Shots on, folks. The Six Nations Championship, one professional rugby’s most famous tournaments, kicked off February 5. The premiere rugby national teams of Europe will take to the pitch once more for the 26th edition of this storied rugby tournament.
How to Watch the Six Nations Rugby Tournament in the US
Peacock is the home of this year’s Guinness Six Nations coverage in the US.
Fortunately, DIRECTV customers can add Peacock Premium as a premium channel add-on for just $10.99/month (+tax). Just head over to your DIRECTV Account Portal to add Peacock Premium to your subscription.
Don’t have DIRECTV yet? Getting started is easy.
2026 Six Nations Championship Schedule
The Guinness Men’s Six Nations tournament kicks off February 5. And thus begins nine weeks of some of the best Rugby union action of the league.
All Times ET
Thursday, February 5
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 3 p.m. | France | Ireland | Stade de France |
Saturday, February 7
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 9 a.m. | Italy | Scotland | Stadio Olimpico |
| 11:30 a.m. | England | Wales | Allianz Stadium |
Saturday, February 14
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 9 a.m. | Ireland | Italy | Aviva Stadium |
| 11:30 a.m. | Scotland | England | Murrayfield |
Sunday, February 15
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 10 a.m. | Wales | France | Principality Stadium |
Saturday, February 21
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 9 a.m. | England | Ireland | Allianz Stadium |
| 11:30 a.m. | Wales | Scotland | Principality Stadium |
Sunday, February 22
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 10 a.m. | France | Italy | Stade Pierre Mauroy |
Friday, March 6
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 3 p.m. | Ireland | Wales | Aviva Stadium |
Saturday, March 7
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 9 a.m. | Scotland | France | Murrayfield |
| 11:30 a.m. | Italy | England | Stadio Olimpico |
Saturday, March 14
| Time | Home Team | Away Team | Venue |
| 10 a.m. | Ireland | Scotland | Aviva Stadium |
| 12:30 p.m. | Wales | Italy | Principality Stadium |
| 4 p.m. | France | England | Stade de France |
What is the Six Nations Championship?
The Six Nations Championship, also known as the Guinness M6N, is an annual international rugby union competition between England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales.
The tournament is organized by the Unions of the Six Nations and is responsible for the promotion and operation of the men’s, women’s and under-20s tournaments.
History of the Six Nations
The Six Nations is the successor to the Home Nations Championship, which was played by teams from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales from 1883 to 1909, and then again for a brief spell in the 1930s.
France made it the Five Nations in the 1910s, and it became the Six Nations when Italy joined in 2000.
Tournament Format
The tournament starts in early February and runs through the middle of March. Each team plays every other team once for a total of 15 matches, with home pitch advantage switching every year.
Points System
The Six Nations utilizes a bonus point system similar to those used in most rugby championships. Here’s how the bonus point system works in full:
- 4 points for a win
- 2 points for a draw
- 1 point for scoring 4 or more tries in a match
- 1 point for losing by 7 points or fewer
- 0 points for a loss
On top of the bonus point system, teams that win all their games (known as a Grand Slam) automatically get 3 extra points.
The leader in total points wins that year’s championship.
Tiebreakers
Since the mid-1990s, ties in the standings have been broken by considering the point differential of teams. If two teams are tied on match points and points difference, the team with the most overall tries wins the championship. If that were a tie, the tying teams would share the championship, though that has never happened before.
Championship Prizes and Awards
While the championship title is the prize that everyone involved is after, it’s not the only award handed out each year at the Six Nations.
The Wooden Spoon
The Wooden Spoon is just that. It’s a giant wooden spoon given as an award to the team in last place. Since the inaugural Six Nations tournament in 2000, only England and Ireland have yet to “win” the Wooden Spoon at least once. Italy has an entire kitchen’s worth with 18 Wooden Spoons since 2000. Wales is trying to avoid their third straight this time around.
The Championship Trophy
The winning team of the Six Nations is awarded the championship trophy, a sterling silver cup with six sides to represent the six nations.
The Grand Slam
A team that wins all its games wins the Grand Slam.
The Triple Crown
The Triple Crown is won by one of the home nations (England, Ireland, Scotland, or Wales) if that nation beats all three other home nations every time they play in a year.
