European Rugby Cups: resumed on 09/12/2022, new format, beIN & France TV broadcasters in France

The European rugby cups organised by the EPCR will see the addition of five South African clubs to the participating clubs from the 2022-23 season. DHL Stormers (Cape Town), Vodacom Bulls (Pretoria) and Cell C Sharks (Durban) will compete in the 2022-23 Heineken Champions Cup, while Emirates Lions (Johannesburg) and Toyota Cheetahs (Bloemfontein) will represent South Africa in the Challenge Cup.

The Champions Cup comprises 24 clubs divided into two pools of 12 clubs. After four rounds, the top eight clubs in each pool qualify for the knockout stages. The clubs ranked ninth and tenth in each pool advance to the Challenge Cup. The Challenge Cup consists of 18 clubs, divided into a pool of ten and a pool of eight. After four rounds, the six highest-ranked clubs in each pool qualify for the knockout stages.

The Challenge Cup was originally intended to comprise 20 clubs for the 2022-23 season (two pools of ten), however Worcester Warriors and Wasps were withdrawn from the competition after entering administration (26/09/2022 for Worcester, 17/10/2022 for Wasps). They have not been…