Champions Cup 2025/26 · Semi-Final
Bordeaux-Bègles
Bath
Stade Chaban-Delmas, Bordeaux
Championship Standings
Bordeaux topped Pool 4 with a perfect 4/4 record and 20 points — joint-best alongside Glasgow. Bath topped Pool 2 with a 3W-1L record, 16 points and a tournament-best +91 point differential. Two pool winners colliding in a heavyweight semi-final — the only thing that separates them on paper is Bath's away loss in Toulon.
| Pos | Team | P | W | L | PD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bordeaux-Bègles | 4 | 4 | 0 | +76 | 20 |
| 2 |  Glasgow Warriors | 4 | 4 | 0 | +49 | 20 |
| 3 |  Leinster | 4 | 4 | 0 | +35 | 18 |
| 4 | Bath | 4 | 3 | 1 | +91 | 16 |
| 5 |  Northampton Saints | 4 | 3 | 1 | +46 | 16 |
| 6 |  Harlequins | 4 | 3 | 1 | +98 | 15 |
| 7 |  Bristol Bears | 4 | 3 | 1 | +50 | 14 |
| 8 |  RC Toulon | 4 | 3 | 1 | +17 | 14 |
| 9 |  Stormers | 4 | 3 | 1 | −8 | 14 |
| 10 |  Toulouse | 4 | 2 | 2 | +94 | 12 |
| 11 |  Sale Sharks | 4 | 2 | 2 | −38 | 11 |
| 12 |  Saracens | 4 | 2 | 2 | +13 | 10 |
| 13 |  Castres Olympique | 4 | 2 | 2 | −8 | 10 |
| 14 |  Sharks | 4 | 2 | 2 | −10 | 10 |
| 15 |  Edinburgh | 4 | 2 | 2 | −71 | 10 |
| 16 |  Munster | 4 | 1 | 3 | −2 | 8 |
| 17 |  Bulls | 4 | 1 | 3 | −68 | 7 |
| 18 |  Leicester Tigers | 4 | 1 | 3 | +3 | 6 |
| 19 |  La Rochelle | 4 | 1 | 3 | −13 | 6 |
| 20 |  Gloucester | 4 | 1 | 3 | −27 | 6 |
| 21 |  Section Paloise | 4 | 1 | 3 | −50 | 6 |
| 22 |  Scarlets | 4 | 0 | 4 | −54 | 3 |
| 23 |  Clermont | 4 | 0 | 4 | −108 | 0 |
| 24 |  Bayonne | 4 | 0 | 4 | −115 | 0 |
Bordeaux-Bègles
W5, L0Bordeaux are a freight train in this competition. Five from five, 203 points scored, and the standout result was the 30–15 dismantling of Toulouse in the quarter-final — a Toulouse side that has put 56 on Bordeaux at the Ernest-Wallon earlier this season. The reigning champions have now won 13 consecutive Champions Cup matches and look every bit as dangerous as last year.
Bath
W4, L1Bath have scored more points than any other side in the competition (+91 PD). The 63–10 evisceration of Edinburgh and 43-point haul away in Castres show the ceiling. The 43–41 quarter-final escape against Northampton — sealed by Ted Hill's try four minutes from time — was less convincing but underlines the resilience. Their only loss was a 45–34 reverse at Toulon, away from home in October.
Head-to-Head Record
1 – 0 – 1
Bordeaux wins · Draws · Bath wins (only 2 prior meetings, both 2013)
Bordeaux-Bègles (1)These two have barely crossed paths. Their only previous meetings were back-to-back Amlin Challenge Cup pool fixtures in 2013, when Bath were a mid-table Premiership outfit and Bordeaux were freshly promoted to the Top 14. Both sides are unrecognisable now — this is effectively a blank slate, which suits an away side that has nothing to overturn but no historical comfort to lean on either.
