The dates have been set for the highly-anticipated Heineken Champions Cup Round of 16 fixtures which will be played over two legs for the first time.
The knockout games will be contested by an elite group of clubs and their supporters with as many as 28 European titles between them, all competing to stay on the road to the Marseille finals.
Six former tournament winners are also in contention to win the coveted silverware again following the announcement of the dates, kick-off times and broadcast coverage of the home and away matches at the start of the Heineken Champions Cup knockout stage, as well as details of the EPCR Challenge Cup Round 5 pool stage fixtures.
With aggregate scores over the two contests deciding the Round of 16 winners, dramatic outcomes in packed stadiums are certain to be the order of the day as the four highest-ranked clubs in each pool are scheduled to play their second leg matches at home.
In the event of drawn matches or equal aggregate scores at the end of normal time during the knockout stage of the Heineken Champions Cup, extra-time will be played with the exception of the first legs of the Round of 16 matches.
While all Round of 16 matches will be live on BT Sport, additional free-to-air coverage on Channel 4 and Virgin Media in the UK and Ireland is scheduled for the first leg tie between Sale Sharks and Bristol Bears on Saturday, 9 April and for the second leg head-to-head between Harlequins and Montpellier Hérault Rugby on Saturday, 16 April.
Heineken Champions Cup - Round of 16 first leg
( all kick-offs local times )
Friday 8 April
Connacht Rugby v Leinster Rugby, The Sportsground (20.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Saturday 9 April
Sale Sharks v Bristol Bears, AJ Bell Stadium (13.00)
Channel 4 / Virgin Media / BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Union Bordeaux-Bègles v Stade Rochelais, venue TBC (14.00)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Stade Toulousain v Ulster Rugby, Le Stadium (16.15)
beIN SPORTS / FR 2 / BT Sport
Exeter Chiefs v Munster Rugby, Sandy Park (17.30)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Stade Francais Paris v Racing 92, Stade Jean Bouin (18.30)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Sunday 10 April
Montpellier Hérault Rugby v Harlequins, GGL Stadium (14.00)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
ASM Clermont Auvergne v Leicester Tigers, Stade Marcel-Michelin (16.15)
beIN SPORTS / FR 2 / BT Sport
Heineken Champions Cup - Round of 16 second leg
Friday 15 April
Leinster Rugby v Connacht Rugby, Aviva Stadium (17.30)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Bristol Bears v Sale Sharks, Ashton Gate (20.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Saturday 16 April
Harlequins v Montpellier Hérault Rugby, Twickenham Stoop (12.30)
Channel 4 / Virgin Media / BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Munster Rugby v Exeter Chiefs, Thomond Park (15.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Stade Rochelais v Union Bordeaux-Bégles, Stade Marcel Deflandre (16.00)
FR 2 / beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Leicester Tigers v ASM Clermont Auvergne, Mattioli Woods Welford Road (17.30)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS / FR 4
Ulster Rugby v Stade Toulousain, Kingspan Stadium (20.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Sunday 17 April
Racing 92 v Stade Francais Paris, Paris La Défense Arena (16.30)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Quarter-finals – 6/7/8 May
The quarter-finals will be played over one match, and the highest-ranked clubs from the pool stage will have home venue advantage as follows:
QF 1: Racing 92 (A1) or Stade Francais (B8) v Bristol Bears (B4) or Sale Sharks (A5)
QF 2: Harlequins (B2) or Montpellier (A7) v Stade Rochelais (A3) or Bordeaux-Bègles (B6)
QF 3: Ulster (A2) or Stade Toulousain (B7) v Munster (B3) or Exeter Chiefs (A6)
QF 4: Leicester Tigers (B1) or Clermont (A8) v Leinster (A4) or Connacht (B5)
Semi-finals – 13/14/15 May
The semi-finals will be played over one match, and the highest-ranked clubs from the pool stage will have either home country advantage or home venue advantage (TBC) as follows:
SF 1: Winner QF 1 v Winner QF 2
SF 2: Winner QF 3 v Winner QF 4
2022 Heineken Champions Cup final: Saturday, 28 May; Stade Vélodrome, Marseille (17.45)
EPCR Challenge Cup – Round 5
( all kick-offs local times )
Friday 8 April
Pool C: Edinburgh Rugby v Section Paloise, DAM Health Stadium (20.00)
Pool C: CA Brive v Saracens, Stade Amédée Domenech (21.00)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Saturday 9 April
Pool B: Benetton Rugby v USAP, Stadio Monigo (16.15)
Sky Italia
Pool B: Dragons v Gloucester Rugby, Rodney Parade (20.00)
S4C
Pool A: Newcastle Falcons v Zebre Parma, Kingston Park (20.00)
Pool A: Biarritz Olympique v RC Toulon, Parc des Sports Aguiléra (21.00)
FR 4 / beIN SPORTS
Round of 16 – 15/16/17 April
Quarter-finals – 6/7/8 May
Semi-finals – 13/14/15 May
2022 EPCR Challenge Cup final: Friday, 27 May; Stade Vélodrome, Marseille (21.00)
NB The following clubs have qualified from the Heineken Champions Cup pool stage for the Round of 16 of the EPCR Challenge Cup:
Cardiff Rugby (ranked No 11 for Challenge Cup Round of 16)
Wasps (ranked No 12 for Challenge Cup Round of 16)
Castres Olympique (ranked No 13 for Challenge Cup Round of 16)
Glasgow Warriors (ranked No 14 for Challenge Cup Round of 16)
Northampton Saints (ranked No 15 for Challenge Cup Round of 16)
Bath Rugby (ranked No 16 for Challenge Cup Round of 16)
