European Champions and Challenge Cup play-offs set to be postponed until September

The European Champions Cup and Challenge Cup play-offs is unlikely to be played before September following the pandemic coronavirus crisis.

The news follows French government's decision to ban all sports in the country for the next four months resulting in the abandonment of Top 14 and D2 competitions.

The play-offs of both the tournaments has six French teams combined with Clermont, Racing 92 and Toulouse in the Heineken Champions Cup while Toulon, Castres and Bordeaux compete in the quarter-finals of Challenge Cup.

Apart from the six French teams, England's Exeter Chiefs, Saracens and Northampton Saints reached the Champions Cup play-offs with Leicester Tigers and Bristol Bears managing to reach the top eight in Challenge Cup.

Ireland's Leinster and Ulster along with Wales' Scarlets and Dragons and Scotland's Edinburgh were the other teams in contention to win the title after managing to be part of the play-offs.

The final of the Challenge and Champions Cup tournaments were originally scheduled to be played on 22nd and 23rd May respectively at Stade Vélodrome in Marseille.