The last 16 of the Heineken Cup kicks off today with a blockbuster of a match – Connacht vs Leinster. Both teams will be keen to lay down a maker in the 1st leg, ahead of the 2nd leg on 15th April. Make sure you know how to watch a Connacht vs Leinster live stream from where you are.
US fans can get a Connacht vs Leinster live stream on Peacock for only $4.99 a month. Aussie viewers can watch with a Kayo Sports 14-day free trial. Either way, you'll need to use a VPN to access your local streaming service from overseas.
Date: Friday 8th April 2022
Kick off: 8pm BST / 3pm ET / 5am AEST (Sat)
Free stream: Kayo Sports 14-day trial (Australia)
Watch anywhere: Try ExpressVPN risk-free today
US stream: Peacock ($4.99/month)
UK stream: BT Sport Monthly Pass (£25/month)
IRE stream: BT Sport Monthly Pass (€30/month)
All eyes will be on Galway Sportsground come Friday night for the first installment of the Heineken Cup Round of 16. The early team news is in and Johnny Sexton is expected to be available for Leinster. The Ireland captain missed his club's 34-19 win over Munster last weekend.
"Johnny, coming back off the Six Nations, trained well this week and had a really positive energy around the place," coach Leo Cullen said. "It’s important to have that level of competition. You remember last year Johnny got that bang in the Exeter game and you’ve less numbers to manage."
Meanwhile, Connacht head coach Andy Friend says the his side have "nothing to lose" in what will be the westerners' first ever Heineken Champions Cup knockout clash. Connacht fans will be further buoyed by the news that Friend has over 40 players available for today's first leg including Ireland centre Bundee Aki.
Can favourites Leinster take an early lead? Or will they come unstuck at the Sportsground? Make sure you know to watch a Connacht vs Leinster live stream from where you are.
Free Connacht vs Leinster live stream
Aussies can watch Connacht vs Leinster live on Kayo Sports. The streaming service offers new users a 14-day free trial (cancel anytime).
Meanwhile, lucky US fans can stream the Champions Cup – including Connacht vs Leinster – on Peacock for only $4.99 a month.
Remember: If you're away from home, you'll need to use a VPN to watch your local stream from where you are. We recommend ExpressVPN as it comes with a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Watch a Connacht vs Leinster live stream from abroad using a VPN
Even if you have subscribed to the relevant Connacht vs Leinster rights holders, you won't be able to access them when outside your own country. The service will know your location based on your IP address, and will automatically block your access.
A Virtual Private Network (VPN) helps you get around this obstacle. VPNs are a doddle to use and create a private connection between your device and the internet. All the information passing back and forth is entirely encrypted.
There are many VPN providers out there, with some more reliable and safe than others. As a rule, we’d suggest a paid-for service such as ExpressVPN which offers a 100 per cent risk-free money back guarantee. If you're not happy with the service any time within the first 30-days, then you can cancel with no penalties at all.
Using a VPN is incredibly simple:
1. Install the VPN of your choice. ExpressVPN is the one we recommend.
2. Open up the VPN app and choose the location of the service you wish to access. For Champions Cup rugby, you may wish to choose 'USA' for Peacock, or 'Australia' for Kayo Sports.
3. Then head over to Peacock or Kayo Sports on your browser or device and enjoy the Connacht vs Leinster live stream.
UK: Connacht vs Leinster live stream
BT Sport has the rights to show 2021/22 European Rugby Champions Cup games - including Connacht vs Leinster – in the UK.
Existing BT customers can upgrade to the sport channels for as little as £15 per month. Non-BT customers can get a BT Sport Monthly Pass for £25 a month and enjoy all four BT Sports channels contract-free.
Channel 4 will show a handful of games for free (it's Sale Sharks vs Bristol Bears this Saturday, 9th April, from 12.30pm BST). Remember to use a VPN when travelling away from the UK.
Sky TV users can also add BT Sport to their existing package from £30 a month, but that will not include any 4K viewing. It's also worth looking out for bundled Sky Sports and BT Sport deals.
USA: Connacht vs Leinster live stream
NBC Sports has the exclusive rights to air European Rugby Champions Cup games in the USA. The network will offer a Connacht vs Leinster live stream on Peacock TV and subscription costs just $4.99 a month (with ads) or $9.99 a month (ad-free). Cancel anytime.
Outside the US this week? Simply use a use a VPN to access all your favourite local streaming services from wherever you are in the world.
Peacock TV gets you full coverage of the European Rugby Champions Cup, plus selected Premier League soccer games, Champions League games, Premiership Rugby, blockbuster movies and TV boxsets such as The Office. It's one heck of a deal.
