International rugby is going to look a little different next year with the introduction of the Nations Championship.
Kicking off in July, rugby’s newest competition will see northern hemisphere sides go against their southern hemisphere rivals, culminating in a “Finals Weekend” to be held in London next November that will see the crowning of a champion in the north vs. south final.
“The Nations Championship has the power to redefine the future of rugby,” Nations Championship chief executive Tom Harrison said in a statement when the full fixture list was announced on Monday.
But how will the Nations Championship work and when will sides play each other? ESPN has got you covered.
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What is the format?
The tournament will take place every two years, beginning in 2026. The tournament will not impact either the Six Nations or Rugby Championship, given it has been launched in a joint venture by the organisers of those events. Instead, it will replace the exisiting July and November international windows.
The two hemisphere are split up as so, with Fiji and Japan added as invitational sides representing the south:
Northern Hemisphere
England
Ireland
Wales
Scotland
France
Italy
Southern Hemisphere
Australia
New Zealand
South Africa
Argentina
Fiji
Japan
The Nations Championship will begin with the north hemisphere sides travelling across the globe to face thieir southern counterparts — enticing opening matchups include South Africa vs. England, New Zealand vs. France and Australia vs. Ireland. All venues and kick-off times are yet to be confirmed.
The next round of games will see the southern hemisphere sides travel north — just as they would for the Autumn Nations Series — although this time their place in the finals weekend is at stake.
The finals weekend — to be held between Nov. 27-29 — will feature all 12 teams, with each side facing the counterpart in the corresponding hemisphere (Sixth vs. sixth etc.). The championship match between the two first-place nations will conclude proceedings.
The Nations Championship will be held again in 2028 and 2030, with that final year the first that will determine promotion and relegation from/to what will effectively be a second division, whose teams are yet to be determined but will be drawn from the Rugby Europe Championship, an expanded Pacific Nations Cup and teams from South America, Africa and Asia.
Full Nations Championship fixture list:
JULY 2026 — SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE SERIES
Round 1 — Saturday July, 4 2026
New Zealand vs France
Australia vs Ireland
Japan vs Italy
Fiji vs Wales
South Africa vs England
Argentina vs Scotland
Round 2 — Saturday July 11, 2026
New Zealand vs Italy
Australia vs France
Japan vs Ireland
Fiji vs England
South Africa vs Scotland
Argentina vs Wales
Round 3 — Saturday July 18, 2026
Japan vs France
New Zealand vs Ireland
Australia vs Italy
Fiji vs Scotland
South Africa vs Wales
Argentina vs England
NOVEMBER 2026 — NORTHERN HEMISPHERE SERIES
Round 4 — Nov. 6-8, 2026
Ireland vs Argentina
Italy vs South Africa
Scotland vs New Zealand
Wales vs Japan
France vs Fiji
England vs Australia
Round 5 — Nov. 13-15, 2026
France vs South Africa
Italy vs Argentina
Wales vs New Zealand
England vs Japan
Ireland vs Fiji
Scotland vs Australia
Round 6 — Saturday Nov. 21, 2026
England vs New Zealand
Scotland vs Japan
Ireland vs South Africa
Italy vs Fiji
France vs Argentina
Wales vs Australia
