EUROPEAN Challenge Cup organisers are coming under pressure from clubs to announce the format of this season's competition which remains under discussion weeks before the new league campaigns start.
The draw for the Heineken Champions Cup was made in July, but no date has yet been fixed for the announcement of the schedule of the Challenge Cup which will involve five Premiership clubs, including promoted Saracens, along with six from the old PRO14 and six from the Top 14.
A complication is the presence of South Africa's four leading franchises in this season's United Rugby Championship, the successor to the PRO14.
The Lions, the Bulls, the Sharks and the Stormers are keen to play in Europe, but with travel restrictions varying across Europe, fitting them in is proving a logistical nightmare.
“The draw still has to be confirmed,” said Worcester's head coach Jonathan Thomas when asked last week whether he yet knew who the Warriors would be facing when the Challenge Cup kicks off at the beginning of December.
“I think they are ironing things out around the South African teams.”
European Professional Club Rugby, the organisers of the two cups, said discussions were still taking place over the Challenge Cup format for the new season and that an announcement should be expected “in due course.”
The Challenge Cup campaign is not being looked at in isolation because also on the table are the formats for the Champions Cup and the Challenge Cup from the 2022-23 campaign. Covid restrictions have meant Europe has lost two weekends in the group stage while gaining one through the addition of a quarter final.
The South African sides will be involved from 2022-23 with qualification hinging on finishing positions in the league.
The URC is this season being divided into four regional pools – Ireland, Wales and South Africa with the fourth made up of the four teams from Scotland and Italy.
The winner in each will qualify for the Champions Cup along with the four highest placed teams in the table, guaranteeing South Africa at least one place. The other eight sides will take part in the Challenge Cup, which may be given a new name.
■By PAUL REES