Recent Results
| Date | Competition | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Jan 2014 | Amlin Challenge Cup | Bath 54–13 Bordeaux-Bègles |
| Oct 2013 | Amlin Challenge Cup | Bordeaux-Bègles 6–15 Bath |
Average score in the last 6 meetings: Bath 35 – Bordeaux 10 (last 2 meetings, both in 2013). Effectively meaningless context — neither squad has more than a handful of survivors from those teams.
Extended Form
Bordeaux-Bègles15W, 8L
Champions Cup: W5 L0 this season. Won the 2024/25 Champions Cup. Top 14: 4th (12W-8L, +136 PD), with recent results including 30–15 v Toulouse, 64–14 v Leicester, 44–20 v Toulouse; lost to Pau, Stade Francais, Clermont, Montpellier (twice).
Bordeaux are the reigning European champions and now on a 13-match Champions Cup winning streak. Their Top 14 form is patchier — 4th in the table — but in Europe they have been near-flawless. At Chaban-Delmas the swagger is full beam.
Bath20W, 4L
Champions Cup: W4 L1 this season. Premiership: 2nd with 51 points (10W-2L, +158 PD), the best PD in England. Recent results: 48–15 v Harlequins, 43–41 v Northampton (QF), 31–22 v Saracens, 31–26 win at Sale; lost only to Northampton (41–38) and Leicester (46–21).
Bath are arguably the form team in European rugby across all competitions — only two losses across 24 matches this season. The Premiership table tells the story: 158 PD, second only to Northampton, and a side that has outscored every other Champions Cup pool team. They are not a side that will be intimidated by the trip to France.
Bordeaux-Bègles XV
Lineups not yet announced. Expect Bordeaux to start with Lucu and Jalibert at half-back, Penaud and Bielle-Biarrey on the wings, Moefana in midfield, and Woki anchoring a heavyweight back-row alongside Gazzotti. The pack that fronted up against Toulouse — Poirot, Lamothe, Sadie, Palu, Coleman — will likely start again.
Bath XV
Lineups not yet announced and Bath are managing a serious injury crisis: captain Ben Spencer (shoulder), Cam Redpath, Max Ojomoh and Joe Cokanasiga are all 'touch and go' per Johann van Graan. Finn Russell will pull the strings at 10. Ted Hill, Beno Obano and Thomas du Toit anchor the pack. Bath may even debut 18-year-old Isaac Mears given the depth concerns.
Key Matchups
Bordeaux have the better halves and the better wings — Bielle-Biarrey is the leading try-scorer in the competition and Penaud is a generational finisher. Bath's injury list bites hardest in the back-line: if Spencer, Redpath, Ojomoh and Cokanasiga all miss, the gap widens. The forwards are where Bath stay in this game — du Toit and Obano front a serious scrum, and Ewels-McNally is one of the most physical second-row pairings going. If Bath can suffocate this into a set-piece arm-wrestle, Russell can win it from 10. If it opens up, Bordeaux have too many weapons.
Match Forecast
Bordeaux at home in a Champions Cup knockout is as close to a lock as European rugby offers right now. The reigning champions are on a 13-match Champions Cup winning streak, scored 203 points across the campaign, and just dispatched Toulouse 30–15 in the quarter-final. The scorecard yields a net +8 driven by home advantage, the back-line gap, and Bath's mounting injury list — Spencer, Redpath, Ojomoh and Cokanasiga are all doubtful and that's four first-choice backs in serious trouble.
Bath are not coming as tourists — they have the best PD in the competition, the best Premiership form outside Northampton, and Russell at 10 is the kind of player who can win a knockout match on his own. If their forwards — du Toit, Obano, Hill, Ewels — turn this into a slow, strangling set-piece battle, the away upset is on. But if Bordeaux find any tempo, Bielle-Biarrey and Penaud will punish a depleted Bath back-line ruthlessly.
Bordeaux to win by 12+ — Bath's injury crisis tips a tight matchup into a clear home edge.