergen Cup has already inked a handsome new broadcasting agreement with the BBC) and a possible boost to matchday income, the Powergen Cup will also offer its winner qualification to the even more lucrative Heineken Cup club competition. As base compensation all 16 Powergen clubs are guaranteed £250,000 each, with a prize fund of up to £200,000 available to the semi-finalists. {Link without Title} Although the new Powergen Cup will certainly benefit the regional Welsh Clubs in the long-run, their inclusion initially caused them to be expelled from their home in the Celtic League . Celtic league officials were angered that the Welsh Clubs had apparently consented to Powergen Cup fixtures on the same weekend of Celtic League matches. The political fallout resulted in the expulsion of the Welsh clubs from the Celtic League . Eventually, a compromise was reached, and the Welsh clubs were readmitted to the Celtic League. Many rugby union commentators see the Powergen Cup as a boon to Wales as it reinforces their regional club structure begun in 2003 when Wales began the regional structure common to southern hemisphere powers such as New Zealand and South Africa. (See ''the Observer'', "Fine for the Welsh, but at what cost to England?", 25 Sept. 2005). But the benefits are less apparent to the English clubs, especially as the breakdown between Twickenham and the Guinness Premiership clubs intensifies. Interest in the Powergen Cup was high during the first two rounds. Over 100,000 spectators attend matches, while the television audience peaked at 1.2 million on BBC2 for the Newcastle Falcons v. Llanelli Scarlets match. {Link without Title} Unfortunately, Powergen has decided to withdraw all of its rugby sponsorship after the conclusion of the 2005-2006 Cup competitions. This decision was made after its parent company, German utility E.ON became a founding partner and lead sponsor of the FA and the new Wembley Stadium , and Powergen will thus align its corporate sponsorships along with its corporate parent. {Link without Title} The pools (or groups) for the Powergen Cup were decided on a regional basis, comprising of three English sides geographically close to one another, and one Welsh club again divided as far as possible by their location. Pools for 2005-06 and 2006-07 Powergen Cups are as follows:- POOLS See Also: 2005-06 Powergen Cup Pool A: Gloucester , Bristol , Bath , Ospreys Pool B: London Irish , Wasps , Saracens , Cardiff Blues Pool C: Sale Sharks , Newcastle Falcons , Leeds Tykes , Llanelli Scarlets Pool D: Leicester Tigers , Worcester Warriors , Northampton Saints , Newport Gwent Dragons Bath, Wasps, Llanelli Scarlets, and Leicester won their respective groups. The two semi-final matches were drawn as follows: Wasps v Leicester and Bath v Scarlets These matches ware be played at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday, 4 March with Llanelli and Wasps going through to the final. The Final played between Wasps and Llanelli Scarlets at Twickenham on Sunday, 9 April, ended with a 26 - 10 victory for Wasps. LIST OF WINNERS By year John Player Cup
Pilkington Cup
Tetley's Bitter Cup Powergen Cup
By number won
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