Bordeaux Begles are the 2025 Champions Cup winners after defeating Northampton Saints 28-20 in Saturday’s final in the Principality Stadium. It was the final that people wanted. It had everything, tries, cards, disallowed tries and key moments a plenty. Bordeaux are only in existence 19 years after the amalgamation of two clubs in the Bordeaux area.
It was finally poised at the half with the score 20 all and it was all to play for in the second half. Both sides scored tries in the opening half and cancelled each other out that as I mentioned saw both teams level at half time.
Northampton were looking for a first title in 25 years after a win in 2000 and a loss to Leinster in 2011. They have already won domestic honours winning the Premiership title in May 2024. Only losing out to Leinster in Croke Park in last season’s Champions Cup semi-final.
Northampton did have opportunities in the game and won several penalties late on but they could not stay inside the Bordeaux half for long enough to make all that pressure count. Bordeaux will be delighted that they managed the second half so well and managed to stretch out the lead to 8 points and it is a lead they never relinquished.
Both sides attacked each other and while Northampton’s attack was very reliant on Sam Vesty’s bag of set moves to help it through, they also showed real quality with Alex Mitchell and Fin Smith trying to put guys like Fraiser Dingwall and Tommy Freeman into space.
The loss of James Ramm and George Furbank to injury early on had a huge impact on the Saints late on in terms they couldn’t have any impact in the final 20 minutes in particular. Bordeaux had that impact from quite early on the second half. Both sides went 6/2 on the bench. This power had a greater impact for Bordeaux than it had for the Saints.
Mathieu Jailibert and Maxime Lucu were to the fore for Bordeaux helped along by a very powerfull forward pack. Damien Penaud made it back for the final after an injury in the semi-final vs Toulouse and he scored 2 tries to move to 14 Champions Cup tries for the year. Three tries more than the previous record holder Chris Ashton who scored 11 while in the colours of Saracens in a season.
Bordeaux Begles are the 2025 winners of the Champions Cup and were worthy winners. It keeps the trophy in France for another year, Toulouse, La Rochelle and now Bordeaux have shared the last 4 titles between them. Exeter were the last English winner in 2020 and Leinster were the last Irish winner in 2018.
It will be interesting to see who may come from the chasing pack in 2026 to put their name on the trophy or will Bordeaux Begles double up and win a second title in succession. This particular feat will not be easily achieved.
You can sure several other sides will be hell bent on winning the Champions Cup in 2026, France and England have shared the last 5 between them and other sides will want to desperately break that strangle hold.
The competition will take a break in 2028 to allow for the World Club Cup to take its place, well the latter stages will be different in 2028. That chat is for another day. I congratulate Bordeaux Begles on winning a first European crown and of course we have Irish interest with Noel Mc Namara in the coaching staff and Joey Carbery in year 1 of a 3 year deal signed last year. Carbery won his second medal after winning his first with Leinster in 2018. Congrats to both men and their families…..