World Rugby has officially launched the Nations Championship for the 2026 session.
It will see 12 of the best nations across the world battle it out over six weeks of fixtures split across two separate periods and two hemispheres, with the winner decided at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham, on November 29
Watch every second of the 2025 Autumn Nations Series live and on demand via Stan Sport.
The teams include Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Argentina, Fiji, Japan, England, Scotland, Italy, Wales, France, and Ireland.
The competition will see the first three rounds hosted by Southern Hemisphere nations from July 4-18, with the Wallabies hosting Ireland (July 4), France (July 11), and Italy (July 18) in Joe Schmidt’s final games in charge as coach.
Following this, the tournament shifts to the north throughout November, with the Wallabies facing England, Scotland and Wales.
Across the six rounds, the teams will receive points in a standings that determines the final rankings for both hemispheres, with the respective ranked teams facing off in three doubleheaders from November 27 to 29, culminating in the crowning of an inaugural champion.
Further match information, including ticket and venue details, will be confirmed in the coming days.
“The establishment of The Nations Championship is a historic and exciting move for rugby that will see the SANZAAR Member Unions, with the addition of Fiji and Japan, take on the best of Europe and the Northern Hemisphere on a biennial basis,” Brendan Morris, CEO of SANZAAR, said
“SANZAAR teams have a proud and successful record at international level. Our aim is to continue this record, and the Nations Championship, along with our rugby calendar for the 2026-2030 period, will provide the perfect pathway for continued success.”
“The Nations Championship has the power to redefine the future of rugby.” added Tom Harrison, CEO of Six Nations Rugby. “The significance of the partnership between Six Nations Rugby and SANZAAR signals a tectonic shift in the sport.
“It is the first time in rugby’s history that its strongest nations have collaborated on this scale, with a clear vision to grow the game, by challenging traditional ways of operating to create a tournament structure that carries genuine global relevance, and can unlock the true value of the sport, for its players and fans.”
“The Nations Championship is an outstanding addition to the global rugby calendar and one Rugby Australia enthusiastically supports,” RA CEO Phil Waugh believes.
“Fans in Australia and around the world will embrace the innovative format which pits the best of the Southern Hemisphere against the North, culminating in an epic finals weekend.
“Test rugby is in strong health around the globe and the Nations Championship will ensure our great game’s status among the world’s leading sports is enhanced.”
The Nations Championship explained
- The Nations Championship is a new international rugby tournament that transforms the existing July and November windows into a competitive cross hemisphere format every two years, outside a Rugby World Cup and Lions Tour year.
- Features 12 of the strongest nations in rugby with two groups of six teams. The Six Nations teams will form a European group representing the Northern Hemisphere, and take on the SANZAAR nations, plus Japan and Fiji, who form a group nominally representing the Southern Hemisphere.
- Next July, the Northern Hemisphere group of teams will travel to play three rounds of fixtures, with every team playing a different rival from the opposing Hemisphere group.
- In November next year, the Southern Hemisphere group will travel north for the remaining three rounds.
- Points are on offer across the July and November windows, to then dictate the table standings per Hemisphere group and inform the schedule of fixtures for the Nations Championship Finals Weekend at Allianz Stadium in London
- The Finals Weekend will see the No.1 ranked team in the Northern Hemisphere group play the No.1 ranked team in the Southern Hemisphere group in the final to decide the inaugural Nations Championship winner.
^all dates local
Round One (Saturday July 4)
New Zealand v France
Australia v Ireland
Japan v Italy
Fiji v Wales
South Africa v England
Argentina v Scotland
Round Two (Saturday July 11)
New Zealand v Italy
Australia v France
Japan v Ireland
Fiji v England
South Africa v Scotland
Argentina v Wales
Round Three (Saturday July 18)
Japan v France
New Zealand v Ireland
Australia v Italy
Fiji v Scotland
South Africa v Scotland
Argentina v Wales
Round Four (6-8 November)
Ireland v Argentina
Italy v South Africa
Scotland v New Zealand
Wales v Japan
France v Fiji
England v Australia
Round Five (13-15 November)
France v South Africa
Italy v Argentina
Wales v New Zealand
England v Japan
Ireland v Fiji
Scotland v Australia
Round Six (21 November)
England v New Zealand
Scotland v Japan
Ireland v South Africa
Italy v Fiji
France v Argentina
Wales v Australia
*All games double-headers
Friday 27 November
Sixth placed North v Sixth placed South
Third placed North v Third placed South
Saturday 28 November
Fifth placed North v Fifth placed South
Second placed North v Second placed South
Saturday 29 November
Fourth placed North v Fourth placed South
First placed North v First placed South
