European Cup reveals semifinal venues

NEWS: In advance of the remaining fixtures in the knockout stage of the 2021/22 Champions Cup, the venues for the semifinals have been confirmed.

It has been agreed that, for this season only, the semifinals will be played at the chosen venues of the highest-ranked clubs.

A total of five venues in France, England and Ireland are in line to stage a semifinal match on the weekend of May 14/15 - depending on the results of the quarterfinals.

Regarding semifinal 1, if Racing 92 qualifies, they will play either Stade Rochelais or Montpellier Hérault Rugby at the 38,000-capacity Stade Bollaert-Delelis in Lens as Paris La Défense will be unavailable on the Champions Cup semifinal weekend.

If Stade Rochelais come through to meet Sale Sharks, that match will be played at Stade Marcel-Deflandre, and if a semifinal happens to pit Sale Sharks against Montpellier Hérault Rugby, that match will go ahead at the AJ Bell Stadium.

For semifinal 2, if Leicester Tigers win through from the quarterfinals, they will play either Munster Rugby or Stade Toulousain at Mattioli Woods Welford Road, and if Leinster earns a last-four place against Stade Toulousain, that match will be scheduled for the 51,000-capacity Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Similarly, if Munster qualifies to meet Leinster in a semifinal, then that match will also be staged at the Aviva Stadium as Thomond Park will be unavailable on the weekend of 14/15 May.