Widnes are the last team other than Wigan, St Helens, Leeds or Bradford to win the top division which occurred in 1989.

The strength of junior rugby league in the area meant the club had a steady stream of new players to offset any losses.

In 1914, Arthur 'Chick' Johnson was capped for the Lions (captained by Harold Wagstaff) in the famous Rorke's Drift test, a match in which they overcame all the odds, and injuries to beat Australia with a depleted side of 10 against 13.

Widnes closed for the 1915–16 season but recommenced playing in 1916 following the introduction of conscription which meant that would not be accused of keeping men from volunteering for the First World War.

Local rivals Warrington donated their share of the traditional Easter and Christmas derby matches to keep Widnes afloat in 1927–28.

In 1962, the league was split into East and West of the Pennines; Widnes and Workington Town met at Central Park, Wigan, in the first final of the Western Division Championship on Saturday 10 November 1962.

The following season saw him lead his team to Wembley, where Widnes were Rugby League Challenge Cup winners after they defeated Hull Kingston Rovers 13–5.

Keith Elwell began his run of 242 consecutive appearances at Wembley in the 1976–77 Challenge Cup Final, including two as a substitute.

The 1979–80 season saw Widnes beat Bradford Northern in the Premiership final, but come second to them in the league and John Player Trophy.

Karalius led a strong Widnes side to the finals of the Lancashire Cup and John Player Trophy and another Wembley victory appearance 19–6 against Wigan.

Widnes then beat St. Helens 38–14 in the Premiership Final at Old Trafford, Manchester a game in which Alan Tait made his début.

The Championship came down to the last game of the season, a capacity crowd (officially 16,000) at Naughton Park saw Widnes beat Wigan 32–18 to win the title for the second year running.

In August 1995 the club decided to bring back Doug Laughton for a third stint as team manager which resulted in Myler's sacking as coach.

[4] When the RFL announced that a new 12-team Super League was to be formed a chaotic period ensued in which the club was out, then in, then out, then in merged with local rivals Warrington and then finally out again as they finished below the cut-off point of 10th in the existing top flight.

A record attendance for the newly rebuilt stadium was set at 6,644 for a Northern Ford Premiership game against Leigh on Boxing Day 2000.

Under new coach Neil Kelly, Widnes won promotion to Super League in 2001 after beating Oldham 24–12 in the Northern Ford Premiership Grand Final.

[6] Their début season in the Super League was in 2002, and the Vikings surprised everyone by narrowly missing out on a play-off place, and finishing seventh.

Stephen Vaughan completed a take-over of Widnes in 2006[7] and the club made it to the LHF National League Grand Final, but were beaten 29–16 by Hull Kingston Rovers at Warrington's Halliwell Jones Stadium.

[10] On 2 November 2007, Widnes were purchased by Steve O'Connor,[11][12] a local business man who had just sold his haulage firm to the Stobart Group.

A nine-point deduction for going into administration was successfully neutralised through winning their first three games, and Widnes qualified for the National League One Playoffs by finishing in sixth place.

Paul Cullen was unveiled as McCormack's eventual successor[16] and managed the club to victory in the seasons Northern Rail Cup Final, beating a strong Barrow Raiders side 34–18.

In 2011 Widnes were granted a Super League licence for the 2012–14 seasons and Denis Betts was confirmed as the man who would coach the club.

Widnes' tenancy in the Co-operative Championship culminated in September 2011 with a fifth place league finish, and a first round playoff defeat of 36–20 against Sheffield at Bramall Lane.

A 22–19 away defeat by the Warrington Wolves brought the curtain down on a season that can only be seen as a success for the Vikings, with a Challenge Cup Semi-Final appearance against the Castleford being the key highlight.

This move was completed whilst Brown was still in contract and despite warnings from fans, this proved the beginning of the end for Widnes as a potential mid table team.

The current board headed by James Rule failed to heed the mistakes of the 2017 season and further recruitment to the squad was extremely poor.

On 1 February 2019, CEO James Rule resigned because the club faced significant financial challenges as a result of relegation.

[23] In March 2019, the club narrowly escaped liquidation, thanks in large part to crowdfunding pages setup by the remaining Widnes Vikings fans.

[24] Newly appointed Head Coach Kieron Purtill began leading the club in a moderately successful streak of wins, culminating in reaching the finals of the 2019 RFL 1895 Cup against Sheffield Eagles.

In August 2011, the stadium turf was removed and replaced with a third generation artificial pitch (or ipitch as it became known), in order to improve overall match performance and maximize the use of the club's facilities.