About
Irish giants Leinster beat the Vodacom Bulls in the Grand Final in Dublin on 14 June 2025 to claim their first Vodacom United Rugby Championship title since the 2020/21 season. It was the Bulls' second successive final, after they were beaten by the Glasgow Warriors in the 2024 finale. In 2022, the DHL Stormers became the first holders of the title by beating the Bulls in the final. Four teams from South Africa, the DHL Stormers, Vodacom Bulls, Emirates Lions and Hollywoodbets Sharks, are joined by 12 clubs from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales this competition that first kicked off in September 2021. All the teams are split into four conferences and the Hollywoodbets Sharks won the SA Shield in 2025.
The history
The Championship originated in 1999 when the Welsh and Scottish unions created a competition for their teams, and in 2001 four Irish provinces were added to create the Celtic League. The ambition amongst the three unions in 2001 was to create a vibrant and competitive professional club competition that would provide their players with the best preparation for Test level rugby. In 2010, two Italian teams were welcomed as the competition began to look boldly towards a more diverse future – this was reflected in the name change to PRO12 in later seasons. In a historic move in 2017, the Championship expanded to South Africa and, in keeping with its cross-border DNA, added the Cheetahs and the Southern Kings to become a cross-hemisphere club rugby tournament known as the PRO14.
| Pos | Team | PL | W | L | D | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Cardiff Rugby
|
6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 140 | 101 | 39 | 22 | 13 | 25 |
| 2 |
DHL Stormers
|
5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 157 | 39 | 118 | 20 | 4 | 23 |
| 3 |
Munster
|
5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 125 | 89 | 36 | 18 | 15 | 23 |
| 4 |
Ulster
|
5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 182 | 116 | 66 | 26 | 16 | 21 |
| 5 |
Glasgow Warriors
|
5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 161 | 64 | 97 | 23 | 8 | 20 |
| 6 |
Leinster
|
6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 150 | 146 | 4 | 23 | 20 | 16 |
| 7 |
Lions
|
6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 176 | 178 | -2 | 24 | 26 | 16 |
| 8 |
Vodacom Bulls
|
6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 172 | 190 | -18 | 26 | 27 | 15 |
| 9 |
Zebre Parma
|
6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 106 | 182 | -76 | 14 | 27 | 10 |
| 10 |
Benetton
|
6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 101 | 176 | -75 | 11 | 25 | 9 |
| 11 |
Edinburgh
|
4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 109 | 71 | 38 | 17 | 11 | 9 |
| 12 |
Connacht
|
4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 76 | 74 | 2 | 12 | 10 | 9 |
| 13 |
Hollywoodbets Sharks
|
5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 96 | 136 | -40 | 14 | 19 | 8 |
| 14 |
Ospreys
|
5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 110 | 140 | -30 | 16 | 21 | 7 |
| 15 |
Dragons RFC
|
6 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 84 | 175 | -91 | 11 | 26 | 5 |
| 16 |
Scarlets
|
4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 58 | 126 | -68 | 8 | 17 | 0 |
| Pos | Team | PL | W | L | D | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Munster
|
2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 48 | 29 | 19 | 7 | 5 | 9 |
| 2 |
Connacht
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 15 | 17 | -2 | 3 | 3 | 1 |
| 3 |
Ulster
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 |
Leinster
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 31 | -17 | 2 | 4 | 0 |
| Pos | Team | PL | W | L | D | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Edinburgh
|
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 71 | 31 | 40 | 11 | 4 | 7 |
| 2 |
Zebre Parma
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 28 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5 |
| 3 |
Benetton
|
2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 57 | -41 | 1 | 9 | 4 |
| 4 |
Glasgow Warriors
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 14 | 16 | -2 | 2 | 1 | 1 |
| Pos | Team | PL | W | L | D | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Lions
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 33 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 5 |
| 2 |
Vodacom Bulls
|
1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33 | 43 | -10 | 5 | 6 | 1 |
| 3 |
Hollywoodbets Sharks
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 4 |
DHL Stormers
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pos | Team | PL | W | L | D | PF | PA | DIFF | TF | TA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Cardiff Rugby
|
1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 24 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 5 |
| 2 |
Dragons RFC
|
2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 36 | 43 | -7 | 5 | 7 | 3 |
| 3 |
Ospreys
|
1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 19 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 4 |
Scarlets
|
0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Scarlets
29 Nov | Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli
21:45
Glasgow Warriors
Connacht
29 Nov | Dexcom Stadium, Galway
21:45
Hollywoodbets Sharks
Cardiff Rugby
19 Dec | Cardiff Arms Park, Cardiff
21:45
Scarlets
Leinster
19 Dec | TBC
21:45
Ulster
DHL Stormers
20 Dec | DHL Stadium, Cape Town
15:30
Lions
Benetton
20 Dec | Stadio Comunale di Monigo, Treviso
16:00
Zebre Parma
Glasgow Warriors
20 Dec | Hampden Park, Glasgow
17:00
Edinburgh
Hollywoodbets Sharks
20 Dec | Hollywoodbets Kings Park, Durban
18:00
Vodacom Bulls
