European Rugby Champions Cup facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Investec Champions Cup

Current season or competition: 2024–25 European Rugby Champions Cup
Sport	Rugby union
Inaugural season	1995–96 as Heineken Cup 2014–15 as Champions Cup
Chairman	Dominic McKay
Number of teams	24
Nations	England  France Ireland  Italy  Scotland  Wales  South Africa (2022–23 season onwards)  Romania (1995–96 only)
Holders	Bordeaux Bègles (1st title) (2024–25)
Most titles	Toulouse (6 titles)
Related competition	European Rugby Challenge Cup (2nd tier)

The European Rugby Champions Cup (also called the Investec Champions Cup for sponsorship) is a big annual rugby union tournament. It is organized by European Professional Club Rugby (EPCR). This competition is for the best rugby clubs in Europe.

Teams get into the Champions Cup by doing well in their own leagues. These leagues include the English Premiership, French Top 14, and United Rugby Championship. Teams can also qualify by winning the second-tier Challenge Cup. If a team does not qualify for the Champions Cup, they can play in the Challenge Cup instead.

From 1995 to 2014, this tournament was known as the Heineken Cup. It was run by a different group called European Rugby Cup. Later, there were some disagreements about how the competition should be run. So, EPCR took over, and the name changed to the European Rugby Champions Cup.

Heineken came back as a sponsor in 2018–19, and the tournament became the Heineken Champions Cup. Even though the names and organizers changed, it's seen as one continuous championship. Teams that won multiple titles are ranked by their total wins from both versions.

French clubs have won the most titles, with 12 victories. English clubs are next with 10 wins, and Irish clubs have 7. England has the most different winning teams, with six clubs taking the title.

Thirteen different clubs have won the competition. Eight of these clubs have won more than once. Five clubs have won the title two years in a row. Toulon even won three times in a row from 2012–13 to 2014–15.

Toulouse is the most successful club, winning 6 times. They won the very first season in 1995–96. Toulouse are the current champions, beating Leinster 31–22 in the 2024 final in London. Toulouse has also won "the Double" (European Cup and their national championship) three times. This is a record in Europe.

History of the Tournament

The Heineken Cup Years (1995–2014)

The Heineken Cup started in 1995. It was created to offer a new professional competition between clubs from different countries. In the first year, 12 teams from Ireland, Wales, Italy, Romania, and France played. English and Scottish teams did not join at first.

The first game was in Romania, where Toulouse won easily. Toulouse went on to become the first champions, beating Cardiff in extra time.

More Teams Join (1996–1999)

The Heineken Cup logo used until 2013

In 1996–97, clubs from England and Scotland joined. The tournament grew to 20 teams. Brive won the final against Leicester. The match was watched by many people around the world.

In 1997–98, teams started playing each other home and away in the group stages. This meant more games for everyone. Bath won the final, but English clubs then left the competition for a short time due to disagreements.

Without English clubs, the 1998–99 tournament had 16 teams. French clubs did very well. But Ulster from Ireland surprised everyone. They beat French champions Stade Français and won the trophy against Colomiers in Dublin.

English Clubs Return (1999–2004)

English clubs came back in 1999–00. The group games were spread out more. For the first time, teams from England, Ireland, France, and Wales made it to the semi-finals. Northampton Saints beat Munster by just one point in the final to win their first big title.

In 2000–01, Leicester Tigers won the final against Stade Français in Paris. They defended their title in 2001–02, becoming the first team to win two years in a row.

From 2002, the winner of the European Challenge Cup could automatically play in the Heineken Cup. Toulouse won their second title in 2003. They joined Leicester as the only teams to win twice.

In 2003–04, Welsh teams changed to playing as "regions" instead of individual clubs. London Wasps won their first Heineken Cup. They beat defending champions Toulouse in a thrilling final at Twickenham.

A Decade of Rugby (2005–2014)

The 2005 final saw Toulouse win their third title, becoming the first team to do so. They beat Stade Français in extra time.

In 2006, Munster finally won the cup after losing in two previous finals. Their strong fan support and history of close calls made their win very special.

London Wasps celebrating after winning the 2006–07 Heineken Cup.

