The ‘Champions’ part of the competition name is likely to stay but Heineken could be back in a big way.
Back in 2014, we all had to get used to calling the Heineken Cup the Champions Cup. Some never got their heads around it at all.
Over in France, where alcohol sponsorship is a teeny bit more stringent, the competition was known as The H Cup.
European Rugby Cup became the EPCR (European Professional Club Rugby) in 2014 set off for a new base in Switzerland, that rugby-loving stronghold. Along with the changes came the news that the competition would no longer be called the Heineken (or H) Cup.
Heineken stayed on board as a sponsor but the powers that be were hoping to attach a few more big-name brands and were wary of tying themselves too closely to any one brand.
The Champions Cup era began in 2014/15 and the first three trophies were shared by Toulon and Saracens. Leinster became only the third ever side to lift the Champions Cup last Saturday when they beat Racing 15-12 in Bilbao.
Next year’s Challenge and Champions Cup finals are set to take place in Newcastle but there could be another trip slightly further afield in 2021.
According to Le Journal du Dimanche, in France, Heineken are keen to make a greater sponsorship investment in the tournament again. The report suggest that Champions Cup will remain in the tournament title. However, it would be known either as the ‘Heineken Champions Cup’ or the ‘H Champions Cup’. An announcement is expected in early June.
Gavin Mairs in The Daily Telegraph has backed up those reports and has gone a step further. He claims that the 2021 Champions Cup final could take place in Amsterstam, with the Amsterdam Arena [54,000 capacity] the most likely destination. The city, of course, is home to the Heineken brewery.
The 2020 final, writes Mairs, looks set for the Stade Velodrome in Marseilles but Tottenham’s revamped White Hart Lane is also in contention.
It looks like we may all be able to drop the facade soon enough and go back to simply calling it the Heineken Cup.
It is ever thus.
