Nations Championship 2026: Overview of Results and Fixtures

The Nations Championship, featuring the latest competition in men’s international rugby, got underway on Saturday, July 4, 2026. This biennial tournament, designed to enhance summer and autumn internationals while better aligning the global rugby calendar, includes six European teams from the Six Nations (England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, and Wales), four teams from the Rugby Championship (New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, and Argentina), plus Fiji and Japan. In this context, Japan is counted as a southern hemisphere side despite its geographical location.

The opening matches were filled with excitement, with France narrowly losing to New Zealand 34-32 at One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch. Ireland also had a close victory against Australia, winning 33-31 at Allianz Stadium in Sydney. Japan triumphed over Italy, 27-10, in Tokyo, while Wales defeated Fiji 39-24 in Cardiff. South Africa dominated England, finishing 45-21 at Ellis Park in Johannesburg. In a thrilling match in Cordoba, Scotland edged past Argentina 47-38. Overall, both hemispheres secured three wins each, with an impressive total of 54 tries scored across the six fixtures on the opening day, averaging nine tries per game.

The Nations Championship runs from Saturday, July 4 to Sunday, November 29, 2026. The participating teams are Argentina, Australia, England, Fiji, France, Ireland, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Scotland, South Africa, and Wales.

Television rights for the event are held by various broadcasters. In the UK, ITV is responsible for showing the matches. Virgin Media is the official broadcaster in Ireland, while viewers in France can watch the action on TF1. Other broadcasters include Stan Sport in Australia, Sky Sport in New Zealand, SuperSport in South Africa, Sky Italia in Italy, and Wowow in Japan.

Upcoming fixtures include New Zealand taking on Italy at Hnry Stadium in Wellington on July 11, 2026, Australia playing against France in Brisbane, Japan facing Ireland in Newcastle, Fiji against England in Liverpool, South Africa facing Scotland in Pretoria, and Argentina competing against Wales in San Juan. These matches are set to continue the tournament's momentum as teams vie for positions in this highly competitive format.

For those interested in following the competition, a downloadable wall chart detailing all fixtures will also be available.

Stay tuned for results and more information as the tournament progresses.