The 2006–07 season was the first time two teams, Llanelli Scarlets and Biarritz, went unbeaten in the group stage. London Wasps won the final against Leicester Tigers in front of a record crowd of over 81,000 fans.

There were some worries about the tournament's future around this time. French clubs threatened to leave due to too many games. But a solution was found, and all six nations continued to play.

In 2008, Munster won their second cup, beating Toulouse.

Leinster won their first title in 2009. They beat Munster in a semi-final that set a world record for club rugby attendance. They then defeated Leicester Tigers in the final.

In 2010, Toulouse won their fourth title, setting a new record.

Leinster won again in 2011, coming back from a big deficit against Northampton Saints in the final. Johnny Sexton scored 28 points for Leinster in that game.

Leinster defended their title in 2012, beating Ulster in the final. They became the second team to win back-to-back titles. They were also the first to win three championships in four years.

The last Heineken Cup final in 2014 was won by Toulon.

The Champions Cup Era (2014–Present)

New Beginnings (2014–2018)

The tournament started as the Champions Cup on October 17, 2014. Toulon won again, beating Clermont. This made them the first club to win three European titles in a row.

After some attacks in Paris in November 2015, some games in France were postponed.

Saracens won their first title in 2016, beating Racing 92. They won again in 2017, defeating Clermont.

In 2017–18, Leinster had a tough path but won their fourth European title. They beat Racing 92 in the final. Leinster also won their domestic league, achieving a "Double" for the first time.

Heineken Champions Cup (2018–2023)

Saracens won the 2018–19 competition, beating Leinster. There were some issues with Saracens' finances, but the tournament results were not affected.

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020–21 competition changed its format. Teams were split into two large groups. The top teams then played in knockout rounds. The 2021–22 and 2022–23 seasons used similar changed formats.

Investec Champions Cup (2023–Present)

On August 31, 2023, Investec became the new main sponsor. The tournament returned to a more regular format, but still with some changes. It kept four pool matches and four knockout weekends.

How the Tournament Works

Getting In (Qualification)

Usually, 24 teams play in the Champions Cup. Most of these teams qualify automatically based on how well they finished in their national leagues. The team that wins the Challenge Cup also gets a spot.

Here's how teams usually get in:

• England: 8 teams from Premiership Rugby.
• France: 8 teams from the Top 14.
• South Africa, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, and Wales: 8 teams from the United Rugby Championship.

Before 2018–19, there was sometimes a special play-off game for the last spot. Now, the final spot goes to the Champions Cup winner, then the Challenge Cup winner, or other high-ranking teams if those winners have already qualified.

Playing the Games (Competition)

Group Stage

Teams are put into pools by a draw. The best teams from the previous season are placed in different groups. This makes sure that teams from the same league and of similar strength don't play each other too early.

Teams play against two other teams from different leagues in their pool. They play one game at home and one away. Teams get points for winning (4 points) or drawing (2 points). They can also get bonus points for scoring four or more tries, or for losing by seven points or less.

After all the group games, 16 teams move on to the knockout stage. Four more teams get to play in the Challenge Cup. The last four teams are out of the competition.

Knockout Stage

The 16 teams are ranked from 1 to 16 based on how they did in the group stage. The top two teams in each of the four pools get to play their first knockout game at home. Teams that finish third and fourth play away.

The quarter-finals are set up so that the top-ranked teams play lower-ranked teams (like 1st vs. 8th, 2nd vs. 7th, etc.).

The winners of the quarter-finals play in the semi-finals. Until 2015, the semi-final matchups were decided by a draw. Now, the higher-ranked team usually gets to play in their home country, but at a neutral stadium. Since 2018–19, the higher-ranked team always has home advantage. The EPCR can also choose to let semi-finals be played at a qualified club's home stadium.

The winners of the semi-finals play in the final, which happens in May each season.

Recent Changes (2020–Present)

Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020–21 competition had a special format. Teams were in two pools of 12. They played four games each, and then the top teams went to knockout rounds. All knockout games were single matches.

The 2021–22 season kept a similar format, but the Round of 16 had two games (home and away). In 2022–23, all knockout games were single matches again.

From 2023–24, there are four pools with six teams each. The winners of the three main leagues and the previous Champions Cup winner are placed in separate pools. Each pool has two teams from each of the three main leagues. Teams play four games against teams from other leagues in their pool. The top four teams from each pool go to the Round of 16. Fifth-placed teams go to the Challenge Cup.

