A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H | CH | I | J | K | L | M | N | O | P | Q | R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9
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| 2022–23 EPCR Challenge Cup | |
|---|---|
 The EPCR Challenge Cup | |
| Tournament details | |
| Countries |  England France Ireland Italy Scotland South Africa Wales |
| Tournament format(s) | Round-robin and knockout |
| Date | 9 December 2022 – 19 May 2023 |
| Tournament statistics | |
| Teams | 18 |
| Matches played | 51 |
| Attendance | 314,320 (6,163 per match) |
| Highest attendance | 31,514 - Glasgow Warriors v Toulon 19 May 2023 |
| Lowest attendance | 200 - Cheetahs v Scarlets 17 December 2022 200 - Cheetahs v Pau 22 January 2023[a] |
| Tries scored | 329 (6.45 per match) |
| Top point scorer(s) | Sam Costelow (Scarlets) 62 points |
| Top try scorer(s) | Johnny Matthews (Glasgow Warriors) Jiuta Wainiqolo (Toulon)7 tries |
| Final | |
| Venue | Aviva Stadium, Dublin |
| Champions | Toulon (1st title) |
| Runners-up | Glasgow Warriors |
The 2022–23 EPCR Challenge Cup was the 9th edition of the EPCR Challenge Cup, an annual second-tier rugby union competition for professional clubs. Including the predecessor competition, the original European Challenge Cup, this is the 27th edition of European club rugby's second-tier competition.
The tournament commenced in December 2022, and concluded with the final on 19 May 2023 at Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Ireland, which was contested between Glasgow Warriors (their first European final) and Toulon who made their fourth appearance in a European final.
This was the first year that teams from South Africa could qualify, following the inaugural United Rugby Championship season, with Johannesburg-based Lions making their inaugural appearance in European club rugby.[1] In addition, another South African team, the Bloemfontein-based Cheetahs franchise, formerly of the URC predecessor competition the Pro14, had been invited to enter, having been excluded from European competition during their Pro14 tenure.[2]
Teams
Seventeen teams qualified for the 2022–23 EPCR Challenge Cup from Premiership Rugby, the Top 14 and the United Rugby Championship as a direct result of their domestic league performance having not qualified for the Heineken Champions Cup. Plus one invited sides making 18 teams.
The distribution of teams were:
- England: three teams
- Remaining teams in the Premiership that do not qualify for the 2022–23 European Rugby Champions Cup. Worcester Warriors and Wasps had previously qualified but were both suspended after entering administration.
- France: six teams
- Teams taking part in the 2022–23 Top 14 season that did not qualify for the Champions Cup
- Ireland, Italy, Scotland, Wales, South Africa: nine teams
- The bottom seven teams in the United Rugby Championship and the Glasgow Warriors as the Welsh shield winners (the Ospreys) were not in the top 8 teams in the URC. [3]
- Cheetahs (invited to participate)[2]
| Round | Premiership | Top 14 | United Rugby Championship | Invited | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England
|
France
|
Ireland
|
Italy
|
Scotland
|
Wales
|
South Africa
| ||
| Pool stage | ||||||||
Team details
Pool stage
Green: Pool A; 
Purple: Pool B; 
White: Entered competition in knockout stage.
Purple: Pool B.Teams were awarded four points for a win, two for a draw, one for scoring four tries in a game, and one for losing by less than eight points.
| Top 6 in each pool, advance to round of 16. |
Pool Aedit
| Pool A | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| P | W | D | L | PF | PA | Diff | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts | |
| Toulon
|
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 102 | 56 | +46 | 14 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 19 |
| Glasgow Warriors
|
4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 107 | 82 | +25 | 16 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 16 |
| Cardiff
|
4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 154 | 57 | +97 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 15 |
| Bristol Bears
|
4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 121 | 54 | +67 | 19 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 14* |
| Connacht
|
4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 135 | 72 | +63 | 19 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 14 |
| Brive
|
4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 66 | 157 | –91 | 9 | 23 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Newcastle Falcons
|
4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 63 | 132 | –69 | 8 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Bath
|
4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 68 | 105 | –37 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Perpignan
|
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 68 | 118 | –50 | 10 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Zebre Parma
|
4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 56 | 107 | –51 | 8 | 17 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Green background (rows 1 to 6) are qualification places for the Challenge Cup round of 16. Starting table — source: EPCR * Bristol Bears were deducted 5 match points for selecting an ineligible player[4] | ||||||||||||