There is surely no better competition in world sport than the Heineken Cup.

The opening weekend of this year’s tournament, the 15th in its history, produced some spectacular games, some stunning results and some great stories.

Leicester Tigers’ 18-point comeback against the Ospreys, London Irish beating champions Leinster in Dublin, Northampton Saints triumphing against the might of Munster and, the shock of the round, Italian whipping boys Treviso beating French Top 14 champions Perpignan.

The excitement, passion and intensity reached new levels as Europe’s best 24 teams fought it out to get their noses ahead in each of the six pools.

The structure of the competition is spot-on and lends itself to some thrilling action.

With just six games to play in the group stages, this is a sprint, not a marathon. Lose a game and you might still squeeze through. Lose two games and you are starting to struggle.

There is not the tedious over-exposure of the Champions League and the Europa League in football, or the never-ending competitions in cricket which seem to come faster and faster these days.

There is also genuine uncertainty as to who is going to win the title each year. Tigers are the only side to have ever earned back-to-back victories and nine teams have lifted the trophy in its 14-year history.

Compare that with Leeds Rhinos winning the Super League final for the third consecutive year, or the battle between Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea for the Premier League football crown. No other side has disrupted the trio’s dominance for the past 14 seasons.

The Heineken Cup attracts big crowds and has good exposure throughout Europe thanks to Sky Sports.

As Tigers head coach Richard Cockerill said last week, it is the “best of the best”. That is true not only for clubs and players, but for spectators as well.

Tigers should find easier opposition this weekend in Viadana, but there are still plenty of mouth-watering clashes up for grabs for those who decide to spend the weekend in front of the television.

Northampton’s reward for beating Munster is a trip to face a hurting Perpignan side desperate to redeem their loss at Trevisio, while Harlequins need to beat Toulouse at home to stay in the competition.

The Ospreys host Clermont in Tigers’ Pool Three and Bath face Stade Francais at The Rec needing to bounce back from defeat in Ulster.

Needless to say, there will be plenty more to write about next week.