Leinster know they will be up against it when facing title holders Bordeaux Begles in this year's European Champions Cup final in Bilbao , but are guaranteed not to go down without a fight. The Irish province suffered a hat-trick of final defeats against French opponents between 2022 and 2024, but all of those contests were incredibly close encounters.
They lost 24-21 and 27-26 to La Rochelle before taking Toulouse to extra-time two years ago, so we're happy to take 10/11 for the underdogs with six points start in the main handicap market for our first Bordeaux Begles vs Leinster prediction.
Betting Odds
Bordeaux Begles vs Leinster Betting Odds – Investec Champions Cup Final 2025/26
Result | Odds | Chance |
|---|---|---|
Bordeaux Begles | 4/7 | 63.6% |
Leinster | 9/4 | 30.8% |
*Odds are correct at the time of writing, but subject to change.
Bordeaux Begles are 4/7 favourites to retain the Investec Champions Cup . Leinster can be backed at 9/4.
How to Watch
How to Watch Bordeaux Begles vs Leinster
Saturday's big match is scheduled to kick off at 14:45 BST and will be broadcast live on ITV4 and Premier Sports .
Form Guides
Bordeaux Begles Form Guide
Bordeaux have had a fairly moderate season in France 's Top 14 , lying fifth in the table, but their Investec Champions Cup form has been impressive throughout. They racked up 173 points in four straight pool-stage wins over the Bulls , the Scarlets , Northampton and Bristol and then hammered Leicester 64-14 at home in the round of 16.
Toulouse were beaten 30-15 in the quarter-finals, and the reigning champions came through a breathless encounter to see off Bath 38-26 in the semis. Bordeaux have a heavyweight pack, but it is an electric backline that Leinster must worry most about, with tryscoring machine Louis Bielle-Biarrey , Matthieu Jalibert , Damian Penaud , Maxime Lucu and Yoram Moefana all world-class operators.
Flying winger Bielle-Biarrey has scored 17 tries in helping France to claim back-to-back Six Nations titles. He bagged doubles against Ireland in both of those campaigns and is 12/5 to touch down at least twice in this contest, as well as 8/1 to be named player of the match.
Leinster Form Guide
Leinster had a tougher time of it during the pool phase but still emerged with four wins versus Harlequins , Leicester , La Rochelle and Bayonne . The points then flowed in their first two knockout games, with Edinburgh beaten 49-31 and Sale Sharks brushed aside 43-13.
It was far from plain sailing in the semis for the four-time tournament winners as they started the second half with two players sin-binned, but their desire and resilience shone through in a 29-25 Dublin defeat of Toulon . Prop Andrew Porter declared: "It was incredible to see how we stuck in with 13 men and dug it out. They definitely put it to us the whole 80 minutes, but you could feel the energy from the crowd, from each other."
Leinster warmed up for this match in fine style as they demolished the Ospreys 68-14 at Aviva Stadium to secure second place in the United Rugby Championship . James Lowe struck late on in that game for his 69th Leinster try to tie the club record held by Shane Horgan , and can be backed at 5/2 to move ahead on his own by touching down in the second half again here.
Betting Tips
Bordeaux Begles vs Leinster Betting Tips
Leinster +5 Points Handicap @ 10/11
Louis Bielle-Biarrey to Score 2+ Tries @ 12/5
James Lowe to Score in Second Half @ 12/5
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