All four knockout rounds are single matches. The higher-ranked team gets home advantage in the Round of 16 and quarter-finals. Semi-finals are held in a neutral venue in the higher-ranked team's country. The final is always in a big, pre-chosen stadium.

Finals of the Tournament

Twickenham Stadium in London has hosted the final six times, more than any other stadium. The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff has hosted five finals. Its older version, the National Stadium, hosted two more. So, the site in Cardiff has hosted the most finals overall (seven).

The final has been held once in a country not part of the competition: in Bilbao, Spain, in 2018. As of 2024, the final has never been held in South Africa or Italy. Nigel Owens from Wales has refereed the most finals, with seven.

Key

Match was won during extra time

Heineken Cup Era
Season	Winners	Score	Runners-up	Venue	Att	Referee
1995–96	Toulouse	21–18	Cardiff	National Stadium, Cardiff	21,800	David McHugh
1996–97	Brive	28–9	Leicester Tigers	National Stadium, Cardiff	41,664	Derek Bevan
1997–98	Bath	19–18	Brive	Parc Lescure, Bordeaux	36,500	Jim Fleming
1998–99	Ulster	21–6	Colomiers	Lansdowne Road, Dublin	49,000	Clayton Thomas
1999–00	Northampton Saints	9–8	Munster	Twickenham Stadium, London	68,441	Joël Dumé
2000–01	Leicester Tigers	34–30	Stade Français	Parc des Princes, Paris	44,000	David McHugh
2001–02	Leicester Tigers	15–9	Munster	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff	74,600	Joël Jutge
2002–03	Toulouse	22–17	Perpignan	Lansdowne Road, Dublin	28,600	Tony Spreadbury
2003–04	London Wasps	27–20	Toulouse	Twickenham Stadium, London	73,057	Alain Rolland
2004–05	Toulouse	18–12	Stade Français	Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh	51,326	Chris White
2005–06	Munster	23–19	Biarritz	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff	74,534	Chris White
2006–07	London Wasps	25–9	Leicester Tigers	Twickenham Stadium, London	81,076	Alan Lewis
2007–08	Munster	16–13	Toulouse	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff	74,500	Nigel Owens
2008–09	Leinster	19–16	Leicester Tigers	Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh	66,523	Nigel Owens
2009–10	Toulouse	21–19	Biarritz	Stade de France, Saint-Denis	78,962	Wayne Barnes
2010–11	Leinster	33–22	Northampton Saints	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff	72,456	Romain Poite
2011–12	Leinster	42–14	Ulster	Twickenham Stadium, London	81,774	Nigel Owens
2012–13	Toulon	16–15	Clermont	Aviva Stadium, Dublin	50,198	Alain Rolland
2013–14	Toulon	23–6	Saracens	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff	67,586	Alain Rolland
Champions Cup Era
2014–15	Toulon	24–18	Clermont	Twickenham Stadium, London	56,622	Nigel Owens
2015–16	Saracens	21–9	Racing 92	Parc Olympique Lyonnais, Lyon	58,017	Nigel Owens
2016–17	Saracens	28–17	Clermont	Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh	55,272	Nigel Owens
2017–18	Leinster	15–12	Racing 92	San Mamés Stadium, Bilbao	52,282	Wayne Barnes
2018–19	Saracens	20–10	Leinster	St James' Park, Newcastle	51,930	Jérôme Garcès
2019–20	Exeter Chiefs	31–27	Racing 92	Ashton Gate Stadium, Bristol	0	Nigel Owens
2020–21	Toulouse	22–17	La Rochelle	Twickenham Stadium, London	10,000	Luke Pearce
2021–22	La Rochelle	24–21	Leinster	Stade Vélodrome, Marseille	59,682	Wayne Barnes
2022–23	La Rochelle	27–26	Leinster	Aviva Stadium, Dublin	51,711	Jaco Peyper
2023–24	Toulouse	31–22	Leinster	Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London	61,531	Matthew Carley
2024–25	Bordeaux Bègles	28–20	Northampton Saints	Millennium Stadium, Cardiff	70,225	Nika Amashukeli

Winners by Club

Stade Ernest-Wallon, home of Toulouse, the club with the most titles.

