The National Challenge Cup is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic Pakistani football within the Pakistan football league system. It is organized by and named after the Pakistan Football Federation. Initially named as Inter Departmental Championship, it was introduced in 1979 as a football tournament for departmental selections and armed forces teams excluded from the National Football Championship of Pakistan.
Khan Research Laboratories have won the most titles (six). WAPDA are the current champions, winning the 2026 edition.
Background Inter-Departmental Championship (1979) The Inter-Departmental Championship was introduced in 1979 to offer nationwide competition to departmental selections and armed forces teams excluded from the National Football Championship.
Inter-Provincial Championship (1984–1985) Due to internal conflicts within the PFF, the second and third editions occurred in 1984 and 1985, rebranded as the Inter Provincial Championship. Although provincial teams were allowed to participate, they were reportedly not factored into the final ranking in both the 1984 and 1985 tournaments. The winners of both editions, Pakistan Airlines in 1984, and Habib Bank Limited in 1985 were given a slot in the Asian Champion Club Tournament, marking Pakistan domestic teams debut in Asian club competitions. Later on, the winners of the National Football Championship, a separate tournament, represented Pakistan in Asian competitions.
Frequent changes (1987–1994) In the 1980s and early 1990s, the tournament was held irregularly, undergoing frequent name changes.RSSSF records possibly conflate tournaments: the 1987 edition may have been part of the National Football Championship, while the 1992, 1993, and 1994 editions likely corresponded to the National B-Division Football Championship, which at the time functioned as the second tier of the league system under promotion and relegation.
President PFF Cup (1996–2003) From 1996, the President's PFF Cup succeeded the earlier National Departmental Championship as the country's principal departments-only knockout tournament, ran in parallel from the National Football Championship which featured provinces and departments, and served as the second most important national football tournament after the National Championship. It was contested annually at single host cities, with group phases leading into knockouts.
National Challenge Cup (2005–present) The Pakistan Football Federation under new elected body headed by president Faisal Saleh Hayat abolished the President's PFF Cup along with the National Football Championship in 2004, to a national league. In 2005 the federation launched the National Challenge Cup, often promoted in contemporary reports as an inaugural tournament, although it effectively represented a rebranded continuation of the earlier President’s PFF Cup. The competition continued the departments-only format of the former President PFF Cup, with some exceptions. In 2005, the restructured Challenge Cup briefly admitted club sides in the preliminary stage before the seeded departments entered later rounds. In 2020, under the FIFA-appointed PFF Normalisation Committee, the field was enlarged to 28 teams and for the first time in over a decade included both departments and private clubs, in an effort to revive competition during administrative suspension and the COVID-19 pandemic.
Since then, it has been branded as National Challenge Cup, with the exception of the 2016 PFF Cup, organised by the Lahore High Court appointed PFF administrator Justice Asad Munir. The National Challenge Cup scheduled for April 2016 was later called off due to lack of sponsorship, leaving the PFF Cup as the only national knockout event that year. In 2017, with the Pakistan Football Federation still paralysed by internal disputes and official competitions suspended, National Bank of Pakistan organised the 2017 NBP President’s Cup, although not recognised as an official Pakistan cup competition, it functioned as a substitute competition during the hiatus.
Finals YearChampionScoreRunner-upFinal VenueInter-Departmental Championship1979Sindh Government PressMuslim Commercial BankSukkurInter-Provincial Championship1984Pakistan Airlines 2–1BalochistanQuetta1985Habib Bank Limited 0–0 (a.e.t., 4–3 pen) PunjabFaisalabadPresident PFF Cup1987Crescent Textile Mills Karachi Port TrustQuettaNational Departmental Championship1990Karachi Port Trust House Building Finance CorporationKarachi1991Markers Club Karachi Port TrustQuettaPresident PFF Cup1996Allied Bank Limited3–1Pakistan ArmyQuetta1998Allied Bank Limited1–0Karachi Port TrustKMC Stadium, Karachi1999Allied Bank Limited1–1 (a.e.t., 5–4 pen)Khan Research LaboratoriesGovernment High School, Chaman2000Pakistan Army 1–0Allied Bank LimitedPeshawar2001Pakistan Army Khan Research LaboratoriesBahawalpur2002Allied Bank Limited1–1 (a.e.t., 4–2 pen)WAPDAPeople Football Stadium, Karachi2003PTCL1–1Karachi Port TrustSadiq Shaheed Ground, QuettaNational Challenge Cup2005PTCL2–1WAPDAArmy Sports Complex, Rawalpindi2008Pakistan Navy3–1Khan Research LaboratoriesPeople's Football Stadium, Karachi2009Khan Research Laboratories1–0Pakistan AirlinesHyderabad2010Khan Research Laboratories4–0Pakistan NavyQilla Kuhna Qasim Bagh, Multan2011Khan Research Laboratories1–0K-ElectricBohranwali Ground, Faisalabad2012Khan Research Laboratories0–0 (a.e.t., 3–1 pen)K-ElectricKPT Stadium, Karachi2013National Bank1–0K-ElectricDring Stadium, Bahawalpur2014Pakistan Air Force3–1 (a.e.t)K-ElectricKPT Stadium, Karachi2015Khan Research Laboratories3–0Pakistan AirlinesRailway Stadium, LahorePFF Cup2016Khan Research Laboratories1–0National BankPunjab Stadium, LahoreNational Challenge Cup2018Pakistan Air Force2–1WAPDAKPT Stadium, Karachi2019Pakistan Army3–2Sui Southern GasTehmas Khan Football Stadium, Peshawar2020WAPDA1–0Sui Southern GasPunjab Stadium, Lahore2023–24WAPDA1–0SA GardensJinnah Stadium, Islamabad2026WAPDA1–0Khan Research LaboratoriesKPT Stadium, Karachi
Wins by club ClubWinsWinning years62009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016Allied Bank Limited41996, 1998, 1999, 2002Pakistan Army32000, 2001, 2019WAPDA2020, 2023–24, 2026Crescent Textile Mills21987, 1992National Bank1993, 2013Pakistan Airforce2014, 2018PTCL2003, 2005Frontier Constabulary11994Habib Bank1985Karachi Port Trust1987Marker Club1991Pakistan Navy2008Pakistan Airlines1984Sindh Government Press1979
Results by team Since its establishment, the National Challenge Cup has been won by 15 different teams. Teams shown in italics are no longer in existence.
