Leinster To Host Harlequins At Croke Park When Champions Cup Resumes

Leinster played Northampton Saints at Croke Park in last season's Investec Champions Cup semi-final, and also hosted Munster at the home of the GAA in the BKT United Rugby Championship in October ©INPHO/Dan Sheridan
After a nail-biting conclusion to the pool stages last weekend, EPCR has revealed the dates, venues, kick-off times, and TV coverage for the Investec Champions Cup round of 16 fixtures.
Heading into what promises to be some electrifying knockout rounds on the road to the Cardiff final at the Principality Stadium on Saturday, May 24, the stage is set for an unforgettable battle for silverware.
With 36 EPCR titles between them, the remaining sixteen teams are stacked with talent, including nine former Champions Cup winners still fighting for glory.
Unbeaten so far this season with 13 straight wins, second seeds Leinster will return to Croke Park on Saturday, April 5 for their round of 16 match against Harlequins. Kicking off at 3pm, the game will be shown live on RTÉ 2 and the RTÉ Player,
Leo Cullen’s men edged out Northampton Saints at the Jones’ Road venue to reach last season’s final, and also beat Munster there in October in front of a record BKT United Rugby Championship crowd of 80,468.
That same Saturday (kick-off 5.30pm Irish time) will see ninth seeds Munster come up against La Rochelle at Stade Marcel Deflandre in an intriguing clash. Of course, Ronan O’Gara, the man in charge of the French side, twice steered his home province to European success.
Meanwhile, 16th-ranked Ulster, who are on the same side of the draw as Munster, will kick off the action on Sunday, April 6 (kick-off 12.30pm Irish time) with a repeat of their pool encounter with top seeds Bordeaux-Bègles.
This time the high-flying Top 14 outfit will have home advantage, with Richie Murphy’s charges visiting Stade Chaban Delmas almost four months on from their 40-19 defeat in Belfast.
Every round of 16 match will be televised live by Premier Sports in the UK and Ireland, beIN Sports in France, SuperSport in South Africa, and by FloRugby in the USA and Canada.
Additional free-to-air coverage will be available for select matches in France on France Télévisions and RTÉ in Ireland, as well as select games being available on EPCR’s OTT platform EPCRugby.TV. EPCRugby.TV is also the exclusive home of the Champions Cup in Italy.
In the EPCR Challenge Cup’s round of 16, Pool 1 winners Connacht will aim for a repeat of last week’s win when they take on Cardiff at Dexcom Stadium on Saturday, April 5 (kick-off 8pm).
As top seeds, a fifth successive victory of their European campaign would ensure the westerners are at home to either Perpignan or Racing 92 at the quarter-final stage. The quarter-finals in both competitions will take place on April 11-13.
INVESTEC CHAMPIONS CUP ROUND OF 16:
Friday, April 4 –
Match 3:Â Northampton Saints (3) v ASM Clermont Auvergne (14), cinch Stadium@Franklin’s Gardens, 8pm
Premier Sports/beIN Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Saturday, April 5 –
Match 4: RC Toulon (4) v Saracens (13), Stade Félix Mayol, 1.30pm
beIN Sports/Premier Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Match 2:Â LEINSTER RUGBY (2) v Harlequins (15), Croke Park, 3pm
RTÉ/Premier Sports/beIN Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Match 6:Â Castres Olympique (6) v Benetton Rugby (11), Stade Pierre-Fabre, 4pm
beIN Sports/France TV/EPCRugby.TV /Premier Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Match 8:Â Stade Rochelais (8) v MUNSTER RUGBY (9), Stade Marcel Deflandre, 6.30pm local time/5.30pm Irish time
beIN Sports/Premier Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Match 7:Â Glasgow Warriors (7) v Leicester Tigers (10), Scotstoun Stadium, 8pm
Premier Sports/beIN Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Sunday, April 6 –
Match 1: Union Bordeaux-Bègles (1) v ULSTER RUGBY (16), Stade Chaban Delmas, 1.30pm local time/12.30pm Irish time
beIN Sports/Premier Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Match 5:Â Stade Toulousain (5) v Sale Sharks (12), Stadium Municipal de Toulouse, 4pm
France TV/beIN Sports/Premier Sports/SuperSport/Flo Rugby
QUARTER-FINALS:
Weekend of April 11/12/13 –
QF 1:Â Winner R16 1 v Winner R16 8
QF 2:Â Winner R16 2 v Winner R16 7
QF 3:Â Winner R16 3 v Winner R16 6
QF 4:Â Winner R16 4 v Winner R16 5
SEMI-FINALS:
Weekend of May 2/3/4 –
SF 1:Â Winner QF 1 v Winner QF 4
SF 2:Â Winner QF 2 v Winner QF 3
2025 Investec Champions Cup Final:Â Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Saturday, May 24, kick-off 2.45pm
EPCR CHALLENGE CUP ROUND OF 16:
Friday, April 4 –
Match 3:Â Edinburgh Rugby (3) v Emirates Lions (14), Hive Stadium, 8pm
Premier Sports/beIN Sports/SuperSport/FloRugby
Match 7:Â Section Paloise (7) v Bath Rugby (10), Stade du Hameau, 9pm
beIN Sports/EPCRugby.TV/FloRugby
Saturday, April 5 –
Match 6:Â Aviron Bayonnais (6) v Vodacom Bulls (11), Stade Jean Dauger, 1.30pm
France TV/beIN Sports/SuperSport/EPCRugby.TV/FloRugby
Match 2: Montpellier Hérault Rugby (2) v Gloucester Rugby (15), GGL Stadium, 6.30pm
beIN Sports/EPCRugby.TV/FloRugby
Match 1:Â CONNACHT RUGBYÂ (1) v Cardiff Rugby (16), Dexcom Stadium, 8pm
Premier Sports/beIN Sports/FloRugby
Match 8: USAP (8) v Racing 92 (9), Stade Aimé Giral, 9pm
beIN Sports/EPCRugby.TV/FloRugby
Sunday, April 6 –
Match 4: Ospreys (4) v Scarlets (13), Swansea.com Stadium, 5.30pm
S4C/beIN Sports/EPCRugby.TV/FloRugby
Match 5:Â Lyon Olympique Universitaire (5) v Hollywoodbets Sharks (12), Matmut Stadium de Gerland, 6.30pm
beIN Sports/SuperSport/EPCRugby.TV/FloRugby
QUARTER-FINALS:
Weekend of April 11/12/13 –
QF 1: Winner R16 1 v Winner R16 8
QF 2: Winner R16 2 v Winner R16 7
QF 3: Winner R16 3 v Winner R16 6
QF 4: Winner R16 4 v Winner R16 5
NB: The highest-ranked teams from the pool stages will have home venue advantage
SEMI-FINALS:
Weekend of May 2/3/4 –
SF 1: winner QF 1 v winner QF 4
SF 2: winner QF 2 v winner QF 3
NB: The matches will be played in Europe, and where relevant, the highest-ranked teams from the pool stages will have home venue advantage
2025 EPCR Challenge Cup Final: Principality Stadium, Cardiff, Friday, May 23, kick-off 8pm