Club	Champions	Runners-up	Years as champions	Years as runners-up
Toulouse	6	2	1995–96, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2009–10, 2020–21, 2023–24	2003–04, 2007–08
Leinster	4	4	2008–09, 2010–11, 2011–12, 2017–18	2018–19, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24
Saracens	3	1	2015–16, 2016–17, 2018–19	2013–14
Toulon	3	0	2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15	—
Leicester Tigers	2	3	2000–01, 2001–02	1996–97, 2006–07, 2008–09
Munster	2	2	2005–06, 2007–08	1999–00, 2001–02
La Rochelle	2	1	2021–22, 2022–23	2020–21
Wasps	2	0	2003–04, 2006–07	—
Northampton Saints	1	2	1999–00	2010–11, 2024–25
Brive	1	1	1996–97	1997–98
Ulster	1	1	1998–99	2011–12
Bath	1	0	1997–98	—
Exeter Chiefs	1	0	2019–20	—
Bordeaux Bègles	1	0	2024–25	—
Clermont	0	3	—	2012–13, 2014–15, 2016–17
Racing 92	0	3	—	2015–16, 2017–18, 2019–20
Stade Français	0	2	—	2000–01, 2004–05
Biarritz	0	2	—	2005–06, 2009–10
Cardiff	0	1	—	1995–96
Colomiers	0	1	—	1998–99
Perpignan	0	1	—	2002–03

Wins by Nation

Nation	Winners	Runners-up
France	13	16
England	10	6
Ireland	7	7
Wales	0	1
Scotland	0	0
Italy	0	0
South Africa	0	0

Player Records

These are some of the top player records in the European Rugby Champions Cup.

Career Records

Up to date as of May 31, 2024

Most Tries

Chris Ashton playing for Saracens in 2015. He holds the record for most tries.

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Games played	Tries	Ratio
1	Chris Ashton	Northampton Saints, Saracens, Toulon, Sale Sharks, Leicester Tigers	70	41	0,59
2	Vincent Clerc	Toulouse	84	36	0,43
3	Simon Zebo	Munster, Racing	68	35	0,51
4	Brian O'Driscoll	Leinster	87	33	0,38
	Juan Imhoff	Racing 92	62	33	0,52

• Players in BOLD are still playing for a team in the EPCR competition.

Most Points

Ronan O'Gara (background) playing for Munster in 2013. He has the most points.

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Points
1	Ronan O'Gara	Munster	1,365
2	Owen Farrell	Saracens	874
3	Stephen Jones	Llanelli, Clermont Auvergne, Scarlets	869
4	Johnny Sexton	Leinster, Racing Métro 92	784
5	Dimitri Yachvili	Biarritz	661

• Players in BOLD are still playing for a team in the EPCR competition.

Most Goals

Goals include both penalties and conversions.

Ronan O'Gara kicking for Munster in 2006.

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Goals
1	Ronan O'Gara	Munster	488
2	Owen Farrell	Saracens, Racing Métro 92	352
3	Stephen Jones	Llanelli, Clermont Auvergne, Scarlets	313
4	Johnny Sexton	Leinster, Racing Métro 92	294
5	Dimitri Yachvili	Biarritz	235

• Players in BOLD are still playing for a team in the EPCR competition.

Most Appearances

Ronan O'Gara (in red) playing for Munster in 2013.

Rank	Player	Club(s)	Games
1	Cian Healy	Leinster	112
2	Ronan O'Gara	Munster	110
3	Gordon D'Arcy	Leinster	104
4	John Hayes	Munster	101
	Peter Stringer	Munster, Saracens, Bath, Sale	101

• Players in BOLD are still playing for a team in the EPCR competition.

Most Titles Won by a Player

Up to date as of May 31, 2024

Rank	Titles Won	Player	Club(s)	Years Won
1	6	Frédéric Michalak	Toulouse (3) Toulon (3)	2003, 2005, 2010, 2013, 2014,* 2015*
2	4	Cédric Heymans	Brive (1) Toulouse (3)	1997, 2003, 2005, 2010
		Cian Healy	Leinster (4)	2009, 2011, 2012, 2018
		Isa Nacewa	Leinster (4)	2009, 2011, 2012, 2018

• Players in BOLD are still playing for a team in the EPCR competition.
• Titles include any season a player played in the tournament, even if they didn't play in the final.

