European Rugby Champions Cup Final Preview
It’s time, the Investec Champions Cup is back for one final match week as Northampton Saints and Union Bordeaux-Bègles get ready to lock horns in the final. Let’s take a closer look at the upcoming match!
Cardiff will host the 2025 Investec Champions Cup and Challenge Cup finals for the first time in 11 years with fans set to take over the Principality Stadium as well as the city itself. The Welsh capital beat competition from 23 stadiums across 12 countries to win the right to stage the finals. Next season marks the 30th staging of the European Cup, which culminated in Cardiff hosting the inaugural final in 1996, and the following one in 1997. Tournament organisers EPCR have also confirmed San Mames Stadium in Bilbao, Spain, will host the 2026 finals. Cardiff has previously hosted the final seven times, including the first two at the former National Stadium. The Principality Stadium has since staged the Champions Cup finals on five occasions, though not since Johnny Wilkinson lifted the trophy with Toulon in 2014. Staging the final in 2014 generated £24 million for the city, Cardiff council said. Bilbao became the first city outside of European rugby’s top six nations to host the European finals in 2018 when Leinster lifted the Champions Cup and Cardiff won the Challenge Cup. The 53,000-seater home of Athletic Bilbao football club was awarded the Best Sports Building in the World accolade in 2015 by the World Architecture Festival and will also host this season’s Women’s CL final and the 2025 EL final between Spurs and Man Utd.
This season’s final will be contested by Bordeaux and Northampton Saints on 24 May 2025. For Bordeaux, this will be the first time that side has made a European final, and just their second major final, having only made a domestic final once in their history. Whilst for Northampton Saints, they make a European final for the fourth time, their first since their 2014 Challenge Cup title, and their first Champions Cup final since 2011.
The two sides have only met once in their history, coming during the 2020–21 European Rugby Champions Cup, where Bordeaux won 16-12 at Franklin’s Gardens.
The two sides enter the final on different domestic forms; Bordeaux sit comfortably in the top 4 of the table in the 2024–25 Top 14 season, whilst Northampton Saints have already dropped out of the Premiership Rugby title race and therefore unable to retain their title. However, their European form has seen Northampton Saints only lose one game; a 45–35 loss to Stade Français in the pool stages. Whilst for Bordeaux, they enter the final as top seed after winning all their games in the pool stage with a bonus points before their run in the knockouts saw them progress to the final.
Northampton’s preparation for the final was certainly exciting, as they warmed up for this final with a comeback victory over Saracens in front of their home fans. Even with Investec Champions Cup stars such as Fin Smith, Alex Mitchell, Tommy Freeman and Investec Player of the Year nominee Henry Pollock littering the line-up, Saints struggled to get going after their opening cross in minute seven. Led by a ‘Sarries’ side hunting down the final playoff spot, Saints saw themselves down 7-19 at half-time. But inspired by a third Champions Cup Final on the horizon, a flurry of substitutes seemed to kick-start the hosts into action. It was in the final 10 minutes of the tie that Saints really showed that explosive form to which we’ve grown accustomed in this season’s Investec Champions Cup. A Tarek Haffar double, including one at the death, was enough to push Northampton into a 28-24 lead come full-time, the perfect send-off before heading to Cardiff this week.
Northampton’s European run to the final was equally entertaining with the pool stage certainly being one for the history books. They got off to the perfect start in Round 1 when TOP 14’s Castres Olympique visited Franklin’s Gardens, a 38-8 win over the French thanks to a six-try thriller. They then got the better of the Bulls in South Africa but lost out when they were beaten by Stade Francais in Paris. This defeat only spurred them on, with their final pool stage game against Munster Rugby promising to be a cracker, and it certainly didn’t disappoint. Pitting two Champions Cup heavyweights together, a Tom Seabrook brace for the home side ultimately gifted the four points to Saints. Qualified from Pool 3 in top spot, Saints had secured themselves the home advantage route for the knockouts, the only English side to do so.
