So much for the theory then that the Irish are the only ones who really care about Europe. In his column this week Gerry Thornley explains how: "as feared all along, not only are the French heavyweight trio prioritising the tournament this year, but ditto the English big two of Exeter and Saracens." Ahead of this weekend's final round of Champions Cup pool matches, Patrick Madden has compiled an explainer - telling us what teams can still qualify for the quarter-finals and how the seeding system works. A Racing 92 win over Saracens will give Munster a tiny ray of hope in their quest for the last eight, and the Paris club's current backs and attack coach Mike Prendergast - a former Munster scrumhalf - says the Parisians' hunger for Champions Cup success will drive them on.
With 51 games set for 12 cities, Euro 2020 will leave a huge carbon footprint as fans criss-cross the continent. In this week's Pay for Play pages, Ruaidhrí Croke asks what is the cost of Euro 2020 for the planet? "The idea of hundreds of thousands of fans as well as officials and teams flying around Europe between June 12th and July 12th probably isn't the greatest image for Uefa in a time when the extent of the worldwide climate crisis is seemingly only getting worse and we wake up each morning to new images of Australia burning." He also has gathered some advice for travelling fans hoping to reduce their carbon footprint, and five carbon-friendly trips (rail trips) between Euro 2020 matches.
Barcelona have sacked manager Ernesto Valverde and replaced him with the former Real Betis coach Quique Setién. Earlier on Monday the Catalan giants topped a list of the world's most money-spinning football clubs for the first time in an annual league table, taking over from their rivals Real Madrid. Manchester United finished in third but Deloitte said the traditional financial powerhouse of English football was at risk of losing its crown for the first time to Manchester City or Liverpool, as a result of the club's repeated failure to qualify for the Champions League.
Meanwhile Shane Lowry is seeking to successfully defend a title for the first time in his career at this week's Abu Dhabi championship, as world number one Brooks Koepka returns to action since re-aggravating his knee injury last October. The victory in Abu Dhabi a year ago played "a massive role" in Lowry's subsequent breakthrough Major win at Royal Portrush in July: "I hadn't won since 2015, so it was an important week to remind me that I have everything it takes to win a tournament. It reinstalled the belief and confidence that I had what it takes to win against the world's best players, which was pretty useful for Open week."
