2010–11 Heineken Cup

The default allocation of teams is as follows:

• England: 6 teams, based on performance in the Aviva Premiership and Anglo-Welsh Cup
• France: 6 teams, based on regular-season finish in the Top 14
• Ireland and Wales: 3 teams each, based on regular-season finish in the Celtic League
• Italy and Scotland: 2 teams each, based on participation in the Celtic League

The remaining two places are filled by the winners of the previous year's Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup. If the cup winners are already qualified through their domestic league, an additional team from their country will claim a Heineken Cup place (assuming another team is available). The only exception is when teams from England or France win both cups, which did not happen in 2009–10.

Because 2010 Heineken Cup winners Toulouse were already qualified for this season's Heineken Cup by virtue of their fourth-place regular-season finish in the 2009–10 Top 14, the extra place for France went to seventh-placed Biarritz (who were also Toulouse's defeated opponent in the Heineken Cup Final). Because Amlin Challenge Cup winners Cardiff Blues were already qualified for the Heineken Cup by finishing second among the four Welsh teams in the 2009–10 Celtic League, the extra Welsh place went to the lowest-placed Welsh team in the league, Scarlets.

The seeding system was the same as in the 2009–10 tournament. The 24 competing teams are ranked based on past Heineken Cup and European Challenge Cup performance, with each pool receiving one team from each quartile, or Tier.[4] The requirement to have only one team per country in each pool, however, still applies (with the exception of the inclusion of the seventh French team).[5]

The brackets show each team's European Rugby Club Ranking at the end of the 2009–10 season. Aironi inherited the ranking of Viadana, the principal shareholders in the new Celtic League team.

Tier 1	Munster (1)	Toulouse (2)	Leinster (3)	Leicester Tigers (4)	Biarritz (5)	Cardiff Blues (6)
Tier 2	London Wasps (7)	Clermont (9)	Ospreys (10)	Northampton Saints (11)	Bath (12)	Scarlets (13)
Tier 3	Perpignan (15)	London Irish (16)	Saracens (17)	Ulster (19)	Glasgow Warriors (21)	Edinburgh (23)
Tier 4	Newport Gwent Dragons (24)	Benetton Treviso (28)	Castres (29)	Toulon (30)	Aironi (34)	Racing Métro (40)

The draw for the pool stage took place on 8 June 2010.

Under rules of the competition organiser, European Rugby Cup, tiebreakers within each pool are as follows.[6]

• Competition points earned in head-to-head matches
• Total tries scored in head-to-head matches
• Point differential in head-to-head matches

ERC has four additional tiebreakers, used if tied teams are in different pools, or if the above steps cannot break a tie between teams in the same pool:

• Tries scored in all pool matches
• Point differential in all pool matches
• Best disciplinary record (fewest players receiving red or yellow cards in all pool matches)
• Coin toss

Pool 1

Team	P	W	D	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Northampton Saints (1)	6	6	0	0	16	7	+9	155	87	+68	1	0	25
Cardiff Blues	6	3	0	3	6	8	−2	107	113	−6	0	2	14
Castres	6	2	0	4	10	12	−2	105	115	−10	0	3	11
Edinburgh	6	1	0	5	10	15	−5	98	150	−52	0	4	8

Pool 2

Team	P	W	D	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Leinster (2)	6	5	0	1	21	9	+12	179	104	+75	3	1	24
Clermont [6]	6	4	0	2	14	9	+5	114	94	+20	2	1	19
Racing Métro	6	2	0	4	9	17	−8	104	151	−47	0	1	9
Saracens	6	1	0	5	9	18	−9	107	155	−48	0	2	6

Pool 3

Team	P	W	D	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Toulon (6)	6	4	0	2	13	13	0	143	134	+9	1	0	17
Munster [7]	6	3	0	3	17	9	+8	143	122	+21	2	2	16
Ospreys	6	3	0	3	7	11	−4	117	113	+4	0	2	14
London Irish	6	2	0	4	9	13	−4	107	141	−34	0	1	9

Pool 4

Team	P	W	D	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Biarritz (4)	6	4	0	2	16	9	+7	140	85	+55	4	2	22
Ulster (8)	6	5	0	1	15	8	+7	145	93	+52	2	0	22
Bath	6	2	0	4	20	8	+12	147	113	+46	2	4	14
Aironi	6	1	0	5	4	30	−26	65	211	−146	0	0	4

Pool 5

Team	P	W	D	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Perpignan (3)	6	4	1	1	23	9	+14	196	112	+84	4	0	22
Leicester Tigers (7)	6	4	1	1	25	10	+15	215	118	+97	3	1	22
Scarlets	6	3	0	3	16	24	−8	149	191	−42	3	0	15
Benetton Treviso	6	0	0	6	11	32	−21	109	248	−139	0	1	1

Pool 6

Team	P	W	D	L	Tries for	Tries against	Try diff	Points for	Points against	Points diff	TB	LB	Pts
Toulouse (5)	6	5	0	1	15	6	+10	155	85	+70	1	1	22
London Wasps [5]	6	4	0	2	15	6	+8	145	106	+59	2	1	19
Glasgow Warriors	6	3	0	3	10	15	−5	116	141	−25	0	0	12
Newport Gwent Dragons	6	0	0	6	5	18	−13	77	161	−84	0	2	2

Seeding and runners-up

• Bare numbers indicate Heineken Cup quarterfinal seeding.
• Numbers with "C" indicate Challenge Cup quarterfinal seeding.