European Player of the Year

This award started in 2010. Ronan O'Gara won the first award, recognized as the best player over the first 15 years. The award is now called the Anthony Foley Memorial Award.

Year	Player	Club
2010	Ronan O'Gara	Munster
2011	Seán O'Brien	Leinster
2012	Rob Kearney	Leinster
2013	Jonny Wilkinson	Toulon
2014	Steffon Armitage	Toulon
2015	Nick Abendanon	Clermont
2016	Maro Itoje	Saracens
2017	Owen Farrell	Saracens
2018	Leone Nakarawa	Racing 92
2019	Alex Goode	Saracens
2020	Sam Simmonds	Exeter
2021	Antoine Dupont	Toulouse
2022	Josh van der Flier	Leinster
2023	Grégory Alldritt	La Rochelle
2024	Antoine Dupont	Toulouse
2025	Damian Penaud	Bordeaux Bègles

Coaches Who Won Titles

Guy Novès is the only coach to win the tournament four times.

Bernard Laporte is the only coach to win three times in a row.

No. of wins	Coach	Club(s)
4	Guy Novès	Toulouse (1996, 2003, 2005, 2010)
3	Bernard Laporte	Toulon (2013, 2014, 2015)
	Mark McCall	Saracens (2016, 2017, 2019)
2	Dean Richards	Leicester Tigers (2001, 2002)
	Declan Kidney	Munster (2006, 2008)
	Joe Schmidt	Leinster (2011, 2012)
	Ronan O'Gara	La Rochelle (2022, 2023)
	Ugo Mola	Toulouse (2021, 2024)

Sponsors and Suppliers

Sponsors

When the Champions Cup started, the old organizers were criticized for not making enough money from the Heineken Cup. The new organizers, EPCR, wanted to have many partners, like the UEFA Champions League. However, only Heineken signed on at first.

Main Partners

• Heineken (1995–2014; 2018–)

  Heineken was the first partner for the Champions Cup in 2014. They came back as the main sponsor in 2018, changing the name to "Heineken Champions Cup."

• Turkish Airlines (2015–2017)

  This airline was the second main partner from 2015 to 2017.

Suppliers

A Gilbert ball used in the 2015–16 season.

• Gilbert – Provides match balls (1998–2002; 2014–) and officials' kit (2016–2019).
• Tissot – The official watch and timekeeper (2015–). Tissot also sponsors the match officials' kit.
• DHL – The official logistics partner (2021–). They "deliver" the match ball on a special stand at all games.

The Trophy

The European Rugby Champions Cup trophy was shown for the first time in October 2014.

The trophy is made of silver and gold. It is designed to look like a star, representing European rugby. It also honors the 19 seasons of the old Heineken Cup.

The trophy weighs 13.5 kg and has five handles. From the top, it looks like a star. From the side, it looks like a crown, showing that the winners are the "Kings of Europe." The bottom of the trophy has the badges of the 10 clubs that won the Heineken Cup. This links the old and new competitions.

Watching the Games (Media Coverage)

The Champions Cup games are shown on TV in many countries.

For other places without official TV channels, you can watch games on the EPCR's website, epcrugby.tv.

Attendance at Games

This section shows how many people attend the games each season. The final usually has the most fans because it's held in a very large stadium.

In 2009, a semi-final game between Leinster and Munster in Dublin set a world record for a club rugby match. Over 82,000 fans attended!

Images for kids

• 

  The Heineken Cup logo used until 2013

• 

  London Wasps celebrating after winning the 2006–07 Heineken Cup.

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  Stade Ernest-Wallon, home of Toulouse, the club with the most titles.

• 

  Chris Ashton playing for Saracens in 2015. He holds the record for most tries.

• 

  Ronan O'Gara (background) playing for Munster in 2013. He has the most points.

• 

  Ronan O'Gara kicking for Munster in 2006.

• 

  Ronan O'Gara (in red) playing for Munster in 2013.

• 

  Guy Novès is the only coach to win the tournament four times.

• 

  Bernard Laporte is the only coach to win three times in a row.

• 

  A Gilbert ball used in the 2015–16 season.