Lyon to Host Two Major Rugby Finals

European Professional Club Rugby has chosen Lyon to host the 2027 Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup Finals Weeken at the 59,186-capacity OL Stadium, home to French football side Olympique Lyonnais.

French cities have hosted the Champions Cup final five times and in 2027, Lyon will welcome the event for the second time, having done so in 2016 when the stadium first opened as Saracens beat Racing 92 to win the Champions Cup while Montpellier defeated Harlequins to claim the Challenge Cup.

The EPCR Board awarded the events to Lyon after a RFP process that received seven bids from six cities, the EPCR reported, through its partnership with The Sports Consultancy.

“We are delighted Lyon will be the host city for the 2027 Finals weekend,” said Dominic McKay, EPCR chairman. “OL Stadium is a world-class venue and we are proud to be part of its sporting legacy, alongside incredible events such as the 2024 Olympics and 2023 Rugby World Cup and to contribute to the city’s rugby and sporting legacy”.

Since the first Champions Cup in 1996, EPCR finals have been staged at 23 venues in six countries. The dates of the 2027 Weekend in Lyon will be announced at a later date. This year’s Challenge Cup will be May 23 at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff followed by the Champions Cup the following day. The 2026 finals will be hosted by Bilbao at the San Mamés Stadium.

The OL Stadium has 100% of its energy sourced from renewable resources, partly thanks to its rooftop solar panels. As part of EPCR’s sustainability strategy, all host stadiums of the Finals must be ISO 20121 certified.

“EPCR was the first major event organiser to take a chance with OL Stadium and our terrific team, bringing the Finals to our community only four months after the inauguration of our leading European facility,” said John Textor, chief executive officer of Eagle Football Group. This new collaboration is a validation of that longstanding trust, and our entire community is overjoyed to relive the amazing experiences of the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup.”