Back-to-back tournament winners, Stade Rochelais, will clash with last season’s runners-up, Leinster Rugby, in what promises to be another monumental contest between two of the world’s most powerful clubs when Round 1 of the 2023/24 Champions Cup gets under way in December.
The Pool 4 showdown is set for Stade Marcel Deflandre on Sunday 10 December live on TNT Sports in the UK and Ireland, on SuperSport in South Africa, as well as on France Télévisions and beIN SPORTS in France, following today’s announcement of the Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup pool stage fixture dates, venues, kick-off times and TV coverage.
Predictably, the competition involving 24 elite clubs with 40 EPCR titles between them won’t get any less demanding for Stade Rochelais who then travel to Cape Town to face the DHL Stormers in Round 2, before hosting Leicester Tigers in Round 3 and finalising their pool stage schedule against Sale Sharks at the AJ Bell Stadium on Sunday 21 January 2024 live and free-to-air in the UK and Ireland on ITV with additional coverage on TNT Sports and SuperSport.
Click HERE for the 2023/24 Champions Cup fixtures
EPCR Chairman, Dominic McKay, said: “We are delighted to announce the details of EPCR’s 2023/24 tournament pool stage fixtures five months before the tournaments get under way again in December. This has been a collaborative process and we thank the clubs, leagues and our broadcast partners for their assistance in finalising the schedule in such a short period of time. We know the fans will be hugely excited about the fixtures and they are now able to plan their weekends well in advance. There are some intriguing clashes in the pool stages with world-class rugby for all to see.”
Gallagher Premiership winners, Saracens, are heading to Pretoria in Round 1 to take on the Vodacom Bulls on Saturday 9 December live on SuperSport and TNT Sport. Their Pool 1 campaign will see them at home in Rounds 2 and 4 against Connacht Rugby and Lyon respectively, and in between they will go toe-to-toe with Union Bordeaux-Begles at Stade Chaban Delmas in Round 3.
Two-time tournament winners and last season’s URC champions, Munster Rugby, will be at Thomond Park for their Round 1 and Round 4 fixtures against newcomers, Aviron Bayonnais, and Northampton Saints respectively – with both matches live and free-to-air on RTE in Ireland – while in Rounds 2 and 3 the Irish province will be on the road to face Exeter Chiefs and the 2023 EPCR Challenge Cup winners, RC Toulon in Pool 3.
Stade Toulousain, who clinched the TOP 14 title in such dramatic fashion last month, open their Pool 2 campaign at Stade Ernest Wallon against Cardiff Rugby on Saturday 9 December live on beIN SPORTS, France Télévisions, S4C, TNT Sports and SuperSport before travelling to Harlequins in Round 2 and then to Ulster Rugby in Round 3. The five-time Champions Cup winners wrap up their pool stage schedule with a home tie against Bath Rugby in Round 4.
Leinster, tournament runners-up in the past two seasons, are at home in Rounds 2 and 3 against Sale Sharks and Stade Francais Paris respectively with either the RDS Arena or the Aviva Stadium to be confirmed as venues in the ultra-competitive Pool 4, and they will hope to book their place in the knockout stage once again when they travel to take on old rivals, Leicester Tigers, at Mattioli Woods Welford Road in Round 4 on Saturday 20 January.
Meanwhile, in the EPCR Challenge Cup, debutants Cell C Sharks will have home advantage in Rounds 1 and 3 for their meetings with Section Paloise and last season’s PRO D2 winners, Oyonnax Rugby, with both fixtures live on SuperSport and beIN SPORTS. In Round 2 they will go head-to-head with South African rivals, the Toyota Cheetahs, in Bloemfontein on Sunday 17 December before concluding their Pool 1 campaign against Dragons RFC at Rodney Parade on Sunday 21 January.
Click HERE for the 2023/24 EPCR Challenge Cup fixtures
Black Lion, who are the first Georgian club to compete in one of EPCR’s main professional competitions, kick off their Pool 3 schedule on Saturday 9 December when they host Gloucester Rugby at the 27,000-capacity Mikheil Meskhi Stadium in Tbilisi live on epcrugby.tv, Viaplay-Premier Sports and beIN SPORTS.
The Georgians will then be away in Rounds 2 and 3 against the Scarlets and Castres Olympique respectively ahead of their Round 4 clash at home against three-time tournament winners, ASM Clermont Auvergne.
Clermont’s schedule sees them up against Edinburgh Rugby at Stade Marcel-Michelin in Round 1 on Friday 8 December live on beIN SPORTS and Viaplay-Premier Sports, followed by an away fixture at Gloucester, and a home tie against the Scarlets before they travel to Tbilisi to face Black Lion in Round 4.
Another previous tournament winner, Montpellier Hérault Rugby, open their Pool 2 campaign against the Newcastle Falcons at Kingston Park on Sunday 10 December before back-to-back home fixtures against the Ospreys and the Emirates Lions, and then in Round 4, they will be on the road to Treviso where Benetton Rugby, who reached the semi-finals last season, will provide the opposition.
The fixture schedules were determined by using an algorithm which took into consideration the new, improved tournament formats, the outcome of the pool draws, league calendar restrictions, individual club calendar restrictions and broadcast requirements.
CHAMPIONS CUP
24 elite clubs, 11 previous tournament winners, 40 EPCR titles
Four pools of six
Four pool stage rounds, four knockout stage rounds
Four highest-ranked clubs from each pool qualify for the knockout stage
Fifth-ranked club in each pool qualifies for the EPCR Challenge Cup
Click HERE for the Champions Cup pools
EPCR CHALLENGE CUP
18 clubs in three pools of six
Black Lion are first Georgian club to compete in EPCR Challenge Cup
Four pool stage rounds, four knockout stage rounds
Four highest-ranked clubs in each pool qualify for the knockout stage
Click HERE for the EPCR Challenge Cup pools
2023/24 weekends
Round 1 – 8/9/10 December 2023
Round 2 – 15/16/17 December 2023
Round 3 – 12/13/14 January 2024
Round 4 – 19/20/21 January 2024
Round of 16 – 5/6/7 April 2024
Quarter-finals – 12/13/14 April 2024
Semi-finals – 3/4/5 May 2024
EPCR Challenge Cup final – Friday 24 May 2024, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Champions Cup final – Saturday 25 May 2024, Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Weekend tickets for both EPCR Finals are on sale now with fans able to access the best seats at the best prices. For information and to purchase tickets please click HERE.
