The draw for the group stage of Champions Cup is known. There are several revenges from last year. Toulouse faces the Sharks in particular, the UBB replayed against Northampton. La Rochelle will play heavy.
Who will succeed the Union Bordeaux-Bègles, winner of the Champions Cup 2025 against Northampton? The answer will be given to San Mames in Bilbao in the grand final on May 23. Until then, the draw was planned in Dublin this July 1st. So how did this draw work? Four hens were formed with the eight best clubs of Top 14, Premières and United Rugby Championship. 24 teams will therefore take part in this first phase of this competition, which will take place from December 5, 2025 to January 18, 2026. Each pool contained two clubs of the same “league”.
A draw with several data
Two specificities were to be taken into account. First, the Irish provinces – the Munster Rugby and the Leinster Rugby – were drawn or placed in different hens. The same principle applied for the Scottish clubs of the Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh. In the same way, the Vodacom Bulls, the DHL Stormers and the Hollywoodbets Sharks from South Africa could not be in the same hen. Finally, there is no match between clubs of the same league.
Regarding the hats, Toulouse (winner of the Top 14) and the Union Bordeaux-Bègles (winner of the Champions Cup) were in hat 1, accompanied by Leinster (winner of URC) and Bath (Champion of England). The other 20 clubs were dispersed in the hens respecting the above conditions.
Revenge in the air
The sport draw did not only have happy, that’s for sure. The Toulouse stadium in particular, which had to move to South Africa in the group stage last year, will still have to play against the Sharks Durban. For the time being, we do not know if the champions of France will move once again or if they will receive the South Africans. A remake of the last final between the UBB and Northampton will also be on the group in group phase. The Girondins, reigning champions, inherited a draw on the rather mild paper moreover, unlike La Rochelle and Bayonne.
Rochelais and Bayonnais are part of the “hen of death”, with Leinster, Leicester, Harlequins and Stormers. Nothing simple obviously, especially since it is the third time in a row that the Maritimes have been in the Leinstermen pool…
Complete hens
Hen 1
- Toulouse
- Clermont
- Durban Sharks
- Saracens
- Sale Sharks
- Glasgow Warriors
Hen 2
- Bath
- Toulon
- Munster
- Castres
- Edinburgh
- Gloucester
Hen 3
- Leinster
- Leicester
- Harlequins
- La Rochelle
- Bayonne
- Stormers
Hen 4
- Union Bordeaux-Bègles
- Scarlets
- Bristol
- Pau
- Northampton
- Blue Bulls
