EPCR Challenge Cup – Format

Qualification

18 teams qualified for the EPCR Challenge Cup in 2022–23.

17 of these teams automatically qualified from the English Premiership Rugby, the French Top 14 and the United Rugby Championship, the 18th team is invited to participate.

• Teams from these leagues that do not qualify for the European Champions Cup, either through league position or through promotion, and (in the case of the Top 14) are not relegated to a lower league, will automatically qualify for the Rugby Challenge Cup. Teams promoted to these leagues take up any remaining Challenge Cup places.

Continental Shield

Until 2019–20 the 19th and 20th teams qualified via a Qualifying Competition, organised by European Professional Club Rugby and Rugby Europe.

For the 2014–15 season, this took the form of 2 two-legged play-off matches, with the aggregate winner of each taking one of the two Rugby Europe spots in the draw, and it involved the 2 best teams from Italy’s Top12, plus a Romanian and Georgian selections.

An expanded format, which was expected to feature more matches and more nations, for qualification into the 2015–16 European Rugby Challenge Cup, and subsequent seasons, was expected to be announced 15 September 2014. However, on 5 September 2014, it was announced that no such competition would take place during the 2014–15 season, and negotiations continue to create the new competition as soon as possible.

Subsequently, on 22 December 2014, EPCR announced negotiations for a new format for the competition had now been completed, and the Qualifying Competition for entry into the 2015–16 Challenge Cup would begin in January.

The expanded format includes clubs from Rugby Europe member unions Russia, Spain and Portugal alongside representatives from the Italian Eccellenza, and is being jointly organised by EPCR, Rugby Europe, and the Federazione Italiana Rugby (FIR).

The teams in the competition are split into two pools. Each team participates in a pool stage, before the two pool winners compete in a two-legged play-off against the teams currently competing in the Challenge Cup from the previous season.

The winners, on aggregate, of these two play-offs will take up the two final places in the Challenge Cup.

In 2017, the competition was rebranded as the European Rugby Continental Shield, and introduced a final to be held as part of the main finals weekend and contested by the two play-off winners.

Competition

Group stage

For the pool stage there are two pools of ten teams. The teams are ranked based on domestic league performance the previous season, and arranged into three tiers. Teams are then drawn from the tiers into pools at random.

Teams will play the other teams in their pool twice, both at home and away and match points will be awarded depending on the result of each game. Teams receive four points for a win, and two for a draw. Teams can also earn 1 try bonus point for scoring four or more tries, and 1 losing bonus point for losing a match by seven points or fewer.

Following the completion of the pool stage, the top six teams in each pool will qualify for the knock-out stage. They are joined in the round of 16 by the teams placed 9th and 10th in each Champions Cup pool.

Knock-out stage

The eight quarter-finalists are ranked – pool winners from 1 to 5, and runners-up from 6 to 8 – based on performance in their respective pool. The four pool winners with the best pool record receive home advantage for the quarter-finals against one of the four lower-ranked teams, in a 1v8, 2v7, 3v6, 4v5 format. Unlike the later formats of the old European Challenge Cup, no teams will drop down into the competition from the Champions Cup.

The winners of the quarter-finals will contest the two semi-finals, the semi-final matches will be determined by criteria, and the winners of the semi-finals will contest the final, which is usually held in May.

Temporary Changes to Format

Because of the Coronavirus Pandemic the 2020/2021 competition took on a revised format. 2020–21 European Rugby Challenge Cup

A similar format remained for the 2021/22 season, however, the number of teams was increased from 14 to 15 and an additional six will join from the Champions Cup. 2021–22 European Rugby Challenge Cup

The format revision was removed for the 2022/23 season, so with the introduction of South African sides to the EPCR, 17 teams now qualify based on domestic league performance, with one further team invited. 2022–23 European Rugby Challenge Cup.