The group stage of the 2023–24 European Rugby Champions Cup has ended and the leading sixteen teams will now battle it out for silverware. Second seeds Leinster are the slight favourites to win and they were able to win all of their Pool D clashes, securing four victories to finish ahead of Stormers and La Rochelle.
Meanwhile, Toulouse were also able to record four wins and no defeats in a competitive Pool B which also featured Harlequins and Bath, with the French side being installed as the top seeds. It would be no surprise if we ended up witnessing a final between Toulouse and Leinster based on the outright odds.
Bordeaux and Bulls also line up at the last sixteen stage and they qualified from Pool A by recording three wins from their four encounters. Northampton Saints and Exeter Chiefs were also able to impress at the pool stage, with the former now third seeds and they will hope to make headway when it comes to the knockout phase.
It was La Rochelle who claimed the European Rugby Champions Cup in 2023, although the French side are trading at 6/1 to retain their crown this term. They are only tenth seeds coming into the knockout phase and that means clashing with Stormers before a potential quarter final clash against Leinster.
The latter will meet Leicester Tigers for a place in the last eight and they are warm favourites to come through the bottom half of a draw which also includes Northampton Saints, Munster, Bulls and Lyon. Perhaps Bulls are the team who can go deep in the competition and they are sixth seeds after being a pool runner-up.
Toulouse are the number one seeds and they have been paired with fellow French side Racing 92 in the round of sixteen before a showdown against Exeter Chiefs or Bath. However, they could face a tough assignment should they go as deep as the semi-finals, with the bookmakers respecting the chances of Bordeaux.
The outright market has four teams trading at single figure betting odds and there is now match betting available for the knockout stage matches. The handicap market is likely to prove popular and there will be the chance to choose from a range of handicaps as we get closer to the start of the matches.