The Vodacom United Rugby Championship Play-Offs will kick off on Friday, June 3 after the schedule for the ‘Final Eight’ was confirmed this morning.
Four games will take place across Friday, June 3 and Saturday, June 4 with Ulster’s home Quarter-final with Munster serving as the curtain-raiser to the ‘Final Eight’ at 19:35 UK / IRE (20:35 SA).
Saturday will see three consecutive Quarter-final clashes with the action beginning and ending in South Africa.
The Vodacom Bulls will host the league’s first-ever Play-Off game on South African soil when they face Cell C Sharks in Pretoria at 12:45 UK / IRE (13:45 SA). The action then returns to the northern hemisphere as Leinster take on Glasgow Warriors in Dublin at 15:15 UK / IRE (16:15 SA) before Edinburgh’s trip to Cape Town to face the DHL Stormers at 18:00 UK / IRE (19:00 SA).
The timings of each game have allowed for the possibility of extra-time and a place-kicking competition. In Ireland, the Ulster and DHL Stormers fixtures will be available live on TG4 with the Leinster and Vodacom Bulls games screened by RTÉ.
All four games in the Final Eight will be broadcast live in the UK and Ireland by Premier Sports and by SuperSport in South Africa while URC TV will serve fans in Ireland and internationally.
Vodacom United Rugby Championship Final Eight (Fri, Jun 3 & Sat, Jun 4)
Friday, June 3
Ulster v Munster
19:35 UK/IRE (20:35 SA)
Kingspan Stadium, Belfast
Saturday, June 4
Vodacom Bulls v Cell C Sharks
12:45 UK/IRE (13:45 SA)
Loftus Versfeld, Pretoria
Leinster v Glasgow Warriors
15:15 UK/IRE (16:15 SA)
RDS Arena, Dublin
DHL Stormers v Edinburgh
18:00 UK/IRE (19:00 SA)
DHL Stadium, Cape Town
Play-Off Pathway
QF1: Leinster v Glasgow Warriors
QF2: DHL Stormers v Edinburgh
QF3: Ulster v Munster
QF4: Vodacom Bulls v Cell C Sharks
Winners of QF1 play at home to winners of QF4 in Semi-final 1
Winners of QF2 play at home to winners of QF3 in Semi-finals 1
The team with the highest ranking from regular-season league table will host URC Grand Final
Semi-Final 1: Leinster/Glasgow Warriors v Vodacom Bulls/Cell C Sharks
Semi-Final 2: DHL Stormers/Edinburgh v Ulster v Munster
Rankings for the Vodacom URC Final Eight were determined by each team’s placing in the league table.
1. Leinster (67 points)
2. DHL Stormers (61 points)
3. Ulster (59 points)
4. Vodacom Bulls (58 points)
5. Cell C Sharks (57 points)
6. Munster (56 points)
7. Edinburgh (54 points)
8. Glasgow Warriors (50 points)