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Truncated 2026 Men's Six Nations schedule to break with tradition
By Jon Newcombe
The 2026 Guinness Men’s Six Nations will break with tradition and kick off on a Thursday night for the first time in the championship’s current format.
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The championship has kicked off on a Thursday night before, but that was in 1948 when known as the Five Nations.
Ireland beat France 13-6 on that occasion, on New Year’s Day in Paris, and will be hoping for an identical outcome when they take on France on Thursday, February 5th, in the opening match of the 2026 tournament.
The remainder of the opening round games take place on Saturday, February 7th, with Italy up against Scotland and England entertaining Wales.
The schedule also includes a Friday night game, Ireland vs Wales in round four, while the championship will conclude on Saturday evening, on French soil, with the latest instalment of Le Crunch between France and England.
The match against England will be Les Bleus’ third home game, as they also host Italy in round three, but the venue for those matches has yet to be confirmed due to ongoing negotiations between the FFR and the Stade de France’s new site operator, GL Events.
Due to a change in the rugby calendar, there will only be one fallow week instead of the usual two, with the men’s U20 fixtures mirroring that of the senior competition. Meanwhile, the 2026 Guinness Women’s Six Nations will kick off three weeks later than normal, following the conclusion of the men’s championship.
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In the UK, ITV and BBC Sport will bring live free-to-air coverage of the Six Nations across TV, radio and digital platforms. ITV will broadcast ten matches in 2026, including all England matches. BBC Sport will feature live TV coverage, TV highlights and digital clips, including five live matches involving Scotland and Wales.
2026 Men’s Guinness Six Nations fixtures in full
Round 1
Thursday, February 5: France v Ireland, KO 20:10
Saturday, February 7: Italy v Scotland, KO 14:10
Saturday, February 7: England v Wales, KO 16:40
Round 2
Saturday, February 14: Ireland v Italy, KO 14:10
Saturday, February 14: Scotland v England, KO 16:40
Sunday, February 15: Wales v France, KO 15:10
Round 3
Saturday, February 21: England v Ireland, KO 14:10
Saturday, February 21: Wales v Scotland, KO 16:40
Sunday, February 22: France v Italy, KO 15:10
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Round 4
Friday, March 6: Ireland v Wales, KO 20:10
Saturday, March 7: Scotland v France, KO 14:10
Saturday, March 7: Italy v England, KO 16:40
Round 5
Saturday, March 14: Ireland v Scotland, KO 14:10
Saturday, March 14, Wales v Italy, KO 16:40
Saturday, March 14, France v England, KO 20:10
*All KO times are GMT
Advantage France.
Should be a slam with that scheduling.
Ireland always have a good performance lined up first match. Cracking opener.
England’s schedule not unlike 2 years ago except with a week before Ireland and France this time.
Getting France and England in early might suit. Scotland at home also tough and an improving Wales.
We say that every 2 years as the home away rotation is always the same