Premiership Rugby: league table and Gallagher PREM playoffs

In this guide

Each club meets nine opponents twice Four teams reach the semi-finals Bonus points change the league contribution Match points and table points are different Keep PREM and cup fixtures separate

Premiership Rugby, presented in current coverage as Gallagher PREM, is England’s top-flight men’s club rugby competition. Ten clubs play eighteen home-and-away league rounds before the top-four playoffs.

The regular-season table selects and seeds the semi-finalists. Finishing first is a valuable league achievement, but the championship is settled through the knockout route and final.

Each club meets nine opponents twice

Nine home matches and nine away matches produce eighteen league fixtures. A programme identified as Round 18 belongs to the end of that league allocation, rather than the eighteenth game of the whole competition including playoffs.

Four teams reach the semi-finals

First hosts fourth and second hosts third. The two winners then meet in the final. Third and fourth qualify, but the top two earn the immediate semi-final home advantage. A top-four place and a top-two place therefore have different consequences.

Bonus points change the league contribution

A win earns four league points and a draw two. Scoring at least four tries earns one bonus point; losing by seven match points or fewer earns another possible bonus. A losing side can satisfy both bonus conditions.

Match points and table points are different

The rugby scoreboard can show 30–28 while the table awards depend on result and try count. Those 30 and 28 are not copied into the league-points column.

Match outcome	Base league award
Win	4
Draw	2
Loss	0
Four or more tries	Add 1
Loss by seven or fewer	Add 1

Keep PREM and cup fixtures separate

The same clubs can also appear in domestic cup or European programmes. Their participation does not make every fixture a PREM league match. Preserve the full competition title and season; future expansion plans do not alter the current ten-club format until their stated effective season.