Fixtures announced for 2025/26 EPCR Champions and Challenge Cups

The full pool stage fixtures for the 2025/26 Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup have been confirmed.

The new season of Europe’s top club rugby competitions will begin over the weekend of December 5–7, 2025, and will conclude with the EPCR Finals Weekend in Bilbao, Spain, on May 22 and 23, 2026.

The Investec Champions Cup will open with two Friday night fixtures. Sale Sharks will host Glasgow Warriors at Salford Community Stadium, while Aviron Bayonnais will face the DHL Stormers at Stade Jean-Dauger. The following day, defending champions Union Bordeaux Bègles will begin their title defence in South Africa, taking on the Vodacom Bulls at Loftus Versfeld.

Bordeaux’s pool stage campaign continues with home matches against Scarlets and Northampton Saints in a rematch of last season’s final, before finishing their group stage against Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate.

Also on December 6, Bath Rugby will host Munster at The Rec in their opening match. Bath’s Round 2 fixture sees them travel to face RC Toulon, while Toulon will play Munster at home in Round 3.

Toulouse, the most decorated side in the competition with six titles, will begin their campaign against the Hollywoodbets Sharks at Stade Ernest Wallon. They will also face Glasgow Warriors, Saracens, and Sale Sharks during the group stage.

Leinster, aiming for a fifth title, will start their campaign at home against Harlequins, followed by an away fixture against Leicester Tigers. They will then host Stade Rochelais before finishing pool play away at Aviron Bayonnais.

Meanwhile, Section Paloise will return to the top-tier competition for the first time in 25 years, opening their campaign at home against last season’s runners-up Northampton Saints on December 7.

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EPCR Challenge Cup Fixtures:

The EPCR Challenge Cup fixtures will follow a similar schedule, with pool stage matches aligned with the Champions Cup and both competitions leading into knockout rounds in April 2026.

The 2025/26 EPCR Challenge Cup is set to kick off on Friday, December 5, with Ulster Rugby hosting French heavyweights Racing 92 at the Affidea Stadium in Belfast. This highly anticipated clash will mark the start of another intense European club season, culminating in the final at San Mamés Stadium in Bilbao on May 22, 2026.

Newcomers US Montauban will make their return to European competition after a 15-year absence. The newly promoted Pro D2 champions begin their campaign on December 6 with an away fixture against Zebre Parma in Italy.

Lyon Olympique Universitaire, who won the title in 2022 and finished runners-up last season, will face Newcastle Falcons in their opening match at Matmut Stadium de Gerland. Lyon’s pool fixtures also include meetings with Dragons RFC, the Lions, and Benetton Rugby, making for a challenging schedule.

Another notable fixture sees Montpellier, two-time Challenge Cup champions, travel to Tbilisi to take on Georgian invitee club Black Lion at Mikheil Meskhi Stadium. Black Lion’s continued inclusion highlights EPCR’s push to expand the tournament’s geographic reach.

Meanwhile, Cardiff Rugby will begin their campaign with a heavyweight tie against Stade Français Paris at Stade Jean Bouin. With both sides having won the competition twice in the past, the encounter promises to be one of the standout clashes of the opening round.

All fixtures form part of a revised tournament structure featuring 18 teams divided into three pools of six. Each club plays four unique opponents—two at home and two away—with the top four from each pool advancing to the Round of 16, joined by four clubs dropping from the Champions Cup.

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