In 2001 the Championship did not take place due to the 2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak; instead Yorkshire and Cornwall were invited to play at Twickenham.

[6] There was little formal structure to the first official years of the competition, with teams playing different numbers of matches and different opposition from across England.

Another restructure in 1921 saw the formation of five regions and the knock-out stage of the championship extend to semi-finals and a final.

From 2007 to 2016, the top eight counties were split into two regions of four teams, North and South, who played a round-robin tournament.

Eastern Counties and Notts, Lincs & Derby have reached the final, but have never won the championship.

John Fidler, former Gloucester, Gloucestershire and England lock forward, holds the record for the most County Championship Final appearances, nine in all, from 1971 to 1984.