Bordeaux advances to Champions Cup final over Toulouse, thanks to Bielle-Biarrey's standout performance.

**"Bloody brilliant, what a day," said Yannick Bru, head coach of Union Bordeaux-Bègles, jubilant after leading his team to their first final in the 2025 Investec Champions Cup. "It's a bloody pleasure to experience moments like this, the game was top-notch, and I'm overjoyed for rugby," he added, beaming.

On May 24, Bordeaux-Bègles will go head-to-head with English side Northampton, who stunned heavy favorites Leinster in the semifinals. The final will take place at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales.

Louis Bielle-Biarrey, a standout player for France in the Six Nations, scored either side of halftime at the Stade Matmut. Pete Samu, Pierre Bochaton, and Ben Tameifuna also found the try zone for Bordeaux. Toulouse's attempts through Dimitri Delibes and Pierre-Louis Barassi were overshadowed as they struggled to keep up with their opponents' relentless pace.

Romain Ntamack, Toulouse's fly-half, summed up the game, "They're astonishingly realistic. Every time they breached our half, they scored tries or penalties, that was the difference today. They're not better than us today, but they were far more practical than us."

Bru agreed, "We knew that everything would matter. When you face Toulouse in the knockout rounds, everything counts: the forwards, the pack's performance, the breakaways."

The highly-anticipated clash between the two leading sides in France's Top 14 saw Bordeauxedge Toulouse 35-18. Toulouse, six-time champions who beat Leinster in last year's final, went into the game weakened by the injury of key international players Antoine Dupont, Thomas Ramos, Peato Mauvaka, and Blair Kinghorn.

The match started with a bang as Bordeaux fly-half Matthieu Jalibert launched a counter-attack from a turnover in the fifth minute. He powered 50 metres upfield before offloading for Samu to gallop through for the score. Jalibert converted and added a penalty before Juan Cruz Mallia put Toulouse on the board with a penalty.

After 15 minutes, wing Delibes went over in the right corner to bring Toulouse within two points. Mallia missed the conversion but popped over a penalty to put Toulouse ahead briefly, but that lead would be short-lived.

Bielle-Biarrey benefited from some exceptional play by Romain Buros and Damian Penaud to skate through for a try, extending Bordeaux's lead. Penaud, France's record try-scorer, later limped off with an injured left ankle.

Maxime Lucu landed an audacious 58-meter penalty to put Bordeaux 18-10 ahead at half-time. Within moments of the restart, Bielle-Biarrey struck again to give Bordeaux a firm grip on the game. Barassi gave Toulouse a foothold with a try in the 55th minute, but late efforts from close range from Bochaton and Tameifuna underlined Bordeaux's dominance and sealed their place in the final.

"I'm pleased with the lads," said Bru. "They didn't want to lose."

While Bordeaux-Bègles prepare for the final, Toulouse set their sights on defending their domestic title. With four regular-season Top 14 matches left, they lead the standings by 10 points and are heading for a first-round playoff bye. Bordeaux-Bègles also find themselves in a strong position for a bye, narrowly holding second place.

"We've got our work cut out," said Ntamack, Toulouse's fly-half. "It's always a bloody pain to exit the Champions Cup semifinals, but it's part of the game. We can't win every year. We still have a goal to reach and defend. We're focusing on that now."

[1] Champions Cup semi-final: Bordeaux-Bègles vs Toulouse - report (ESPN, 2025)[2] Northampton Saints vs Leinster - Semi-Final - Live Blog (The Irish Times, 2025)[3] Northampton Saints come from behind to stun Leinster in Champions Cup semi-final (Sky Sports, 2025)[4] Union Bordeaux-Bègles vs Toulouse - Semi-Final - Live Blog (Le Parisien, 2025)

France will face Northampton in the final of the 2025 European Rugby Champions Cup, with Bordeaux-Bègles securing their spot after a dominating performance against Toulouse in the semi-finals. Meanwhile, Toulouse, who hold a commanding lead in the domestic Top 14 league, will aim to defend their title.

Bordeaux advances to Champions Cup final over Toulouse, thanks to Bielle-Biarrey's standout performance.