Sixteen Clubs, Five Countries

Sixteen professional clubs from Ireland, Italy, Scotland, South Africa and Wales. Eighteen rounds, home and away across a season that runs from September to June, and a play-off structure for the top eight.

THE SHIELDS. Alongside the overall log, the URC runs four regional shields — Irish, Scottish/Italian, South African and Welsh — decided on the six matches each club plays against its own countrymen. For South African supporters this is the derby competition, and it is the one the Lions won in 2025/26.

THE LOG AND THE PLAY-OFFS. Four points for a win, two for a draw, one bonus point for scoring four or more tries, one for losing by seven or fewer. The top eight after eighteen rounds reach the quarter-finals, with the higher-ranked club at home throughout. The top four are guaranteed a home quarter-final.

WHY IT IS HARD FOR THE SOUTH AFRICAN CLUBS. Two hemispheres, two climates and a travel burden that falls almost entirely on four teams. The Lions play three of their first four rounds on the road in Europe, in September, at the start of their season and in the middle of everyone else's preparation. No European club faces anything comparable.

THE 2025/26 SEASON. Glasgow Warriors topped the log on 65 points. Leinster finished second on 63 and won the competition, beating the Vodacom Bulls 36-7 in the Grand Final on 19 June 2026. The Stormers and the Bulls took third and fourth. The Lions finished seventh on 54, a point behind Munster and Cardiff and level with Connacht — separated from them on wins.

THE LIONS IN THE URC. Five seasons. Twelfth, ninth, ninth, eleventh — and then seventh, a South African Shield, and a first quarter-final.