Union Bordeaux Bègles-Toulouse: UBB's "galactics" put to the test by the European science of the Red and Black

The match has everyone in Rugby Union salivating. On Sunday, May 4, at the Stade Bordeaux-Atlantique, Union Bordeaux-Bègles (UBB) will face Stade Toulousain in the semifinals of the Rugby Champions Cup. "The two best teams in this European Cup," summarizes former French international Vincent Clerc. The two clubs at the top of the Top 14 championship are the main suppliers of the French XV.

On paper, the duel may seem unbalanced, as the two Southwest teams have had opposing European careers. UBB is seeking its first continental final; Stade Toulousain, the defending champion, is vying for a seventh title since the first edition of the competition in 1996, which it won. On the pitch, it is much less so, as both teams dominate French rugby. For "Stade", the solid leader of the Top 14, it is a habit. Its runner-up, Bordeaux, has only been playing a leading role in the elite for a few seasons.

Their budding rivalry culminated in the championship final at the end of June 2024. The Girondins left Marseille branded, humiliated 59-3 at the Stade-Vélodrome by the furious Toulouse (nine tries). Maxime Lucu and his teammates, however, chased away the bad memories of this rout two months later, on the Toulouse pitch, no less (16-12), before repeating at home on March 23.

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