Harlequins celebrate their dramatic victory over Stade Francais in the final of this season's competition © Getty Images

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Tournaments/Tours: Amlin Challenge Cup

Teams: England | France | Italy | Wales

European Rugby Cup officials have confirmed the seeding for next season's Amlin Challenge Cup ahead of the Wednesday's pool draw.

Last season's defeated finalists Stade Francais head the top seeds alongside fellow European giants Perpignan, Wasps and Toulon with two-time winners Sale also named in Tier 1.

There are 20 participating clubs from six countries - England, France, Italy, Romania, Spain and Wales - who will be drawn into five pools of four teams each. The four tiers are based on the ERC European Rankings system over the past four seasons in the Heineken Cup and the knock-out stages of the Amlin Challenge Cup and also on participation in the pool stages of the latter over the same four season period.

Fresh from their return to the Premiership, Worcester Warriors are included in Tier 2 where they are joined by the Dragons, Brive, Newcastle and Bayonne. Exeter Chiefs line up in Tier 3 with Petraca Padova, Crociati Parma, Rovigo and Agen with Tier 4 featuring Cavalieri Prato, Lyon, Bordeaux-Bègles, Bucharest Wolves and Club Rugby La Vila.

Each pool will have one club from each of the four tiers and no two clubs from the same country will be drawn in the same pool, except for the sixth, seventh and eighth clubs from France who will be drawn into pools with another French club.

The clubs and tiers for the 2011 / 2012 Amlin Challenge Cup are:
Tier 1 - Stade Francais Paris, Perpignan, London Wasps, Toulon, Sale Sharks
Tier 2 - Newport Gwent Dragons, Brive, Newcastle Falcons, Worcester Warriors, Bayonne
Tier 3 - Petrarca Padova, Crociati Parma, Femi-CZ Rovigo, Agen, Exeter Chiefs
Tier 4 - Cavalieri Prato, Lyon, Bordeaux-Bègles, Bucharest Wolves, Club Rugby La Vila