Super Saturdays highlight of new Nations Championship
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LONDON, May 14 - Fans can look forward to three successive “Super Saturdays”, featuring six back-to-back matches in July, in the inaugural Nations Championship after the fixture list was released on Thursday.
The new 12-team competition aims to bring structure to the international calendar, replacing the current system in which European sides tour the southern hemisphere in June before hosting their southern counterparts in standalone November tests.
The tournament begins on July 4 with New Zealand hosting France in Christchurch, with South Africa against England in Johannesburg the pick of the rest of the day's games.
Action moves to Europe in November, culminating in a finals weekend in London, where the top two teams will meet at Twickenham on November 29.
“The schedule of fixtures and kick off times across the tournament highlight the commitment to give global fans access to an incredible set of clashes and structured in a way that means they need never miss a moment of the action,” said Six Nations CEO Tom Harrison.
“This is enhanced by incredible broadcast partnerships, including major Free-To-Air access across some of the biggest rugby markets in the world. When the Nations Championship kicks off, it will put the players, teams, and sport on the global stage, ushering in a new chapter in rugby’s history.”
Round-robin phase (July + November windows)
July 2026 (Southern Hemisphere window)
Date Fixture VenueJuly 4 New Zealand v France ChristchurchJuly 4 Japan v Italy TokyoJuly 4 Australia v Ireland SydneyJuly 4 Fiji v Wales Cardiff*July 4 South Africa v England JohannesburgJuly 4 Argentina v Scotland CordobaJuly 10–11 Fiji v England LiverpoolJuly 10–11 New Zealand v Italy WellingtonJuly 10–11 Australia v France BrisbaneJuly 10–11 Japan v Ireland Newcastle (AUS)July 10–11 South Africa v Scotland PretoriaJuly 10–11 Argentina v Wales San JuanJuly 17–18 Fiji v Scotland EdinburghJuly 17–18 New Zealand v Ireland AucklandJuly 17–18 Japan v France TokyoJuly 17–18 Australia v Italy PerthJuly 17–18 South Africa v Wales DurbanJuly 17–18 Argentina v England Santiago del Estero
November 2026 (Northern Hemisphere window)
Date Fixture VenueNov 6–8 Ireland v Argentina DublinNov 6–8 Italy v South Africa Italy (TBC)Nov 6–8 Scotland v New Zealand EdinburghNov 6–8 Wales v Japan CardiffNov 6–8 France v Fiji France (TBC)Nov 8 England v Australia LondonNov 13–15 France v South Africa FranceNov 13–15 Italy v Argentina ItalyNov 13–15 Wales v New Zealand CardiffNov 13–15 England v Japan LondonNov 13–15 Ireland v Fiji DublinNov 15 Scotland v Australia EdinburghNov 20–21 France v Argentina ParisNov 20–21 England v New Zealand LondonNov 20–21 Scotland v Japan EdinburghNov 20–21 Ireland v South Africa DublinNov 20–21 Italy v Fiji ItalyNov 21 Wales v Australia Cardiff
Finals weekend (Twickenham, London)
(matchups based on standings — e.g. 1st v 1st, 2nd v 2nd, etc.)
Date MatchNov 27–29 6th v 6thNov 27–29 5th v 5thNov 27–29 4th v 4thNov 27–29 3rd v 3rdNov 27–29 2nd v 2ndNov 27–29 Final (1st v 1st) REUTERS
