Nations Championship to settle rugby's northern and southern power balance
Twelve nations will race from July to Twickenham for the first Nations Championship title. Southern sides have won nearly 57% of 1,062 Tests, but the gap has narrowed.
The Nations Championship will debut in July with England, France, Ireland, Scotland, Italy and Wales joined by New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, Argentina, Japan and Fiji in a 12-team race for a first global title. Six Nations Rugby and SANZAAR created the biennial competition to fold the July and November test windows into one standings table, then send the leaders to a finals weekend in London and Twickenham at the end of November.
Japan has been placed in the southern section for tournament purposes, and every tackle, try and bonus point will feed a cross-hemisphere league that replaces the old friendly test model. Across six rounds, the tournament will stage three fixtures in July and three more in November before the finals decide the first champion.
Southern hemisphere teams have won nearly 57% of the 1,062 Tests played between the two blocs over more than 125 years. The Six Nations began in 1883 as the Home Nations Championship, became the Five Nations in 1910 and took its current six-team form in 2000.
The first edition arrives after major domestic finals in the United Rugby Championship, England’s Premiership, France’s Top 14 and Super Rugby fell in the two weeks before kickoff. The final between the table leaders is worth two points and the other finals matches are worth one point each.
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