EPCR HAS CONFIRMED that there will be no radical move to a 16-team Investec Champions Cup in the short term.
However, tournament organisers have changed the competition’s format for next season in a bid to make the pool stages more competitive and ensure the best-performing teams reach the knockout rounds.
Despite recent speculation in France and England over the future shape of the competition, the Champions Cup will remain a 24-team tournament until at least 2030, when the current participation agreement expires.
The Challenge Cup will continue to feature 18 teams.
There had also been reports that the four South African franchises could withdraw from the competition, but tournament organisers insisted they remain fully committed ahead of the new season.
The changes are the biggest to the competition since the current format was introduced three years ago and follow a review that included the three leagues – the Gallagher PREM, BKT United Rugby Championship, and TOP 14 – plus clubs, broadcasters, and supporters.
One of the biggest criticisms of the existing format has been that teams could qualify for the last 16 with just one victory, while sides with two wins have missed out.
Advertisement
In the 2024-25 season, Ulster qualified for the knock-outs despite earning just one victory, while Racing missed out with two. Last season, Sharks were fifth in their pool with two wins and failed to progress, while Bulls and Leicester made the play-offs in fourth place in their respective pools with one victory each.
From next term, only the top three teams in each of the four pools will qualify automatically for the knockout stages.
Bordeaux Bègles captain Maxime Lucu lifts the Champions Cup. James Crombie / INPHO
James Crombie / INPHO / INPHO
The remaining four places will go to the best-performing teams across all four pools, rather than one from each group.
The move is designed to place greater emphasis on every pool game, particularly in the closing rounds, with clubs effectively competing against teams outside their own pool for the final qualification spots.
It should also encourage teams to target wins away from home rather than relying on home victories alone to progress.
The four-try bonus point has also been removed. Instead, teams will only earn an attacking bonus point if they score at least three more tries than their opponents, bringing the Champions Cup into line with competitions such as the TOP 14 and Super Rugby.
Tournament organisers felt the existing system had occasionally skewed the standings, particularly when losing teams picked up bonus points with late tries in matches that had already been decided.
The losing bonus point for losing teams that limit the margin of defeat to seven points or fewer remains unchanged from previous seasons.
There is also a change to the tie-break system. If teams finish level on competition points, the number of matches won will now decide their placing before points difference is considered, further increasing the incentive to win on the road.
There is also a calendar shift for the tournament, which for the last couple of seasons had kicked off in December.
Next season’s Champions Cup will begin in October (the week ending 16/17/18), just prior to the Nations Championship. The second round will take place in December and the final two rounds are fixed for January, ahead of the Six Nations.
The finals will take place in Lyon on 21/22 May and already 22,000 ticket packages have been sold for the 56,000-capacity stadium.
Three Irish provinces – Leinster, Munster, and Connacht – will compete in the top-tier competition, with Ulster participating in the Challenge Cup.
Back-to-back European champions Bordeaux Bègles, along with URC titleholders Leinster, TOP 14 champions Toulouse, and PREM winners Northampton Saints, are the tier one clubs for the Champions Cup pool draw.
Georgian club Black Lion and Toyota Cheetahs of South Africa are returning to the Challenge Cup as invitees.
The pool draws will take place at the Premier Sports studios in Dublin on Wednesday and will be available to watch live at epcrugby.com.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Close
Comments
This is YOUR comments community. Stay civil, stay constructive, stay on topic.
Please familiarise yourself with our comments policy
here
before taking part.
Changes to Champions Cup format, schedule, and bonus points revealed
EPCR HAS CONFIRMED that there will be no radical move to a 16-team Investec Champions Cup in the short term.
However, tournament organisers have changed the competition’s format for next season in a bid to make the pool stages more competitive and ensure the best-performing teams reach the knockout rounds.
Despite recent speculation in France and England over the future shape of the competition, the Champions Cup will remain a 24-team tournament until at least 2030, when the current participation agreement expires.
The Challenge Cup will continue to feature 18 teams.
There had also been reports that the four South African franchises could withdraw from the competition, but tournament organisers insisted they remain fully committed ahead of the new season.
The changes are the biggest to the competition since the current format was introduced three years ago and follow a review that included the three leagues – the Gallagher PREM, BKT United Rugby Championship, and TOP 14 – plus clubs, broadcasters, and supporters.
One of the biggest criticisms of the existing format has been that teams could qualify for the last 16 with just one victory, while sides with two wins have missed out.
In the 2024-25 season, Ulster qualified for the knock-outs despite earning just one victory, while Racing missed out with two. Last season, Sharks were fifth in their pool with two wins and failed to progress, while Bulls and Leicester made the play-offs in fourth place in their respective pools with one victory each.
From next term, only the top three teams in each of the four pools will qualify automatically for the knockout stages.
The remaining four places will go to the best-performing teams across all four pools, rather than one from each group.
The move is designed to place greater emphasis on every pool game, particularly in the closing rounds, with clubs effectively competing against teams outside their own pool for the final qualification spots.
It should also encourage teams to target wins away from home rather than relying on home victories alone to progress.
The four-try bonus point has also been removed. Instead, teams will only earn an attacking bonus point if they score at least three more tries than their opponents, bringing the Champions Cup into line with competitions such as the TOP 14 and Super Rugby.
Tournament organisers felt the existing system had occasionally skewed the standings, particularly when losing teams picked up bonus points with late tries in matches that had already been decided.
The losing bonus point for losing teams that limit the margin of defeat to seven points or fewer remains unchanged from previous seasons.
There is also a change to the tie-break system. If teams finish level on competition points, the number of matches won will now decide their placing before points difference is considered, further increasing the incentive to win on the road.
There is also a calendar shift for the tournament, which for the last couple of seasons had kicked off in December.
Next season’s Champions Cup will begin in October (the week ending 16/17/18), just prior to the Nations Championship. The second round will take place in December and the final two rounds are fixed for January, ahead of the Six Nations.
The finals will take place in Lyon on 21/22 May and already 22,000 ticket packages have been sold for the 56,000-capacity stadium.
Three Irish provinces – Leinster, Munster, and Connacht – will compete in the top-tier competition, with Ulster participating in the Challenge Cup.
Back-to-back European champions Bordeaux Bègles, along with URC titleholders Leinster, TOP 14 champions Toulouse, and PREM winners Northampton Saints, are the tier one clubs for the Champions Cup pool draw.
Georgian club Black Lion and Toyota Cheetahs of South Africa are returning to the Challenge Cup as invitees.
The pool draws will take place at the Premier Sports studios in Dublin on Wednesday and will be available to watch live at epcrugby.com.
To embed this post, copy the code below on your site
Champions Cup New Look Rugby