Penrith are set for another crack at the last trophy they have never won with a trip to Wigan to contest the World Club Challenge was confirmed for late February 2024.
The game will be held at Wigan’s DW Stadium on the night of Saturday, February 24, meaning it will be an early start for Australian viewers with the game beginning ay 7am on Sunday, 25th. Fox League and Kayo will broadcast the clash.
“We are excited to travel to England next February to test ourselves against the Super League Champions Wigan Warriors.” said CEO Matt Cameron.
“The World Club Challenge is such a vital piece of the rugby league calendar and we’re looking forward to contesting the match for a second straight year.
“Wigan are a proud rugby league club that have achieved sustained success for many years, which will give the Panthers an exciting challenge to open the 2024 campaign.”
The Panthers have won three NRL Premierships and earned the right to face the British champions, but have lost on all three occasions.
There were defeated by Wigan at Anfield in 1991, with a Panthers side featuring Greg Alexander, Royce Simmons and Steve Carter going down 21-4 just a week after winning their first Grand Final.
In 2004, after their 2003 Premiership win, Penrith again travelled to the UK, losing 22-4 to the then-dominant Bradford Bulls in Huddersfild.
There was no opportunity to contest the world title in 2021 or 2022 due to the pandemic, and coach Ivan Cleary was insistent that his side would revive the game for 2023.
They hosted the match, with St Helens travelling to the Golden West, but again the Panthers were defeated thanks to Lewis Dodd’s field goal in Golden Point, with the halfback securing a famous 13-12 win for the Super League champions.
In a strange quirk, the Panthers actually went unbeaten in the 1997 World Club Challenge – the sprawling, lop-sided global version played during the Super League War – but were eliminated on points differential
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