Will the third day of the European Rugby Cup still be largely cut off? The question torments the French clubs, which must return to the continental games on the weekend of January 15-16, whose matches against British formations were postponed to mid-December due to travel restrictions put in place by France for travelers from the UK due to the widespread spread of the Omicron variant across the Channel at the time.
According to several corroborating sources, the French authorities have softened their position, given the significant presence of this very contagious variant in France today. High-level sport is now considered a compelling reason for travel, which in principle would allow the Stade Français, the Racing Metro or the Toulouse Stadium to face their English or Welsh opponent next weekend.
But all is not settled yet since even if they could cross the borders, the teams of the United Kingdom would be forced to observe a 48-hour quarantine before they can play their match. In the Champions Cup, the main European Cup, this would concern La Rochelle-Bath, Clermont-Sale and Bordeaux-Bègles-Llanelli next weekend. A possible relaxation of this principle should be discussed at the beginning of next week, during a meeting of the interministerial crisis unit (CIC).
Will the second day ever be disputed?
According to our information, a first communication on the holding of the next two days could be made on Friday. Contacted, the EPCR, organizer of the European Cups, did not wish to comment on this information.
But if the French and British clubs can compete on the weekends of January 15-16 and 22-23, nothing has yet been decided about a possible rescheduling of the second day. Nothing says that these matches will be played one day, as the schedule is overloaded, between the domestic competitions and the Six Nations Tournament at the beginning of the year. Already faced with organizational concerns with the Covid-19 last season, the EPCR had changed the formula along the way by canceling the holding of half of the matches and organizing the round of 16.