The quarter-finals are: team one v team eight; team two v team seven; team three v team six; team four v team five.
The quarter-finals are played at the home stadiums of the higher-seeded clubs, or sometimes at a larger stadium in or near the host team’s city. The semi-finals, on the other hand, are always played at nominally neutral venues. Each of the two semi-final venues are in the country of the first team out of the hat when the draw is made. For example, in 2004, Munster v Wasps was played at Lansdowne Road in Dublin, while Toulouse v Biarritz was played in Bordeaux.
However, the neutrality requirement is satisfied simply by the designated home team playing outside of its normal stadium. Both 2005 semifinals were held in the host’s home city; Leicester Tigers v Toulouse was held at Walkers Stadium in Leicester, not far from Leicester’s normal home of Welford Road, while Stade Français v Biarritz was played at Parc des Princes in Paris, across the street from Stade’s normal home field. The semifinal venue must also meet the following additional criteria; it must have a capacity of at least 20,000 and it must be in the same country as the designated home team.
However, the European Rugby Cup, which organises the competition, may allow exceptions, such as with Biarritz, located in a city less than 20km from the Spanish border, being allowed to host their 2006 semi-final across the border at Estadio Anoeta in Donostia-San Sebastián (which is the nearest stadium to Biarritz with a suitable capacity). A similar exception was made for Bourgoin when they hosted Munster in Switzerland at Stade de Genève, Geneva. The final is held at a predetermined site.