The Round of 16 brought with it a return to Franklin’s Gardens and another spectacular Saints performance. France’s ASM Clermont Auvergne were the latest victims to a Freeman double, a Fin Smith score plus five converted kicks as well as a late Pollock cross as Northampton’s youngsters were purring into their prime just at the right time, winning by a final score of 51-16. If his double against Castres in the quarters went some way in proving some Pollock doubters wrong, the hype was well and truly confirmed in the English side’s historic semi-final. None other than four-time champions Leinster Rugby were the ones lying in wait in Dublin, with many betting against Saints’ credentials. But the underdog grit had clearly dug itself deep into Northampton’s skin, and an inspired Freeman and Pollock shared five scores for what will forever go down as a Dublin masterclass.
Bordeaux Begles have been equally entertaining this season and will be revelling in their opportunity to win a European Cup. Last weekend Bordeaux welcomed Castres Olympique to Stade Chaban-Delmas, UBB’s backs featuring Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Maxime Lucu and Matthieu Jalibert were too much for Castres to handle. As for their route to the European final, if Northampton Saints’ pool stage win was impressive, UBB reached new heights in their group, as they became the only side to seal five bonus-point wins for an unmatched 20 points.
First up for the French side was a home tie against Leicester Tigers to get the gears into motion. Managing a 42-28 win on the opening day. A trip to Ulster Rugby in Round 2 proved challenging, but a spirited first half from the hosts was soon wiped away by a superior Bordeaux in the second 40. Round 3 was another trip north for Bordeaux as Exeter Chiefs hosted the now finalists. Already with two statement wins in the first two games, UBB were just getting going. They were perilously close to the 70 mark with their 17-69 win as the pacy duo of Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Damian Penaud were flying down the Devonshire wings. And it was the latter that claimed yet more history for UBB in Round 4.
Back at Chaban for the final pool outing against Hollywoodbets Sharks, Penaud went over six times in total on their way to a 66-12 win. Keen to continue their pool stage rampage into the Round of 16, UBB were back up against an Irish side who had caused them trouble in the group, Ulster. Despite conceding five, UBB’s attacking prowess made sure to see the French side through to the quarters as the stakes hotted up. Another Irish outfit was set to visit the Chaban fortress as Munster made the trip down the coast following an inspiring Stade Rochelais win the week before. Qualified for the semis and a date with yet more history was on the cards. Having lost to Stade Toulousain in last season’s TOP 14 final, UBB were pitted against their rivals for a shot at their maiden Champions Cup Final. It was too good an opportunity to miss too, as a star performance from every one of the ‘Bordelais’ put their record straight with the reigning champions as they managed a 35-18 victory.
Last season, it was Toulouse that lifted the coveted trophy, getting the better of Leinster to become the fourth French team to win in a row. It was also Leinster’s third defeat in a final in a row. Can Bordeaux Begles make it five in a row for French teams or can Northampton win, making it a first English winner since 2019-20. The odds are firmly in favour of the French side, who are currently priced at 1.37 to win, giving them a 73% chance of winning, whereas Northampton are 3.40, a 29% chance, and the handicap line is currently +6.5 (at the time of writing).
Without a doubt, the French side are justified as favourites, especially given Northampton’s domestic form. That being said, the English side have a number of special players on their books, none more so than fly half Finn Smith, as well as other England internationals Alex Mitchell, Tommy Freeman and rising star Henry Pollock. Bordeaux Begles will hope that their trio of French stars, Lucu, Jalibert and Beille-Barrey will prove too much for the English team to handle and they have experienced internationals across the pitch.
We are almost guaranteed an excellent final and the Principality in Cardiff is almost unrivalled when it comes to a rugby venue. There will surely be a great mix of locals, English and French all mingling in the streets around the stadium, soaking up the atmosphere and making the most of this special occasion. Who will win? With such quality players on both sides, anything could happen, but we are surely set for an excellent ending to the club rugby season.
Odds might have changed since the publication and/or writing of this article.
Last Updated: 21.05.2025
