Stade Vélodrome back on the map
Reigning European champions Toulon will make a return to the Stade Vélodrome for their Champions Cup semifinal if they manage to defeat Wasps in Sunday's crunch quarterfinal.
Toulon got the better of Munster in last season's semifinal at the iconic Marseille stadium – which has been completely redeveloped, and they are targeting another big day against either Leinster or Bath as they bid for an historic three European titles in a row.
Should Wasps dethrone the champions, they will take on Leinster or Bath in the last four at the Community Stadium in Brighton, with the semifinals scheduled for the weekend of April 18 and 19.
The Brighton stadium is one of the venues for World Cup 2015 and recently hosted the Six Nations Under-20 match between England and France.
If Clermont Auvergne add to an impressive 22-game unbeaten home run in Europe, when they meet Northampton Saints on Saturday, they will play either Racing Metro 92 or Saracens in the semifinal at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard in Saint-Etienne.
However, should Saints come away from Clermont with a victory, they will meet either Racing or Saracens at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry.
The exact dates and kick-off times for the Champions Cup semifinals will be announced following the quarterfinals.
The Champions Cup semifinals are played at venues designated by EPCR which are selected in conjunction with the relevant Union. Home country advantage in the last four was determined by a draw at the conclusion of the pool stages in January.
For the Challenge Cup, the semifinals are played at home venues with home advantage also decided by the draw in January.
The inaugural knockout stages of EPCR's tournaments will kick off on Friday – when Gloucester meet Connacht in the first of the Challenge Cup quarterfinals, with the Champions Cup last-eight games getting underway the following day when Leinster go head-to-head with Bath.
Champions Cup semifinals – April 18 and 19:
RC Toulon v winners Leinster v Bath
Stade Vélodrome, Marseille (capacity: 62,895)
OR
Wasps v winners Leinster v Bath
Community Stadium, Brighton (capacity: 30,750)
ASM Clermont Auvergne v winners Racing Metro 92 v Saracens
Stade Geoffroy-Guichard, Saint-Etienne (capacity: 39,774)
OR
Northampton Saints v winners Racing Metro 92 v Saracens
Ricoh Arena, Coventry (capacity: 32,609)
