The fans are well and truly back in stadiums at Heineken Champions Cup venues and for the first time since 2013/14 over one million spectators will have attended Heineken Champions Cup matches over the course of this season.
Saturday’s 28th Heineken Champions Cup final at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium will be played in front of a sold-out capacity crowd, while 35,000 spectators are expected at the EPCR Challenge Cup final tomorrow evening.
By the time the curtain falls on the action on Saturday evening, Heineken Champions Cup matches will have welcomed 1,038,691 spectators across Europe and South Africa, hitting a milestone figure for the current season.
EPCR Chairman Dominic McKay said: “This has been a tremendous season for the Heineken Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup. With over one million supporters attending matches across Europe and South Africa it once again demonstrates the scale, quality and stature of the EPCR competitions.
“A huge thank you to all the supporters watching in the stands across Europe and South Africa and the millions watching around the world. This weekend’s Finals promises to be another very special sporting occasion.”
Over 400,000 spectators have also attended EPCR Challenge Cup matches over the course of the season.
Glasgow Warriors, who are appearing in their first EPCR final, face RC Toulon in the EPCR Challenge Cup decider with both clubs chasing a first Challenge Cup title.
Saturday’s eagerly-anticipated showpiece match will see two of the world’s most powerful clubs, Leinster Rugby and holders, Stade Rochelais, face off with the aim of making their own history with Leinster chasing an elusive fifth star and Stade Rochelais looking to secure back-to-back wins.
Global stars of the game will be on show in Dublin with EPCR Player of the Year nominees, Caelan Doris, Garry Ringrose and Josh van der Flier of Leinster likely to feature along with the Stade Rochelais captain, Grégory Alldritt.
RC Toulon and Italy star, fan favourite, and a Challenge Cup winner in 2017, Sergio Parisse, will be playing in his last EPCR match.
Players from as many as eight countries – Argentina, Australia, Fiji, France, Ireland, New Zealand, Samoa and South Africa – are in line to be selected in the respective Heineken Champions Cup match day squads, and the Leinster v Stade Rochelais showdown will be watched by TV viewers in close to 200 countries worldwide.
The EPCR Finals Weekend in Dublin will welcome fans from across Europe and further afield, bringing an expected economic benefit of €50 million (euro) to the city and greater Dublin area, 10 years on from when the finals last took place in Ireland.
2023 EPCR CHALLENGE CUP FINAL
(Kick-off local time)
Friday – Glasgow Warriors v RC Toulon Aviva Stadium, Dublin (20.00)
BT Sport / France TV / beIN SPORTS / SuperSport
2023 HEINEKEN CHAMPIONS CUP FINAL
(Kick-off local time)
Saturday – Leinster Rugby v Stade Rochelais Aviva Stadium, Dublin (16.45)
BT Sport / France TV / beIN SPORTS / SuperSport / RTE / ITV
Mr. Spy
Japan was the first Asian nation to reach the knockout stages of the Rugby World Cup – In 2019, Japan hosted the Rugby World Cup. Not only were they the first Asian nation to host they Rugby World Cup, they also shocked the world by beating Scotland to reach the knockout stages for the first time in history. Though they were eventually stopped by South Africa in the quarter-finals, they stole our hearts with the way they played. They also showed that taking rugby to new nations is the way forward to grow the game’s popularity.
CosPlatoon
You might remember that in 2010, South Africa hosted the World Cup. But did you know it was the first African nation ever to do so?