The Pool Stage Draws for the 2018/2019 Heineken Champions Cup and the European Challenge Cup take place today at the IOC Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland. The Challenge Cup Draw kicks us off at 14:00 (UK and Ireland time), with the Heineken Champions Cup immediately after. Watch live now
How will the draw work?
Twenty clubs from Gallagher Premiership Rugby, the Guinness PRO14 and the TOP 14 have qualified on merit for the Heineken Champions Cup. The clubs will be divided into four tiers depending on league position. The tiers are as follows:
Tier 1 clubs: Castres Olympique (TOP 14 winners), Saracens (Premiership winners) Leinster Rugby (PRO14 winners) and two of Montpellier, Exeter Chiefs and Scarlets.
Tier 2 clubs: Racing 92, Wasps, Glasgow Warriors, one of Montpellier, Exeter Chiefs and Scarlets as well as the fourth-ranked club from the same league as the one not drawn into Tier 1.
Tier 3 clubs: Toulouse, Leicester Tigers, Edinburgh Rugby and the two remaining fourth-ranked clubs.
Tier 4 clubs: RC Toulon, Bath Rugby, Cardiff Blues, Ulster Rugby, Gloucester Rugby
How are the clubs tiered?
For the purposes of creating the tiers, the TOP 14, Premiership and PRO14 and clubs are ranked based on their league performances and on their performances in the knockout phases.
For clubs which did not qualify for the knockout phases of their leagues, or which were eliminated at the same stage of the knockout phase, rankings are decided by league table finishing positions and/or by other official qualification criteria.
Who will be hosting the draw?
Upon direction from the event MCs, Sarra Elgan (BT Sport) and Raphaël Ibañez (France Télévisions), Dimitri Yachvili (beIN SPORTS) will draw the club balls and Austin Healey (BT Sport) will draw the pool balls.
What else do I need to know?
Each pool will have at least one club from each of the three leagues and each of the five pools will have one club from each of the four tiers.
There will be no more than two clubs from the same league in a pool and no pool will contain two PRO14 clubs from the same country.
Clubs from the same league will be kept apart until the allocation of the Tier 4 clubs.
Just 16,000 tickets remain on public sale for the Heineken Champions Cup Final on 11 May 2019.
via epcrugby.com
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