Champions Cup team-by-team guide: Everything you need to know, plus our predictions

The Champions Cup gets under way this weekend. There are 24 teams in the competition split into two pools. Each team plays two sides, home and away, from their side of the draw. The top 16 teams from each pool will progress to the round of 16. From the quarter-finals onwards, all contests will be decided by one match.

The French side are fifth in the Top 14. They thrashed Pau before losing to Stade Français last weekend.

Glasgow Warriors and Bath are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Ronan O'Gara's side play Glasgow before travelling to Bath. They lost in the Champions Cup and Top 14 finals last season. Will Skelton was not as influential for Australia this autumn.

The Aviva Premiership champions are fifth in the table. They have won against Bath and Saracens.

Montpellier and Glasgow Warriors are the Champions Cup's pool stage opponents.

Luke Cowan-Dickie and Jonny Gray are back fit for the European Champions Cup. Rob Baxter's team are probably England's best hope of silverware. Dave Ewers is a star player for them.

URC are top of the URC and were stunned by Ulster's recent defeat.

Bath and Montpellier are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Leinster are confident of winning the Champions Cup. Jonny Sexton, James Ryan and Jack Conan could be missing. DanSheehan is the latest youngster to emerge from Leinsters' talent factory. Tadhg Furlong is a star player who keeps evading world player of the year shortlists.

The champions are third in the Top 14 after five straight victories.

Exeter and Leinster are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Phillipe Saint-André's side have been functional rather than fluent. They also possess serious quality, including two-cap England player Zach Mercer. Italy's 21-year-old fly-half Paolo Garbisi is beginning to flourish.

The team that are bottom of the Premiership have lost their ninth straight game.

Leinster and La Rochelle are the Champions Cup pool opponents.

Sam Underhill has returned from England duty in a determined mood.

The team is fifth in the URC, despite three losses from seven matches.

La Rochelle and Exeter are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Exeter beat Glasgow 42-0 last season. Rufus McLean and Rory Darge are exciting young players for Warriors. Jack Dempsey is an astute signing.

The French Top 14 side lost 25-3 in Castres.

Northampton Saints and Ospreys are the Champions Cup pool opponents.

Parisians have lost three finals since 2016. Finn Russell is the main attraction. Virimi Vakatawa and Gael Fickou are the centre pairing. Trevor Nyakane will be added to the squad soon.

Alex Sanderson's team are currently 11th in the Premiership.

Ospreys and Clermont are the Champions Cup pool opponents.

Sale have a bright European prospect despite injuries to Manu Tuilagi and Faf de Klerk. They have muscle and Test class in forwards Lood de Jager and Tom Curry and scrum-half Raffi Quirke. AJ MacGinty will want to sign off in style before joining Bristol.

Connacht and Ospreys are third in the URC. Leinster are second in their league.

Champions Cup team-by-team guide. Clermont and Northampton Saints are the pool stage opponents.

Ulster play Clermont in Champions Cup. Ulster reached the quarter-final two seasons ago. Duane Vermeulen has joined them.

Dominant at home, inconsistent elsewhere. Seventh in the Top 14.

Ulster and Sale Sharks are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Clermont won last season's European quarter-final. Clermont play Ulster and Sale in the next round. Fritz Lee is the star player for Clermont.

Champions Cup team-by-team guide.

Racing 92 and Ulster are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Northampton face Bristol and Bath in European Champions Cup. Courtney Lawes is unavailable for the first game. David Ribbans will play in his place.

Toby Booth's team are currently fourth in the URC. They lost to Connacht in their last match.

Sale Sharks and Racing 92 are the pool opponents for the Champions Cup.

Booth's team are targeting home games against Sale and Paris La Défense Arena. Michael Collins is in the hunt for a Wales call-up.

The champions are 11th in the Premiership and lost to Gloucester last Friday.

Champions Cup team-by-team guide. Pool stage opponents: Scarlets, Stade Français.

Pat Lam might be relieved by a change of scenery. Bristol will need to improve across the board to achieve success in Europe. Semi Radradra illuminated proceedings immediately upon his introduction from the bench at Kingsholm.

Cardiff and Wasps are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Antoine Dupont is the star player for the French champions. Cheslin Kolbe has gone.

Champions are fourth in the Premiership and are hanging on to a play-off berth.

Castres and Cardiff are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

André Esterhuizen is close to a World XV right now. Harlequins beat Leicester at Welford Road.

Champions Cup team-by-team guide. Pool stage opponents: Wasps, Castres.

Munster are the first team affected by quarantine issues following the URC's ill-fated fixtures in South Africa. They can select Ireland internationals and Damian de Allende to face Wasps. Tadhg Beirne is a star player for Munster.

The French team are sixth in the Top 14 and still imperious at Stade Pierre-Fabre.

Harlequins and Munster are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Castres beat Racing in the Champions Cup. Tom Staniforth was the star player for Castres. Munster are expected to welcome reinforcements before the next round.

Lee Blackett's side are ninth in the Premiership.

Champions Cup team-by-team guide. Pool stage opponents: Munster, Toulouse.

Munster are without Joe Launchbury, Jack Willis and Dan Robson. They play at Stade Ernest-Wallon without relegation worries. Elliott Stooke is a summer recruit from Bath.

Champions Cup team-by-team guide. Pool stage opponents: Toulouse, Harlequins.

Ellis Jenkins is the star player for Toulouse. Took part-time Cardiff RFC players and established internationals to play TOULOUGHTY.

Louis Picamoles' team is leading the Top 14. Toulouse are second.

Leicester Tigers and Scarlets are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Bordeaux are top of the league and they beat Racing 92 on the road. Bordeau are looking to improve on their semi-final berth last season. Cameron Woki is the star player for Bordereaux.

Leinster are seventh in the URC after losing 47 points to Leinsters.

Stade Français and Leicester Tigers are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Andy Friend's team are dangerous this season. They play in Galway against a team in a relegation scrap. Mack Hansen has been a star player for the URC since he moved from Australia. He was named in Ireland's autumn squad.

The French team are currently 10th in the Top 14. They beat La Rochelle.

Connacht and Bristol Bears are the pool stage opponents in the Champions Cup.

Waisea Nayacalevu scored twice for Fiji against La Rochelle and twice against Clermont. Ngani Laumape and Marcos Kremer are struggling in the relegation zone.

The champions are top of the Premiership on a nine-game winning streak.

Bordeaux and Connacht are the Champions Cup pool stage opponents.

Tigers have started the season well and are well-drilled. Steve Borthwick's team have a lot of matches during the Six Nations. George Ford is the star player for the Tigers.

Dwayne Peel's team are 11th in the URC. They beat Benetton despite heavy losses to Munster and Leinster.

Bristol Bears and Bordeaux are the pool opponents for the Champions Cup.

Scarlets lost their first game of the Champions Cup against Bristol. They will need to win two of their remaining three matches to progress. Wyn Jones will be the star player for them.

Bordeaux, Leicester Tigers, Leinster, Toulouse are semi-finalists of the Champions Cup.

Leinster are the champions. Toulouse won the last season's Champions Cup. Racing 92 and La Rochelle are also strong. Exeter and Munster could make the semis.  The format will take some getting used to after its curtailed introduction last year.