“…we could probably pick two 15s that would compete… against most if not all teams.” Ben Earl, on For The Love Of Rugby.
Ben Earl says Saracens could pick two XVs. Last season they lost the only knockout game they played.
The Saracens and England No 8 said it on For The Love Of Rugby, released on Thursday 17 September. The Champions Cup 2026/27 starts on Friday 16 October.
Saracens went out 31-22 at Bath in last season’s round of 16. No English club has won the tournament since Exeter in 2020, and French clubs have won all six finals since.
So can two Saracens XVs break a six-year French run, or did Bath answer Earl last season?
Two XVs for a fight on two fronts
Asked whether Europe is a priority, Earl started with the squad.
“We’ve got as good a depth as we’ve had as a squad in a good while… I think we’re in a place now where we could probably pick two 15s that would compete… against most if not all teams. That hasn’t always been the case…”
He put the English struggle down to the calendar: “we’re fighting on two big fronts.” A Premiership club carries a league season and a European pool with one squad.
Brendan Venter has replaced Mark McCall, who stepped down after 15 years and three European titles. Venter first held the job in 2009, when he brought McCall to the club.
Earl credited the rotation.
“Brendan’s been massive on like keeping everyone rotated in and out… we’re going to be a lot fresher for some of these big games.”
The Champions Cup 2026/27 rules make depth worth more
EPCR changed the format in June, and the changes reported by Rugby365 all reward what Earl is describing.
- The top three in each pool qualify automatically for the round of 16.
- The last four places go to the four clubs with the most match points across all pools.
- Ties are split on wins before points difference.
- A try bonus point now needs three more tries than the opposition.
Under the old format, fourth in a pool was a safe landing. A club could rest players for a hard trip and still go through.
Now fourth place is a ranking against every club outside the top three, in every pool. A second XV beaten heavily in Galway costs points in that table. One that wins there is the depth Earl means.
The last 16 is seeded on pool results, and only the top eight seeds play at home.
| Saracens in Pool 2 | When | Where |
|---|---|---|
| Connacht (away) | Saturday 17 October | Dexcom Stadium, Galway |
| La Rochelle (home) | December, round 2 | StoneX Stadium |
| Lions of Johannesburg (home) | Saturday 9 January | StoneX Stadium |
| Toulouse (away) | Sunday 17 January | Stade Ernest-Wallon |
Fixtures: EPCR, published 10 July. Exeter are in the pool but do not play Saracens.
Earl called the two away days very tough: Connacht on the opening weekend, and Toulouse, the champions of France, on the last.
Northampton still feel Cardiff
Northampton are Premiership champions, 26-17 winners over Exeter in the final. Alex Mitchell, their England scrum-half, still carries the final they lost.
“…the Champions Cup two years ago we got to the final against Bordeaux and that still hurts… that’s obviously one we’ve not won at the moment.”
Bordeaux-Bègles won that final 28-20 in Cardiff. Last season Bath knocked Northampton out in a quarter-final, 43-41.
Mitchell played two Tests for the British and Irish Lions in 2025, and he rates Europe alongside them.
“It’s very similar to international rugby if not bigger some of the occasions… it feels like a Test match when you’re playing, especially the knockout stages.”
Their Champions Cup 2026/27 starts at home to Cardiff on Sunday 18 October, and they have already kept Tommy Freeman.
Gloucester get the holders on the first night
The Champions Cup 2026/27 opens at Kingsholm at 8pm on Friday 16 October. Gloucester play Bordeaux-Bègles, who have won the last two finals.
Seb Atkinson, Gloucester’s England inside centre, treats the draw as a test.
“I think we’ll be testing our game against some of the best teams in the competition with the way that the pool’s been drawn… I think we probably have that little bit of unexpectedness about us… we might shock a few teams.”
Gloucester did not reach last season’s round of 16. They have since signed two men who have captained Wales, Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake, and lost Tomos Williams to Saracens.
Atkinson called the new signings “more sort of additions to the squad” than replacements. After Bordeaux, Gloucester go to Racing 92, host the Stormers side Siya Kolisi now captains, then finish at Munster.
Racing 92: fifty players and no fixed home
Nathan Hughes, the fourth guest on the same episode, won 22 England caps before moving to Japan and then Racing 92. Racing were not in last season’s competition, and he said qualifying was the target.
“That was one of the goals for us to make it into the Champions Cup and you know now we’ve done it…”
Racing’s Champions Cup 2026/27 opens at Munster in Cork on Saturday 17 October and ends against the Stormers in Cape Town. In between, they host Gloucester and Bristol.
Hosting is its own problem this season. Racing leave the Paris La Défense Arena, now the Plenitude Arena, at the end of the year for a rebuilt Stade Yves-du-Manoir in Colombes.
Their 13 Top 14 home games are split four at the Plenitude Arena, five at Créteil and four at big stadiums around France. The Gloucester game is at the Plenitude Arena; Bristol’s venue has not been announced.
Hughes, like Earl, talked depth: “we’ve got 50 players in our squad and everyone has to be ready”. He was clear on the order, too: “our main focus as well is top 14.”
Read also: Munster start the season without Jack Crowley, the side Racing meet in Cork on the opening weekend.
Two January weekends will test Earl’s claim
Bath did answer Earl, once. Saracens finished last season’s pool as the 13th seed, so their last-16 tie was away, and they lost it.
The new format makes a high seed harder to earn. Every point Saracens drop in Galway now counts against clubs they never play.
So the test of two XVs comes on two straight January weekends. The Lions come to StoneX on Saturday 9 January, and Saracens go to Toulouse eight days later.
Win both and a home tie in the last 16 is within reach. Lose both and Saracens are back where Bath left them.
Read next: La Rochelle are Saracens’ December visitors, and Ronan O’Gara has a squad to rebuild by 2031.
Your turn: two XVs, or September talk?
Two ways to read Earl. Either Saracens have the depth to carry a pool and a league at once, or this is September confidence. On the record: Saracens win three of their four pool games and host a last-16 tie. Screenshot it. The comments are open on Sunday 17 January.
Frequently asked
When does the Champions Cup 2026/27 start?
On Friday 16 October, when Gloucester host Bordeaux-Bègles at Kingsholm at 8pm. The pool stage runs over four weekends to Sunday 17 January, and the final is at OL Stadium in Lyon on Saturday 22 May.
What has changed in the Champions Cup 2026/27 format?
The top three in each pool qualify automatically for the round of 16. The next four places go to the clubs with the most match points across all pools. Wins decide ties, and a bonus point needs three more tries than the opposition.
Who is in Saracens’ Champions Cup 2026/27 pool?
Pool 2: Toulouse, La Rochelle, the Lions, Exeter Chiefs and Connacht. Saracens play Connacht and Toulouse away and host La Rochelle and the Lions.
When did an English club last win the Champions Cup?
Exeter Chiefs, 31-27 winners over Racing 92 in 2020. French clubs have won all six finals since, and Northampton, beaten in 2025, are the only English finalist.
