Stade Francais Paris have been within tantalising touching distance of claiming European silverware - the 2001 and 2005 Heineken Cup finals and the 2011 Amlin Challenge Cup showpiece match - and they have made a flying start to their 2012/13 bid.
They beat tournament newcomers London Welsh 68-18 at the Kassam Stadium to send out a clear warning to the rest.
"If you don't go into a competition to win it, there is not point in going in at all," said back rower Pierre Rabadan.
"We have been playing in this competition for three years, trying to win it. We have always given it our best.
"Our objective will be to see it to the end, or at least to go as far as possible. We as players want to make a strong team, with a good fighting spirit and playing every game to get a victory. We need to keep that in mind, even though we know that we won't always win."
Meanwhile Bordeaux-Begles went down 43-16 to London Irish with head coach Vincent Etcheto declaring: "There was a wide gap between them and us tonight but this sort of game will allow us to learn.
"This competition gives us the opportunity to experiment, and I am proud of the boys tonight. I have seen some young, promising players."
