Challenge cup 1872-1915
| YEAR | CHAMPION | FINALIST | SCORE |
| 1872 | Wanderers London | Royal Engineers | 1-0 |
| 1873 | Wanderers London | Oxford University | 2-0 |
| 1874 | Oxford University | Royal Engineers | 2-0 |
| 1875 | Royal Engineers | Old Etonians | 1-1 and 2-0 |
| 1876 | Wanderers London | Old Etonians | 0-0 and 2-0 |
| 1877 | Wanderers London | Oxford University | 2-0 o.t. |
| 1878 | Wanderers London | Royal Engineers | 3-1 |
| 1879 | Old Etonians | Clapham Rovers | 1-0 |
| 1880 | Clapham Rovers | Oxford University | 1-0 |
| 1881 | Old Carthusians | Old Etonians | 3-0 |
| 1882 | Old Etonians | Blackburn Rovers | 1-0 |
| 1883 | Blackburn Olympic | Old Etonians | 2-1 |
| 1884 | Blackburn Rovers | Queen's Park (Glasgow) | 2-1 |
| 1885 | Blackburn Rovers | Queen's Park (Glasgow) | 2-0 |
| 1886 | Blackburn Rovers | West Bromwich Albion | 2-0 o.t. |
| 1887 | Aston Villa | West Bromwich Albion | 2-0 |
| 1888 | West Bromwich Albion | Preston North End | 2-1 |
| 1889 | Preston North End | Wolverhampton Wand | 3-0 |
| 1890 | Blackburn Rovers | The Wednesday | 6-1 |
| 1891 | Blackburn Rovers | Notts County | 3-1 |
| 1892 | West Bromwich Albion | Aston Villa | 3-0 |
| 1893 | Wolverhampton Wand | Everton | 1-0 |
| 1894 | Notts County | Bolton Wanderers | 4-1 |
| 1895 | Aston Villa | West Bromwich Albion | 1-0 |
| 1896 | Sheffield Wednesday | Wolverhampton Wand | 2-1 |
| 1897 | Aston Villa | Everton | 3-2 |
| 1898 | Nottingham Forrest | Derby County | 3-1 |
| 1899 | Sheffield United | Derby County | 4-1 |
| 1900 | Bury | Southampton | 4-0 |
| 1901 | Tottenham Hotspurs | Sheffield United | 2-2 and 3-1 |
| 1902 | Sheffield United | Southampton | 1-1 and 2-1 |
| 1903 | Bury | Derby County | 6-0 |
| 1904 | Manchester City | Bolton Wanderers | 1-0 |
| 1905 | Aston Villa | Newcastle United | 2-0 |
| 1906 | Everton | Newcastle United | 1-0 |
| 1907 | Sheffield Wednesday | Everton | 2-1 |
| 1908 | Wolverhampton Wand | Newcastle United | 3-1 |
| 1909 | Manchester United | Bristol City | 1-0 |
| 1910 | Newcastle United | Barnsley | 1-1 and 2-0 |
| 1911 | Bradford City | Newcastle United | 0-0 and 1-0 |
| 1912 | Barnsley | West Bromwich Albion | 1-0 |
| 1913 | Aston Villa | Sunderland | 1-0 |
| 1914 | Barnsley | Liverpool | 1-0 |
| 1915 | Sheffield United | Chelsea | 3-0 |