Champions Cup Round of 16: European Rugby Heavyweights Collide This Weekend
by Devesh Jaganath | by Cydias Aujard
RC Toulonnais vs. DHL Stormers - Saturday, April 4 (14:00 GMT)
Saturday’s European Rugby Champions Cup Round of 16 schedule gets underway at Stade Mayol in France, where RC Toulonnais will be playing host to the DHL Stormers, and you can get all the key insights for this clash in our Champions Cup predictions ahead of kickoff.
Toulon secured home advantage by finishing second to Bath in Pool 2 during the group stage with three wins and one loss in their four games, and there is widespread belief that the Red and Blacks are pinning all their hopes this season on a deep run in this competition.
Toulon are in 11th place in the Top 14 (W9 D1 L10) and on the verge of failing to qualify for next season’s Champions Cup!
The DHL Stormers also racked up three wins and a loss during group play, but finished below the Harlequins in third place due to a worse points difference (-8), much of which was attributable to their 61-10 hammering at Twicekenham Stoop in Week 3 back in early January.
The Capetonians are 2-0 against Top 14 opposition this season and are returning to the Champions Cup knockouts for the first time since 2024. They will be hungry to reach the semis for the first time ever, but there is a case to be made that they may prioritise the URC, where they are second in the standings with an 11-3 record.
Glasgow Warriors vs. Vodacom Bulls - Saturday, April 4 (16:30 GMT)
Arguably, the hottest team in European club rugby right now are the Glasgow Warriors, who enter the Champions Cup knockouts, having recorded a perfect four wins from four games in the group stage - one of only three teams to do so, along with Leinster and the Bordeaux Begles.
The Warriors are also the top team in the United Rugby Championship with 55 points, including 11 bonus points and a massive 192 points difference (W11 L3). Additionally, the Scottish side will have the psychological advantage here, having beaten this opponent at Scotstoun Stadium earlier this season.
“If we’re in the play-offs in the Champions Cup, we must give it a go!"
Those were the words for Vodacom Bulls’ head coach Johann Ackermann following their 34-31 victory over Munster in the URC last weekend. The Bulls only beat Pau in their four matches during the group stage, squeaking past La Section into the Round of 16 by a single bonus point.
However, the Pretoria-based team are going all in for this fixture, with Ackermann set to send a squad packed with as many as 14 Springboks to Glasgow, including the likes of Handre Pollard, Kurt-Lee Arendse, Canan Moodie, Marco van Staden and veteran full-back Willie le Roux.
Stade Toulousain vs. Bristol Bears - Saturday, April 4 (16:30 GMT)
Despite going 2-0-2 in group play and finishing eight points behind Pool 1 winners Glasgow Warriors, Stade Toulousain are still the favourites to win the Champions Cup this season, according to all the best online betting sites, and have home advantage against the Bears this weekend.
Toulouse are eyeing a seventh European title and will have most, if not all, of their Six Nations contingent back for this clash, including Thomas Ramos, who has the most points in this season's Champions Cup (53) and led Les Bleus to the Championship title with 74 points earlier this month.
This is the first-ever competitive meeting between Toulouse and Bristol Bears!
The Bristol Bears, on the other hand, went 3-0-1 in what was widely considered the toughest Pool in the competition, losing only to Saracens 20-14 in January. They will also be boosted by the returns of their internationals in Ellis Genge, Tom Jordan and Louis Rees-Zammit.
While Bristol has more than enough quality to beat any team on their day, they returned to Gallagher Premiership action this month with back-to-back defeats against Leicester (33-19) and Harlequins (18-14), which saw them drop out of the top four, now with an 8-0-4 record and 38 points.
