# University Challenge 2019–20

Series 49 of University Challenge began on 15 July 2019 on BBC Two.
The University of Huddersfield made its University Challenge debut in this series, while the Oxford colleges Wolfson and Lady Margaret Hall made their first appearances in the BBC series.

## Results

* Winning teams are highlighted in bold.
* Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated.
* Teams with orange scores had to win one more match to return in the next round.
* Teams with yellow scores indicate that two further matches had to be played and won (teams that lost their first quarter-final match).
* A score in italics indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question.

### First round

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| Lancaster University | 95 | 230 | University of Glasgow | 325 | 15 July 2019 |
| Corpus Christi College, Cambridge | 195 | 140 | Merton College, Oxford | 335 | 22 July 2019 |
| Magdalen College, Oxford | 170 | 150 | University of York | 320 | 29 July 2019 |
| University of Birmingham | 125 | 120 | University of Bristol | 245 | 5 August 2019 |
| Wolfson College, Cambridge | 40 | 115 | St John's College, Oxford | 155 | 12 August 2019 |
| University of Edinburgh | 165 | 90 | Birkbeck, University of London | 255 | 19 August 2019 |
| Jesus College, Oxford | 145 | 185 | University of Manchester | 330 | 2 September 2019 |
| Durham University | 145 | 200 | Trinity College, Cambridge | 345 | 9 September 2019 |
| London School of Economics | 90 | 145 | The Courtauld Institute of Art | 235 | 16 September 2019 |
| Goldsmiths, University of London | 95 | 175 | University of Southampton | 270 | 23 September 2019 |
| The Open University | 125 | 145 | University of Huddersfield | 270 | 7 October 2019 |
| Wolfson College, Oxford | 180 | 170 | University of Sheffield | 350 | 14 October 2019 |
| Imperial College London | 255 | 70 | Brasenose College, Oxford | 325 | 21 October 2019 |
| Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford | 150 | 145 | Downing College, Cambridge | 295 | 28 October 2019 |
* Three teams finished tied for the last two places in the play-offs on 145 each; Durham and Jesus College Oxford went through due to having heard fewer questions to reach their scores.

#### Highest scoring losers play-offs

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| University of Sheffield | 165 | 170 | Jesus College, Oxford | 335 | 4 November 2019 |
| University of York | 145 | 240 | Durham University | 385 | 11 November 2019 |

### Second round

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| University of Birmingham | 120 | 150 | Jesus College, Oxford | 270 | 18 November 2019 |
| University of Southampton | 95 | 245 | Durham University | 340 | 25 November 2019 |
| The Courtauld Institute of Art | 180 | 145 | University of Glasgow | 325 | 2 December 2019 |
| Imperial College London | 255 | 105 | St John's College, Oxford | 360 | 9 December 2019 |
| University of Huddersfield | 90 | 205 | University of Manchester | 295 | 16 December 2019 |
| Trinity College, Cambridge | 245 | 100 | Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford | 345 | 6 January 2020 |
| Wolfson College, Oxford | 220 | 100 | University of Edinburgh | 320 | 13 January 2020 |
| Magdalen College, Oxford | 75 | 270 | Corpus Christi College, Cambridge | 345 | 20 January 2020 |

### Quarterfinals

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| University of Manchester | 95 | 300 | Trinity College, Cambridge | 395 | 27 January 2020 |
| Wolfson College, Oxford | 140 | 180 | Corpus Christi College, Cambridge | 320 | 3 February 2020 |
| Jesus College, Oxford | 110 | 195 | Durham University | 305 | 10 February 2020 |
| The Courtauld Institute of Art | 75 | 240 | Imperial College London | 315 | 17 February 2020 |
| Trinity College, Cambridge | 80 | 245 | Corpus Christi College, Cambridge | 325 | 24 February 2020 |
| University of Manchester | 125 | 130 | Wolfson College, Oxford | 255 | 2 March 2020 |
| Durham University | 115 | 185 | Imperial College London | 300 | 9 March 2020 |
| Jesus College, Oxford | 135 | 90 | The Courtauld Institute of Art | 225 | 16 March 2020 |
| Wolfson College, Oxford | 45 | 205 | Durham University | 250 | 23 March 2020 |
| Trinity College, Cambridge | 285 | 75 | Jesus College, Oxford | 360 | 30 March 2020 |

### Semifinals

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| Corpus Christi College, Cambridge | 185 | 130 | Durham University | 315 | 6 April 2020 |
| Imperial College London | 235 | 80 | Trinity College, Cambridge | 315 | 13 April 2020 |

### Final

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| Corpus Christi College, Cambridge | 105 | 275 | Imperial College London | 380 | 20 April 2020 |
* The trophy and title were awarded to the Imperial team of Richard Brooks, Brandon Blackwell, Caleb Rich, and Conor McMeel.
* The trophy was presented by Andrew Wiles, on location at the Oxford University Mathematics Institute.

## Spin-off: Christmas Special 2019
### First round

Each year, a Christmas special sequence is aired featuring distinguished alumni. Out of 7 first-round winners, the top 4 highest-scoring teams progress to the semi-finals. The teams consist of celebrities who represent their alma maters.
* Winning teams are highlighted in bold.
* Teams with green scores (winners) returned in the next round, while those with red scores (losers) were eliminated.
* Teams with grey scores won their match but did not achieve a high enough score to proceed to the next round.
* A score in italics indicates a match decided on a tie-breaker question.
| Team 1 | | | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| University of Leeds | 205 | 55 | Clare College, Cambridge | 260 | 23 December 2019 |
| Birmingham City University | 75 | 160 | Wadham College, Oxford | 235 | 24 December 2019 |
| Guildhall School of Music and Drama | 120 | 165 | University College London | 285 | 25 December 2019 |
| University of Liverpool | 75 | 150 | University of Hull | 225 | 26 December 2019 |
| Royal Holloway, University of London | 70 | 130 | University of Sussex | 200 | 27 December 2019 |
| Trinity Hall, Cambridge | 180 | 85 | St Peter's College, Oxford | 265 | 30 December 2019 |
| University of Warwick | 80 | 115 | Imperial College London | 195 | 31 December 2019 |

#### Standings for the winners

| Rank | Team | Team captain | Score |
| 1 | University of Leeds | Richard Coles | 205 |
| 2 | Trinity Hall, Cambridge | Lucy Mangan | 185 |
| 3 | University College London | Maryam Moshiri | 165 |
| 4 | Wadham College, Oxford | Anne McElvoy | 160 |
| 5 | University of Hull | Lucy Beaumont | 150 |
| 6 | University of Sussex | Kim Newman | 130 |
| 7 | Imperial College London | Brendan Walker | 115 |

### Semi-finals

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| Trinity Hall, Cambridge | 25 | 215 | Wadham College, Oxford | 240 | 1 January 2020 |
| University of Leeds | 205 | 45 | University College London | 250 | 2 January 2020 |

### Final

| Team 1 | Score | Score | Team 2 | Total | Broadcast date |
| Wadham College, Oxford | 130 | 235 | University of Leeds | 365 | 3 January 2020 |
The winning University of Leeds team of Jonathan Clements, Henry Gee, Richard Coles and Timothy Allen beat the Wadham College, Oxford team of Jonathan Freedland, Tom Solomon, Anne McElvoy and Roger Mosey.