2026 will see the world’s best men’s rugby union teams battle it out to become the inaugural Nations Championship champions. Six Northern Hemisphere nations (England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales) will take on six Southern Hemisphere nations (Argentina, Australia, Fiji, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa) in a bid to become the ‘best nation’ and most ‘dominant hemisphere’.

All nations will play six matches, three in the Southern Hemisphere followed by three in the Northern Hemisphere, before the Finals Weekend in London. The Finals Weekend will then see the 6th-ranked northern team take on the 6th-ranked southern team and so on until the grand final between the two top-ranked nations.

The seven rounds of fixtures, which will be played in a round robin format, will take place as follows:
Round 1: Saturday 4th July
Round 2: Saturday 11th July
Round 3: Saturday 18th July
Round 4: Friday 6th – Sunday 8th November
Round 5: Friday 13th – Sunday 15th November
Round 6: Saturday 21st November
Round 7 (Finals Weekend): Friday 27th – Sunday 29th November

North v South in Rugby Union

1905 saw England take on New Zealand in what was the first ever international rugby test held between nations of the northern and southern hemispheres.

In the 111 years since, 1062 fixtures have taken place between teams from both hemispheres. The Southern Hemisphere teams have won 603 (56.8%) of those fixtures, whilst the Northern Hemisphere has won 427 (40.2%).

However, this decade has seen the Northern Hemisphere win over 50% of their fixtures against teams from the Southern Hemisphere. Since 2021, 133 fixtures have been played between these two hemispheres, with 51.9% of those matches won by the northern teams.

South Africa currently has the longest winning streak against the opposite hemisphere after they have won their previous nine encounters with the Northern Hemisphere. The team with the next longest winning streak is England, who have won their last 7 matches against the Southern Hemisphere.

Round 1 Preview

New Zealand will host France in the opening Nations Championship clash on Saturday 4th July. The match will be played at ‘a sold-out One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch and will be the first international rugby Test match played at the new venue’. In their latest five meetings, New Zealand has won 3 matches and France 2. Both teams are also heading into the match with four wins from their previous five matches.

The second match of the opening round will see Japan take on Italy on Saturday 4th July. Italy has won three of their five latest meetings with Japan, whilst Japan has won the remaining two. Japan has won one of their previous five matches, whilst Italy has won two.
The third match of the opening round will see Australia take on Ireland on Saturday 4th July. Australia has won one of their previous five matches, whilst Ireland has won four. Ireland have also won all five of their latest meetings with Australia.

The fourth match of the opening round will see Fiji go head-to-head with Wales on Saturday 4th July. Fiji has won three of their previous five matches, whilst Wales has won two. Wales have won four of their five latest meetings with Fiji, whilst Fiji won their latest clash.
The fifth match of the opening round will see South Africa host England on Saturday 4th July. South Africa has won all five of their previous matches, whilst England has won one. South Africa have won four of their latest five meetings with England, whilst England have won one.

The sixth and final match of the opening round of Nations Championship fixtures will see Argentina take on Scotland. Argentina has won two of the previous matches, whilst Scotland has won three. Argentina have also won three of their five latest matches against Scotland, who have won two.