Italy is one of ten men’s rugby test teams recognized as Tier 1. This elite categorization means Italy get to play more matches against fellow Tier 1 opponents than do teams not placed in this category.
Italy became the first Tier 1 union expansion when the Azzurri joined the Six Nations Championship in 2000. Admission into the Six Nations came following a number of victories over teams defined as Tier 1. These wins and many subsequent wins came with Argentine involvement. This article documents Italian wins with Argentine players, scorers and / or captains against Tier 1 teams.
WINS VS  IRELAND |
Italy completed three consecutive wins over Ireland from 1995-1997. This contributed to changing the perception of Italy’s place in European rugby with admission to the Six Nations coming in 2000.
The three Italian wins over Ireland had a heavy Argentine contribution of what was the Diego Domínguez trilogy. Born and raised in Córdoba, the former Pumas fly half scored 27 points in the 37-22 win in Bologna in 1997. He scored 22 points earlier that year in Italy’s win over Ireland in Dublin. Before both wins, Domínguez had inspired Italy to their historic first-ever win over Ireland in 1995.
Italy’s next win over Ireland came in 2013. It was their first win over Ireland in a Six Nations match. Sergio Parisse captained Italy to a 22-15 win. He was born in Argentina and is a product of Argentine rugby; he started playing rugby aged 5 for Universitario de La Plata. He moved to Italy aged 17.
17 of the 22 Italian points in the aforementioned 2013 win were scored by Argentines. Luciano Orquera kicked 14 points. Gonzalo García, who is from Mendoza also landed a penalty. Of note is that Orquera is from Córdoba and his club, Palermo Bajo is a rival of Domínguez’ home club of La Tablada.
 WINS VS  ARGENTINA |
Italy defeated Argentina 31-24 at Rugby World Cup 1995. Diego Domínguez scored 21 points against Los Pumas, including against a number of former teammates. He also scored 13 points in Italy’s 23-19 win over Argentina in Piacenza in 1998.
Italy’s next win over Argentina was in June 2005. The 30-29 in Córdoba win featured three tries, all of which were from players from Argentina. La Tablada players Gonzalo Canale and Ramiro Pez both scored as did Sergio Parisse.
Parisse returned to Argentina in 2008 and this time as Italian captain. The Parisse captained Italy won 13-12. One-third of the starting line-up were Argentines as Parisse was joined by another La Plata player in Santiago Dellape from the San Luis club. Fellow Argentines Ignacio Fernández Rouyet, Gonzalo García and Carlos Nieto also started and Pablo Canavosio was a replacement.
WINS VS  FRANCE |
Italy’s first win over France was in 1997. Played in Grenoble, the Azzurri were 40-32 winners with Diego Domínguez scoring 20 points. To this day it remains the only away victory by Italy over France.
Italy’s second ever win over France came in the 2011 Six Nations. Sergio Parisse captained Italy to a 22-21 victory in Rome. Fellow Argentines Pablo Canavosio, Martin Castrogiovanni, Santiago Dellape, Luciano Orquera, Gonzalo Canale, and Gonzalo García also all played.
Parisse also captained Italy to their other win, thus far, over France. It was a 23-18 victory in the 2013 Six Nations. 20 of the Italian points were scored by Argentines with Parisse and Castrogiovanni scoring tries and Orquera kicking 10 points.
WINS VS  SCOTLAND |
Diego Domínguez was at the forefront when Italy wrote history in 1998. The first Italian victory over Scotland was a 25-21 win in Treviso. The former Puma scored 25 points.
Italy’s Six Nations debut was against Scotland in Rome in 2000. Domínguez kicked 29 points for Italy in a 34-20 victory. Despite the promising debut, it took four years to defeat Scotland again. The 20-14 win in 2004 was with a very different team than that in 2000. Martín Castrogiovanni, Santiago Dellape, Sergio Parisse and Gonzalo Canale all started.
Italy recorded their first away Six Nations victory in 2007. It was against Scotland in Edinburgh. The 37-17 win featured Argentines Sergio Parisse, Gonzalo Canale, Martín Castrogiovanni, Santiago Dellape, Carlos Nieto and Ramiro Pez.
Italy backed-up the 2007 win with a win in 2008; this time in Rome. Gonzalo Canale was a try scorer in the 23-20 victory. Sergio Parisse was now Italy’s captain. Argentine props Martín Castrogiovanni and Carlos Nieto also both played.
The Azzurri defeated Scotland 16-12 in the 2010 Six Nations. The La Tablada club again shined bright for Italy as Pablo Canavosio scored the winning try. Gonzalo Canale and Gonzalo García were the centers while props Martín Castrogiovanni and Matías Agüero also both featured.
Parisse captained Italy to a 13-6 win in Rome in 2012. Gonzalo Canale of La Tablada and Martín Castrogiovanni of Club Atlético Estudiantes (CAE) both started for the Azzurri alongside Parisse.
Parisse’s last win over Scotland came in 2015. It was a 22-19 away victory in Edinburgh. It was a dramatic win secured in the final minute. Matías Agüero started at loose head prop for Italy. Agüero is from Club de Regatas San Nicolás in San Nicolás de los Arroyos. It is 260km downstream from Castrogiovanni’s hometown of Paraná.
Following a lengthily period of lows, Italy has improved under Gonzalo Quesada. The former Puma coached the team to victory over Scotland in the 2024 Six Nations. Argentine Juan Ignacio Brex featured in the 31-19 win and was a try-scorer.
WINS VS  WALES |
Italy’s first win over Wales took place in Rome during the 2003 Six Nations. Diego Domínguez scored 15 points in the 30-22 victory. Domínguez was joined by fellow Argentines Ramiro Martínez Frugoni, Ramiro Pez and Juan Manuel Queirolo.
The Azzurri next defeated Italy in the 2007 Six Nations. The 23-20 home win in Rome featured 13 points from La Tablada fly half Ramiro Pez. The La Plata trio of Carlos Nieto, Santiago Dellape, Sergio Parisse also all played as did Gonzalo Canale.
Italy struggled against Wales for the next decade and a half. The losing-streak ended in Rome in the 2022 Six Nations. Italy were 22-21 winners with former Argentina XV center, Juan Ignacio Brex playing in the centers. Brex is a product of the San Cirano club in Buenos Aires.
Italy also defeated Wales in both the 2024 and 2025 Six Nations tournaments. The 2024 victory was by a scoreline of 24-21 in Cardiff. Brex played outside center that day and also in the 2025 win which was a 22-15 victory in Rome.
WINS VS  SOUTH AFRICA |
The Azzurri team of 2016 did what no team had ever done before by defeating the Springboks. Italy’s November 19, 2016 win over South Africa saw Sergio Parisse captaining the team to victory in Florence. The history-making win is placed among the greatest ever results achieved by Italy in rugby.
WINS VS  AUSTRALIA |
The Wallabies are the most recent Tier 1 team to lose to Italy for the first time. Australia fell to a 28-27 defeat against Italy in 2022 and a 26-19 defeat in 2025. Juan Ignacio Brex started in the centers in both wins. Brex notably plays test matches for Italy with “SC” on his headgear. SC refers to his home club of San Cirano in Buenos Aires. Prop Ivan Nemer joined Brex in the 2022 win. Nemer is from Bigua Rugby Club in Mar del Plata.