Australia: Connacht vs Leinster live stream
Foxtel's streaming-only platform, Kayo Sports, is the best way to get a European Rugby Champions Cup live stream in Oz. The respected streaming service covers over 50 sports and will offer a Connacht vs Leinster live stream.
The Basic package costs $25 a month while Premium, which works across multiple screens, costs $35 a month. Both come with a a free 14-day trial. There's no lock-in contract, so you can cancel at any time.
Ireland: Connacht vs Leinster live stream
The all-Irish European rugby clash will be live on BT Sport 1 from 7.15pm on Friday (8pm kick-off). The BT Sport Monthly Pass (€30/month) provides contract-free access to BT Sport 1 on your computer, laptop or mobile device.
European Rugby Champions Cup 2021/22 fixtures
All kick-offs local times
ROUND OF 16 - FIRST LEG:
Friday 8th April 2022
Connacht Rugby v Leinster Rugby, The Sportsground (20.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Saturday 9th April 2022
Sale Sharks v Bristol Bears, AJ Bell Stadium (13.00)
C4 / Virgin Media / BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Union Bordeaux-Bègles v Stade Rochelais, venue TBC (14.00)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Stade Toulousain v Ulster Rugby, Le Stadium (16.15)
beIN SPORTS / FR 2 / BT Sport
Exeter Chiefs v Munster Rugby, Sandy Park (17.30)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Stade Francais Paris v Racing 92, Stade Jean Bouin (18.30)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Sunday 10th April 2022
Montpellier Hérault Rugby v Harlequins, GGL Stadium (14.00)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
ASM Clermont Auvergne v Leicester Tigers, Stade Marcel-Michelin (16.15)
beIN SPORTS / FR 2 / BT Sport
ROUND OF 16 - SECOND LEG:
Friday 15th April 2022
Leinster Rugby v Connacht Rugby, Aviva Stadium (17.30)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Bristol Bears v Sale Sharks, Ashton Gate (20.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Saturday 16th April 2022
Harlequins v Montpellier Hérault Rugby, Twickenham Stoop (12.30)
C4 / Virgin Media / BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Munster Rugby v Exeter Chiefs, Thomond Park (15.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Stade Rochelais v Union Bordeaux-Bègles, Stade Marcel Deflandre (16.00)
FR 2 / beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
Leicester Tigers v ASM Clermont Auvergne, Mattioli Woods Welford Road (17.30)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS / FR 4
Ulster Rugby v Stade Toulousain, Kingspan Stadium (20.00)
BT Sport / beIN SPORTS
Sunday 17th April 2022
Racing 92 v Stade Français Paris, Paris La Défense Arena (16.30)
beIN SPORTS / BT Sport
QUARTER FINALS:
6-9th May 2022
The quarter-finals will be played over one match and the highest-ranked clubs from the pool stage will have home venue advantage as follows:
QF 1: Racing 92 (A1) or Stade Francais (B8) v Bristol Bears (B4) or Sale Sharks (A5)
QF 2: Harlequins (B2) or Montpellier (A7) v Stade Rochelais (A3) or Bordeaux-Bègles (B6)
QF 3: Ulster (A2) or Stade Toulousain (B7) v Munster (B3) or Exeter Chiefs (A6)
QF 4: Leicester Tigers (B1) or Clermont (A8) v Leinster (A4) or Connacht (B5)
SEMI-FINALS:
13-15th May 2022
The semi-finals will be played over one match, and the highest-ranked clubs from the pool stage will have either home country advantage or home venue advantage (TBC) as follows:
SF 1: Winner QF 1 v Winner QF 2
SF 2: Winner QF 3 v Winner QF 4
2022 HEINEKEN CHAMPIONS CUP FINAL:
28th May 2022
Saturday, 28 May; Stade Vélodrome, Marseille (17.45)
European Rugby Champions Cup match facts
Qualification for the pool stage of the 2021/22 Heineken Champions Cup depends on a club's final position in their respective national/regional league. The only other way to qualify is by winning the second-tier Challenge Cup, as Montpellier did when they beat Leicester Tigers in May of this 2021.
The first ever Champions Cup winners were French side Toulouse, who defeated Cardiff 21-18 in a tightly contested final at Arms Park, Wales, in front of 21,800 spectators.
Toulouse have won the Champions Cup a record five times and reached the final a record seven times. Leinster have won four, while Saracens and Toulon have won three each.
The tournament was called the Heineken Cup between 1995 and 2014, before its name was changed to the European Rugby Champions Cup. Dutch beer giant Heineken returned as the main sponsor for 2018/19, signing a four year deal to rename the event the Heineken Champions Cup.
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