Champions Cup: Bulls host Saracens to open season, Stormers away at Leicester Tigers

The 2023/24 Champions and Challenge Cup pool stage fixtures were confirmed on Thursday.

With its new formats, the 2023/24 EPCR season will be played over eight weekends with four rounds of matches in the pool stage starting in December, followed by a knockout stage consisting of a Round of 16, quarter-finals, semi-finals, culminating in the London finals at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on 24 and 25 May 2024.

From a South African perspective, the Bulls will open their Champions Cup account against English heavyweights Saracens at Loftus Versfeld on Saturday, 9 December.

The Stormers are away to another English glamour club, Leicester Tigers, at Welford Road on Sunday, 10 December.

Champions Cup fixtures

The Bulls will also face Lyon at Stade de Gerland (Saturday, 16 December), Bristol Bears at Ashton Gate (Saturday, 13 January), and Bordeaux-Begles (Loftus Versfeld, 20 January).

The Stormers will tackle La Rochelle at Cape Town Stadium (Saturday, 16 December), Sale Sharks at Cape Town Stadium (Saturday, 13 January) and Stade Francais at Stade Jean Bouin (Saturday, 20 January).

Pool 1: Saracens, Union Bordeaux-Begles, Bulls, Bristol Bears, Connacht Rugby, Lyon

Pool 2: Stade Toulousain, Cardiff Rugby, Bath Rugby, Racing 92, Harlequins, Ulster Rugby

Pool 3: Munster Rugby, Aviron Bayonnais, Glasgow Warriors, Exeter Chiefs, RC Toulon, Northampton Saints

Pool 4: Stade Rochelais, Stade Français Paris, Leicester Tigers, Stormers, Leinster Rugby, Sale Sharks

The excitement is palpable ???? 2023/24 CHAMPIONS CUP FIXTURES ??Check out the full list of pool matches ?? https://t.co/LqfD5lftNo pic.twitter.com/lwjH9lwS34

In the second-tier Challenge Cup, the Sharks open their account against French club Pau at Kings Park on Saturday, 9 December,