Europe awakens from hibernation
Rory Lamont: Two tries on comeback
The Top 14 kicks off on August 26, and the Guinness Premiership and Magners Leagues on the weekend of September 5/6, but none of the clubs will be heading into the season cold.
Glasgow have already gone to Castres and won 26-21, and Sale drew 24-24 with Perpignan on Wednesday, with Rory Lamont dotting down two tries in his first match since a serious injury in this year's Six Nations.
On Friday, the friendly fixtures calendar gets into full swing, as English and Celtic clubs join the French in their warm-ups.
Here's a list of all friendlies involving Guinness Premiership, Top 14, and Magners League clubs over the coming four weeks:
Friday August 8
Toulouse v Colomiers
Dax v Tarbes
Biarritz v Pau
Bayonne v Saracens
Brive v Stade Bordelais
Montauban v Bourgoin
Newcastle v Western Force
Saturday, August 9
Connacht v Leeds
Montpellier v Sale
Beziers v Glasgow
USA v Clermont
Sunday August 10
Perpignan v Castres
Wednesday, August 13
Grenoble v Bourgoin
Thursday, August 14
Toulon v Toulouse
Dax v Wasps
Brive v Montauban
Friday, August 15
Perpignan v Stade Français
Bedford v Dragons
London Irish v Nottingham
Ulster v Bath
Biarritz v Leicester Tigers
Saturday, August 16
Clermont v Northampton
Connacht v Harlequins
Exeter v Bristol
Sunday, August 17
Doncaster v Worcester
Leeds v Newcastle
Tuesday, August 19
Bayonne v Gloucester
Castres v Calvisano
Wednesday, August 20
Bourgoin v Lyon
Friday, August 22
Glasgow v Bristol
Ulster v Queensland Reds
Dragons v Saracens
Sale v Leeds / Sale v Sedgeley Park
Nottingham v Northampton
Connacht v London Welsh
Saturday, August 23
Bath v Scarlets
Edinburgh v Wasps
Harlequins v London Irish
Worcester v Moseley
Northampton v Western Force
Ospreys v Leicester Tigers
USA v Munster
Sunday, August 24
Racing Metro 92 Paris v Newcastle
Tuesday, August 26
Connacht v Queensland Reds
Wednesday, August 27
Ulster v Worcester
Friday, August 29
Sale v Lyon
Bath v Edinburgh
Cardiff Blues v Northampton
Munster v London Irish
Wasps v Scarlets
Saturday, August 30
Gloucester v Glasgow
Cambridge v Worcester
Harlequins v Parma
Leicester Tigers v Western Force
Leinster v Queensland Reds
Sunday, August 31
Northampton v Benetton Treviso