A new-look rugby competition will start next year, bringing together the best teams of the northern and southern hemispheres with Ireland facing Australia in round one next July.
The Nations Championship is a new 12-team tournament first mooted three years ago to replace the traditional summer tours that northern hemisphere teams make to countries in the south and then the other way round in November.
The Six Nations teams will represent the northern hemisphere and face the Sanzar nations, as well as invitational teams Japan and Fiji.
The new competition, designed to give more purpose to the Test schedule, will conclude with a ‘Finals Weekend’ from November 28th-30th at Twickenham in London where all 12 nations will chase a placing.
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The deciding clash will be between the top-ranked northern and southern hemisphere sides.
It will start in July with Argentina, Australia, Fiji, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa all hosting three matches against European opposition and then travelling north in November to play three away games in Ireland, England, France, Italy, Scotland and Wales.
Points will be awarded for each result – four for a win, two for a draw and a bonus point for scoring four tries or more or losing by less than eight points – which will then determine the pairings for the finals weekend at the end of November.
Instead of a series of Tests in one country as is usually the case for the European teams on their summer tours, they now face a daunting travel schedule in July. The cross-hemisphere competition is to be played every two years, so will not interfere with a Rugby World Cup or a British & Irish Lions tour.
The Six Nations is also not affected, but the Rugby Championship between Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa now moves to every two years.
New Zealand are instead going to tour South Africa in August and September next year for four Tests and four matches against franchise teams in a resurrection of the traditional tour schedule long since abandoned.
New Zealand and South Africa are marketing their clash as ‘Rugby’s Greatest Rivalry’ and will look to continue it every four years with the Springboks going to New Zealand in 2030.
World Rugby is to create a second division tournament called the Nations Cup to feature the 12 teams who have qualified for the 2027 Rugby World Cup and are not competing in the Nations Championship. They are Canada, Chile, Georgia, Hong Kong, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Tonga, Uruguay, the US, Zimbabwe, and either Belgium or Samoa.
Those details, however, have not been announced nor has it been confirmed there might be a promotion and relegation between the two new competitions from 2030 onwards.
“The Nations Championship has the power to redefine the future of rugby, and the partnership between Six Nations Rugby and Sanzar signals a tectonic shift in the sport,” said Six Nations chief executive Tom Harrison.
“Rugby’s strongest nations have collaborated with a clear vision to grow the game, by challenging traditional ways of operating to create a tournament structure with genuine global relevance, which will unlock the true value of the sport.
“The world’s biggest and best championships are defined by intense sporting drama, and the Nations Championship will stand alongside these.
“The Finals Weekend will add a totally new dimension for fans, and promises to create an incredible spectacle, crown champions, and act as a catalyst to grow rugby’s reach, globally.
“By bringing together the best teams and players in the sport and injecting another layer to the fierce cross-hemisphere rivalries, the Nations Championship will take international rugby to new heights.”
2026 fixtures
Southern Series
July 4th: Argentina v Scotland, Australia v Ireland, Fiji v Wales, Japan v Italy, New Zealand v France, South Africa v England
July 11th: Argentina v Wales, Australia v France, Fiji v England, Japan v Ireland, New Zealand v Italy, South Africa v Scotland
July 18th: Argentina v England, Australia v Italy, Fiji v Scotland, Japan v France, New Zealand v Ireland, South Africa v Wales
Northern Series
November 7th-8th: England v Australia, France v Fiji, Ireland v Argentina, Italy v South Africa, Scotland v New Zealand, Wales v Japan
November 14th-15th: England v Japan, France v South Africa, Ireland v Fiji, Italy v Argentina, Scotland v Australia, Wales v New Zealand
November 21st-22nd: England v New Zealand, France v Argentina, Ireland v South Africa, Italy v Fiji, Scotland v Japan, Wales v Australia
Finals weekend
November 28th-30th: North 6 v South 6, North 5 v South 5, North 4 v South 4, North 3 v South 3, North 2 v South 2, North 1 v South 1
