The 2023/24 professional rugby season will get underway on the weekend of September 8-10 officials have confirmed with Premiership sides taking on Championship clubs in a revamped Premiership Rugby Cup for the first five weekends of the season.
The pool stages will take place over five consecutive weekends from the weekends September 8-10 to October 6-8 with the semi-finals held over February 9-11 and the final over the weekend of March 15-17.
The 24 teams will be split into four pools of six - based on league standings at the end of the current 2022/23 season.
The competition will start on the same weekend as the 2023 Rugby World Cup kicks off in France.
The Gallagher Premiership will kick-off on the weekend of October 13-15, which as in previous years is the quarter-final stage of the world cup.
The Gallagher Premiership Rugby Final 2024 will take place on Saturday, June 8 at Twickenham Stadium.
The full list of Premiership fixtures for the 2023/24 season will be announced on Tuesday, July 18.
Premiership Rugby’s Rugby Director Phil Winstanley, said: "It is many years since the Premiership and Championship Clubs clashed in a Cup competition.
"The Championship performs a crucial role within the English game and we’re looking forward to renewing some rivalries of old.
"With the Rugby World Cup taking place in France, this competition will no doubt provide the best, young English talent with an opportunity to stake a claim in squads before the start of the Gallagher Premiership Rugby campaign."
Connor O’Shea, RFU Executive Director of Performance Rugby said: "We’re really pleased to confirm that next season’s Premiership Rugby Cup will include both the Premiership and Championship clubs and are excited to see this new format come to fruition and form part of the longer-term solution for the game.
Steve Lloyd, Chair of the Championship Clubs Committee said: "The new Cup format is the result of great collaboration between the Championship, RFU and Premiership Rugby.
"The clubs are delighted with the opportunity a different format brings as well as the experience of playing Premiership sides and the opportunity to welcome new fans into our clubs and grow our audiences."
A pre-season friendly between Bristol Bears and Exeter Chiefs at Ashton Gate on Friday, September 1, (7.45pm KO) has also been confirmed in what is likely to be some of the first club rugby of the summer.
