About

VODACOM UNITED RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP

Irish giants Leinster beat the Vodacom Bulls in the Grand Final in Dublin on 14 June 2025 to claim their first Vodacom United Rugby Championship title since the 2020/21 season. It was the Bulls' second successive final, after they were beaten by the Glasgow Warriors in the 2024 finale. In 2022, the DHL Stormers became the first holders of the title by beating the Bulls in the final. Four teams from South Africa, the DHL Stormers, Vodacom Bulls, Emirates Lions and Hollywoodbets Sharks, are joined by 12 clubs from Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales this competition that first kicked off in September 2021. All the teams are split into four conferences and the Hollywoodbets Sharks won the SA Shield in 2025.

The history

The Championship originated in 1999 when the Welsh and Scottish unions created a competition for their teams, and in 2001 four Irish provinces were added to create the Celtic League. The ambition amongst the three unions in 2001 was to create a vibrant and competitive professional club competition that would provide their players with the best preparation for Test level rugby. In 2010, two Italian teams were welcomed as the competition began to look boldly towards a more diverse future – this was reflected in the name change to PRO12 in later seasons. In a historic move in 2017, the Championship expanded to South Africa and, in keeping with its cross-border DNA, added the Cheetahs and the Southern Kings to become a cross-hemisphere club rugby tournament known as the PRO14.

Pos	Team	PL	W	L	D	PF	PA	DIFF	TF	TA	PTS
1	DHL Stormers	8	8	0	0	231	95	136	29	11	36
2	Ulster	8	6	2	0	259	167	92	36	23	31
3	Cardiff Rugby	9	6	3	0	201	174	27	31	24	31
4	Leinster	9	6	3	0	239	191	48	36	26	30
5	Munster	9	6	3	0	183	167	16	26	23	30
6	Glasgow Warriors	8	6	2	0	206	102	104	30	12	29
7	Lions	8	4	4	0	226	234	-8	30	34	21
8	Benetton	9	4	5	0	173	229	-56	19	31	19
9	Ospreys	9	3	5	1	196	226	-30	29	35	18
10	Edinburgh	8	3	5	0	158	147	11	24	23	17
11	Vodacom Bulls	8	3	5	0	192	224	-32	27	32	16
12	Connacht	8	2	6	0	189	220	-31	26	31	16
13	Dragons RFC	9	2	5	2	179	230	-51	24	34	16
14	Hollywoodbets Sharks	8	2	5	1	156	215	-59	24	27	14
15	Zebre Parma	8	2	6	0	144	240	-96	18	33	11
16	Scarlets	8	2	6	0	126	197	-71	17	27	9