English champions Bath will face Saracens in the last 16 of the Investec Champions League, while Harlequins’ reward for their away win at La Rochelle is a home match against Sale Sharks.
Quins’ win keeps Leicester Tigers in the competition, who face the daunting task of beating champions and top seeds Bordeaux at the Chabandelmas Stadium.
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Second seed Glasgow Warriors will face South African side Bulls, while third seed Leinster will face Edinburgh.
Northampton Saints host Castress, who qualified by beating Munster in Limerick, while Storm, top of the United Rugby Football Championship table, travel to Toulon.
Six-time champions Toulouse, leading the Top 14, host Bristol Bears.
The teams that reached the last 16 were seven from England, four from France, two from Scotland and South Africa, and one from Ireland.
Round of 16 draw results
Bordeaux(1) v Leicester Tigers(16)
Glasgow Warriors(2) v Bulls(15)
Leinster(3) v Edinburgh(14)
Bath(4) v Saracens(13)
Northampton Saints(5) v Castres(12)
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Harlequins (6) v Sale Sharks (11)
Toulon(7) v Storm(10)
Toulouse(8) v Bristol Bears(9)
The competition will be held on the weekend of April 3/4/5
The seeds are in brackets
route to finals
Quarter-final 1 – Bordeaux (1) or Leicester Tigers (16) v Toulouse (8) or Bristol Bears (9)
Quarter-final 2 – Bath (4) or Saracens (13) v Northampton Saints (5) or Castells (12)
The winner of the first quarter-final game will face the winner of the second quarter-final game in the semi-finals.
Quarter-final 3 – Glasgow Warriors (2) or Bulls (15) v Toulon (7) or Storm (10)
Quarter-final 4 – Leinster (3) or Edinburgh (14) v Harlequins (6) or Sale Sharks (11)
The winners of the three quarter-final games will play the winners of the four quarter-final games in the semi-finals.
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The team with the higher ranking occupies the home court in each game
Taking place on the weekend of October 11, 2012
Analysis: Bordeaux and Glasgow are main contenders
Historically, gaining as much home-field advantage as possible in a game has been the best chance of winning.
Defending champions Bordeaux are seeded again after four extra-point wins and eased into the final last year with three knockout wins.
They continued their good form in Europe and were once again the team to be beaten.
Leinster have not lost a pool match since 2018 and maintain their current unbeaten run despite not being at their best.
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However, with Glasgow Warriors picking up more points, it leaves Leinster in an unfamiliar position with the potential to move away from Dublin in the semi-finals.
Based on the teams seeded in Glasgow, both sides may prefer Glasgow to French teams.
Bath topped Group Two but lost to Toulon and will travel to Bordeaux in the semi-finals if the result matches the knockout seeds.
Away knockout games do win, with Northampton winning in Dublin in last year’s semi-finals and Munster winning in the last 16 at La Rochelle.
But with the next two rounds taking place on consecutive weekends in April, that means reaching the semifinals and beyond will likely require a high seed.
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Six-time champions Toulouse finished second in Group One despite losing twice and will be among the teams likely to tear up the seedings, eyeing a potential clash with Bordeaux earlier than expected.
The Charge paid the price for sending a weaker team to Harlequins, who had a difficult first elimination game against Toulon.
The South African side have lost just one game this season and will be hoping to rise to the challenge of an away win before traveling to Glasgow.
Northampton Saints will face Castells at home in the last 16 and after reaching last year’s final they won’t be afraid to go further in the competition.
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Victory would lead to an All England quarter-final tie against either Bath or Saracens, ensuring Prem a semi-final place.
Road to the Challenge Cup Final
Harlequins secured a surprise win over La Rochelle as Ronan O’Gara’s side face Newcastle Red Bulls away in the last 16 of the Challenge Cup.
Exeter Chiefs host Munster, who also fell out of the Championship.
QF1 – Montpellier (1) or Perpignan (16) v Connacht (8) or Sharks (9)
QF2 – Stade de France (4) or Dragons (13) v Zebre (5) or Pau (12)
The winner of the first quarter-final game will play the winner of the second quarter-final game.
QF3 – Benetton(2) or Cardiff(15) v Exeter(7) or Munster(10)
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QF4- Ulster (3) or Ospreys (14) v Newcastle Red Bulls (6) or La Rochelle (11)
The winners of the three quarter-final games will play the winners of the four quarter-final games.
Note – the home court of the higher ranked team
