The Nations Championship is a newly formed Rugby Union competition that is played across hemisphere and for 2026 at least, replaced the incoming and outgoing tours in the July/November Test windows. A total of 12 teams will participate in the competition - six from each hemisphere.

While this is a newly formed tournament, 2026 is the only confirmed year for it as it stands. 2027 will not have a Nations Championship as it is a Rugby World Cup year, but it is expected to return in 2028.

The Nations Championship is a result of calls for more meaningful Test matches rather than just the incoming and outgoing tours. Each team will play three Test matches in July before three more matches will take place in November during the group stage. From there, the winner of each hemisphere will compete on finals day at Twickenham.

Rugby Union has long called for an international season where both hemisphere's seasons align and while that has not quite materialised as yet, this is a step to try and get to that point. While there will always be resistance to the idea, particularly from the Southern Hemisphere, it is required from the financial good of the game.

The Nations Championship begins on 4 July 2026 with the Southern Hemisphere series (where the North tours the South).

The Northern Hemisphere Series begins on 6 November 2026 in in round four.

This will bring the round robin stage to a conclusion. The week after, 27, 28 & 29 November 2026 will be the finals weekend where each team will play the opposite team from the other group. The final - the top Southern Hemisphere vs top Northern Hemisphere game is the final match on Sunday, 29 November. All six matches, two on Friday, two on Saturday and two on Sunday, will be played at Twickenham.

The top bookmakers have yet to release odds for the 2026 Nations Championship, but they are expected to do so shortly. Once they are released, we will update you on all the odds across the most important markets while providing previews for each game in an attempt to find the best possible value.

While odds are not yet available, one would expect South Africa to be the early front-runners for the title, although, an upset in the opening three rounds in the Rainbow Nations could turn the odds against them. 

When betting on the Nations Championship, it will be key to take note of the fixtures, not just the upcoming one, but the one thereafter, especially in the first three rounds. In the Southern Hemisphere, the Northern sides will be traveling plenty with games far apart between New Zealand, South Africa and Argentina. This is likely to result in the Northern Hemisphere sides making plenty of changes week to week, which could allow for some upsets.

In the November window, it is much easier for the Southern sides as the games are far more compact between Italy, England, Ireland, France, Scotland and Wales.

If one had to bet now, France vs South Africa would be a good bet for the final but given how France has treated their Southern Hemisphere tours in years gone by, they could easily return home with very little points - it remains to be seen what type of squad they send this time around.