Historic Rivalries
The Six Nations is renowned for its rivalries dating back to the late 19th century. Scotland is the only nation to have a rivalry trophy with each of the other five nations.
Rivalry Trophies
- Calcutta Cup – England vs. Scotland (started 1879)
- Millennium Trophy – England vs. Ireland (started 1988)
- Centenary Quaich – Ireland vs. Scotland (started 1989)
- Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy – France vs. Italy (started 2007)
- Auld Alliance Trophy – France vs. Scotland (started 2018)
- Doddie Weir Cup – Wales vs. Scotland (started 2018)
- Cuttitta Cup – Scotland vs. Italy (started 2022)
Home Stadiums
The Six Nations tournament is played across six stadiums:
- England – Twickenham Stadium, London
- France – Stade de France, Saint-Denis
- Wales – Principality Stadium, Cardiff
- Italy – Stadio Olimpico, Rome
- Scotland – Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh
- Ireland – Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Tournament History by Nation
Scotland, Wales and Ireland enter the 2026 season having played in the most tournaments at 131. England has played in 129, France in 96 and Italy in 26.
England holds the overall lead in wins with 29 championships. Wales is right behind them at 28. Italy is still in search of its first overall championship win.
2026 Season Preview
France enters the 2026 season as the defending champions under head coach Fabien Galthié, a former captain of the team, bringing home their second championship in four years.
Wales enters 2026 looking to avoid three straight Wooden Spoons.
England
England enters the 2026 season on an 11-game winning streak. They swept the 2025 Quilter Nations series, and Ben Earl has been a major reason why as the leading carrier of the Quilter series.
England relies on roster depth, turning to key contributors on their bench. England will need them to step up with Will Stuart lost to an Achilles injury.
France
France opens the season as the defending champions. Antoine Dupont returns after his ACL injury, and Louis Bielle-Biarrey is the reigning Guinness Player of the Championship. Les Bleus have every reason to believe they can repeat as champions.
Ireland
Ireland finds themselves at a bit of a crossroads with an older generation of players on the way out and a younger generation struggling to find their way in. Depth, especially at midfield, will be a problem and will likely keep them out of championship contention.
Italy
Italy joined the Six Nations in 2000 and they’ve won the Wooden Spoon 18 times in that span. But at long last, Team Italy looks like a legitimate contender. Tommaso Menoncello is an elite talent at center, and Paolo Garbisi is rounding into form. This is the year where it’ll be determined if Italy is for real or if it was just late-year momentum.
Scotland
Scotland has been in a rut for months. They face pressure right out of the gate to get back in a winning rhythm, or this could quickly make for a long season. Questions remain about whether this is the squad that can help them contend with the nation’s best.
Wales
Wales enters having “won” two straight Wooden Spoons. The goal for 2026 is just to get some numbers in the win column. They lost captain Jac Morgan for the opening rounds and are hoping that the return of Louis Rees-Zammit can spark something in a team that is looking to reverse some sorry fortunes of late.
Women’s Six Nations Rugby
The Women’s Six Nations rugby tournament started in 1996 and enters its 30th season. England enters as seven-time consecutive champions, including four straight Grand Slams and four straight Triple Crowns. Like on the men’s side, Wales enters as two-time Wooden Spoon winners.
The Women’s tournament kicks off in mid-May.
Watch Six Nations Rugby on DIRECTV
Add Peacock to your DIRECTV subscription today to start watching one of the biggest rugby events of the year!
Frequently Asked Questions
How does the Six Nations tournament work?
The Guinness Men's Six Nations tournament is a Rugby union competition between England, Wales, France, Ireland, Scotland and Italy. Each team plays the other once for a total of 15 games. A points system is used to determine a champion. This format applies to both men's and women's tournaments.
Which countries participate in the Six Nations Tournament?
The countries that make up the Six Nations are England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France and Italy.
Who won the 2025 Six Nations Tournament?
France won the 2025 Six Nations Championship.
DIRECTV Insider brings you our views on what’s happening in streaming, t.v., movies and sports. Companies and persons mentioned are not necessarily associated with and do not necessarily endorse DIRECTV. We will disclose sponsored content on our site when we show it to you, and some of the links on the site may be ads or affiliate links which means DIRECTV may earn compensation from your purchases.