Seed	Pool Winners	Pts	TF	+/−
1	Northampton Saints	25	16	+68
2	Leinster	24	21	+75
3	Perpignan	22	23	+84
4	Biarritz	22	16	+55
5	Toulouse	22	15	+70
6	Toulon	17	11	+21
Seed	Pool Runners-up	Pts	TF	+/−
7	Leicester Tigers	22	25	+97
8	Ulster	22	15	+52
5C	London Wasps	19	15	+39
6C	Clermont	19	14	+20
7C	Munster	16	17	+21
–	Cardiff Blues	14	6	−6

The semi-final draw for both the Heineken Cup and Amlin Challenge Cup was conducted on 23 January at the press box of Adams Park in High Wycombe shortly after the London Wasps–Toulouse match.

All times are local times.

Quarter-finals

9 April 2011 16:30

Perpignan	29 – 25	Toulon
Try: Planté 51' c Freshwater 73' c Con: Porical (2/2) Pen: Porical (5/8) 30', 37', 42', 62', 68'	Report	Try: Smith 39' m van Niekerk 53' c Cibray 80'+1' c Con: Wilkinson (2/3) Pen: Wilkinson (2/2) 3', 35'

Estadi Olímpic Lluís Companys, Barcelona, Spain Attendance: 55,000 Referee: Alain Rolland (Ireland)

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9 April 2011 18:00

Leinster	17 – 10	Leicester Tigers
Try: Nacewa 48' m Pen: Sexton (4/4) 3', 15' 36', 73'	Report	Try: Hawkins 76' c Con: Flood (1/1) Pen: Flood (1/2) 5'

Aviva Stadium, Dublin Attendance: 49,762 Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)

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10 April 2011 14:00

Northampton Saints	23 – 13	Ulster
Try: Tonga'uiha 2' c Dickson 55' c Con: Myler (2/2) 3', 56' Pen: Myler (3/5) 40', 48', 65'	Report	Try: Trimble 32' c Con: Humphreys (1/1) 33' Pen: Humphreys (2/2) 7', 14'

Stadium:mk, Milton Keynes[7] Attendance: 21,309 Referee: Romain Poite (France)

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10 April 2011 17:30

Biarritz	20 – 27 (a.e.t)	Toulouse
Try: Bolakoro 78' m Pen: Yachvili (5/6) 41', 46', 57', 67', 97'	Report	Try: Heymans 16' c Médard 26' c Nyanga 99' c Con: Skrela (2/2) Bézy (1/1) Pen: Skrela (2/2) 36', 83'

Estadio Anoeta, San Sebastián, Spain Attendance: 32,051 Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)

Semi-finals

30 April 2011 15:30 (UTC)

Leinster	32 – 23	Toulouse
Try: Heaslip 30' c O'Driscoll 59' c Con: Sexton (2/2) Pen: Sexton (6/6) 10', 14', 40'+1', 47', 54', 80'	Report	Try: Fritz 4' c Picamoles 43' c Con: Skrela (2/2) Pen: Skrela (1/2) 37' Bézy (1/1) 75' Drop: Skrela (1/1) 11'

Aviva Stadium, Dublin Attendance: 50,073 Referee: Dave Pearson (England)

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1 May 2011 15:00 (UTC)

Northampton Saints	23 – 7	Perpignan
Try: Foden 14' c Clarke 30' c Con: Myler (2/2) Pen: Myler (3/5) 24', 37', 49'	Report	Try: Guirado 39' c Con: Porical (1/1) Drop: Laharrague (0/1)

Stadium:mk, Milton Keynes Attendance: 18,231 Referee: George Clancy (Ireland)

Final

Main article: 2011 Heineken Cup Final

21 May 2011 17:00

Northampton Saints	22 – 33	Leinster
Try: Dowson 7' c Foden 30' c Hartley 39' m Con: Myler (2/3) Pen: Myler (1/1) 20'	Report	Try: Sexton (2) 43' c, 52' c Hines 64' c Con: Sexton (3/3) Pen: Sexton (4/5) 13', 35', 56', 60'

Millennium Stadium, Cardiff Attendance: 72,456 Referee: Romain Poite (France)

2010–11 Amlin Challenge Cup

• Official ERC website