50 Days to go until the Nations Championship

15 May 2026

In 50 days, the Nations Championship makes its debut, with the 12 strongest teams in international rugby lining up in two groups of six, representing the Northern and Southern Hemisphere respectively, to begin their campaign to win the first ever edition of the new biennial tournament.

Turning the two existing July and November international rugby windows into one cohesive and competitive tournament where every match matters to every team, the Nations Championship injects greater jeopardy and meaning into every fixture, with points, titles and silverware on the line. By the conclusion of the tournament, fans and players will know who the best team in the world is, and the dominant hemisphere in international rugby.

The ‘Southern Series’ of fixtures in July sees the Six Nations unions representing the Northern Hemisphere travel south of the equator to face the powerhouse Southern Hemisphere nations. Kicking off on Saturday July 4th at the One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch; the first ever Test match hosted at the new venue, the Nations Championship opening weekend will deliver a blockbuster set of fixtures that pave the way for three consecutive ‘Super Saturday’s’ across July, giving fans back-to-back fixtures each match day, featuring the best players and teams in the international game.

Fast forward to November for the ‘Northern Series’, and the Nations Championship dominates the entire month, turning the Northern Hemisphere into the centre of international rugby. The remaining three rounds of group fixtures span Friday, Saturday and Sunday each weekend, culminating in the first of its kind Finals Weekend in London at the end of November.

A totally new and unique concept for rugby union, the Finals Weekend will take over London; one of the sporting capitals of the world, and welcome fans from all corners of the globe. To make the three-day festival of rugby open to as many fans as possible, ticket options and price points have been set to cater for the broadest set of fans. Full ticket information and options can be found on the official Nations Championship website.

A global tournament with the scale and ambition of the Nations Championship will be matched by its broadcast coverage. Major new broadcast partnerships, including comprehensive Free-To-Air access across some of rugby’s biggest markets will give fans access to every fixture from the Nations Championship. In the UK, ITV and STV will be the exclusive home of the Nations Championship, covering every single fixture in July, November and the Finals Weekend.

By connecting the July and November windows in the international rugby calendar, fans and players know that every match in July has a direct consequence on the remaining fixtures in November, and ultimately the Finals Weekend, in London, where a winning team will be crowned. Adding an extra competitive dynamic to the Finals Weekend, in each edition, teams will be competing to earn points for their group that will answer one of the oldest questions in the sport: which Hemisphere is dominating international rugby?

 

With the Nations Championship 50 days away, and kick off times confirmed across its July and November fixtures.

Southern Hemisphere Series

4 July 2026 at 8:10pm: Argentina v Scotland

11 July 2026 at 4:40pm: South Africa v Scotland

18 July 2026 at 2:10pm: Fiji v Scotland

Individual match tickets for Fiji and multi-match packages are available to purchase online, explore all package options here. 

Northern Hemisphere Series

7 November 2026 at 2:10pm: Scotland v New Zealand

15 November 2026 at 3:10pm: Scotland v Australia

21 November 2026 at 2:10pm: Scotland v Japan

Explore all multi match package options for the upcoming fixtures here. 

 

At the end of the final three rounds, the two Nations Championship tables will be complete, one for each hemisphere. Over three days of double-headers at Allianz Stadium (formerly Twickenham) the six teams of each hemisphere will play their correspondingly-placed counterpart, starting with 6th place v 6th place, and culminating in 1st place v 1st place to determine the Nations Championship winner.

Support Your Team tickets guarantee you see your team, whichever day they compete on Finals Weekend.

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