+Results by teamClubWinsFirst final wonLast final wonRunners-upLast final lostTotal final appearancesKhan Research Laboratories6200920164200811Allied Bank Limited419962002120005Pakistan Army320002019119964WAPDA320202026420187National Bank219932013220164Pakistan Air Force220142018120103Crescent Textile Mills2198719920–2PTCL2200320050–2Karachi Port Trust119871987320034Habib Bank1198519850–2Marker Club119911991119922Pakistan Airlines119841984120153Pakistan Navy120082008120102Frontier Constabulary1199419940–1Sindh Government Press1197919790–1K-Electric0––420144Sui Southern Gas0––220202Muslim Commercial Bank0––119791Pakistan Steel0––119931SA Gardens0––12023–241House Building Finance Corporation0––119901
Giant killings In 2009, non-league side Sindh Government Press defeated top-flight National Bank by 3–2 in group stages. In 2011, second-division club Ashraf Sugar Mills defeated Pakistan Premier League winners WAPDA F.C. by 1–0, and they repeated the feat again in the group stages, defeating National Bank from Pakistan Premier League by 2–0, as they finished top of the group. In 2012, second-division side Pakistan Public Work Department defeated Pakistan Air Force by 2–0 in group stages. In 2013, Pak Afghan Clearing defeated league winners and defending champions Khan Research Laboratories by 2–1. At the 2023–24 PFF National Challenge Cup, Higher Education Commission, an ad-hoc team of players from different universities and colleges around Pakistan defeated Khan Research Laboratories at the quarterfinals by 1–0 at the stoppage time.
Records and statistics Final Most wins: 6, Khan Research Laboratories (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016) Most consecutive wins: 4, Khan Research Laboratories (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) Most consecutive/uninterrupted years as National Challenge Cup Champions: 6, Sindh Government Press (1979–1984) Most appearances without winning: 4, K-Electric (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014) Most appearances without losing: 4, Khan Research Laboratories (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) Most appearances without losing (streak): 4, Khan Research Laboratories (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012) Longest gap between wins: 20 years, National Bank (1993–2013) Biggest win: 4 goals, Khan Research Laboratories 4–0 Pakistan Navy (2010) Most goals in a final: 4, joint record: Allied Bank Limited 3–1 Pakistan Army (1996) Pakistan Navy 3–1 Khan Research Laboratories (2008) Khan Research Laboratories 4–0 Pakistan Navy (2010) Pakistan Air Force 3–1 K-Electric (2014) Most defeats: 4, joint record: K-Electric (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014) WAPDA F.C. (1984, 2002, 2005, 2018)
Individual Most wins by manager: 4, Tariq Lutfi (Khan Research Laboratories) (2011, 2012, 2015, 2016), Most goals (one final): 2, joint record: Sajjad Ahmed (Pakistan Navy) (2008) Izharullah Khan (Khan Research Laboratories) (2015) Most finals scored in: 2, joint record: Haroon Yousaf (Allied Bank Limited) (1 each in 1996 & 1998) Muhammad Mujahid (Pakistan Air Force) (1 each in 2014 & 2018) Most goals scored: 23, Muhammad Rasool
All rounds Biggest win: City Football Club 2–18 Wohaib (2005) Biggest away win: City Football Club 2–18 Wohaib (2005) Most clubs competing for trophy in a season: 28 (2020) Longest penalty shootout: 5 penalties each, Allied Bank Limited v. Khan Research Laboratories (1999; Allied Bank Limited won 5–4) Most rounds played in a season: 3, for: Bhatti United (2016: Qualifying Round – Knockout stages, 1st–3rd Rounds) Karachi United (2016: Qualifying Round – Knockout stages, 1st–3rd Rounds) Sui Southern Gas (2016: Qualifying Round – Knockout stages, 1st–3rd Rounds) Most games played in a season: 7, Karachi United (2016: three matches Qualifying Group stages, three Proper Group stages, one Quarter-finals) Fastest goal: 37 seconds, Ahmed Faheem (for WAPDA v. Saif Textile, Group Stages, 2 February 2023) Most consecutive games without defeat: 25, Khan Research Laboratories (Group Stages, 2010 through Group stage, 2013. Won three National Challenge Cup.) Most consecutive games without defeat: 25, Khan Research Laboratories (Group Stages, 2010 through Group stage, 2013. Won three National Challenge Cup.) Fastest hat-trick: 5 minutes, Umair Ali (for Higher Education Commission v. DFA Bahawalpur, Group Stages, 19 May 2013) Most goals by a player in a single National Challenge Cup season: 10, Muhammad Rasool (for K-Electric, 2012. Most goals by a player in a single National Challenge Cup game: 6, joint-record: Kaleemullah Khan (for Khan Research Laboratories in 8–0 defeat of Ashraf Sugar Mills, Group Stages, 16 May 2013) Umair Ali (for Higher Education Commission v. DFA Bahawalpur, Group Stages, 19 May 2013) Muhammad Waheed (for Civil Aviation Authority v. Pakistan Railways, Group stage, 22 July 2019)
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