Munster are joined in Tier 1 with three fellow Heineken Cup winners, Toulouse, Leinster and Northhampton Saints, while Biarritz Olympique and Cardiff Blues complete the top tier of six clubs.

Each of the Tier 1 clubs will be drawn in seperate pools and no pool will have more than one club from the same country with the exception of France, as there are seven French clubs in next season's competition.

This year's finalists Ulster are placed in Tier 2 while fellow Irish province Connacht take position in Tier 3 for their second consecutive Heineken Cup appearance.

The pool draw will be broadcast live on TG4 as the countdown begins to the Dublin 2013 Heineken Cup final at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday, 18th May.

2012/13 Heineken Cup clubs and tiers

Tier 1 - Leinster Rugby, Toulouse, Biarritz Olympique, Munster Rugby, Cardiff Blues, Northampton Saints
Tier 2 - ASM Clermont Auvergne, Ulster Rugby, Leicester Tigers, Harlequins, Toulon, Edinburgh Rugby
Tier 3 - Ospreys, Scarlets, Glasgow Warriors, Saracens, Connacht Rugby, Sale Sharks
Tier 4 - Castres Olympique, Benetton Treviso, Racing Metro 92, Montpellier, Exeter Chiefs, Zebre (Zebras)