International rugby returns for the start of a brand new year, as the Guinness Six Nations Rugby Championship kicks off in the Northern Hemisphere.
Fans are greeted by the unusual sight of the curtain coming up on the European tournament on a Thursday night, as France go up against Ireland under the lights in Paris.
England begin an important campaign against rebuilding Wales at Twickenham on Saturday, after Italy welcome Scotland for their opener earlier in the day.
France vs Ireland – Thursday 5 February
A thunderous kick off to the 2026 Guinness Six Nations Rugby Championship sees reigning champions France host Ireland on Thursday night in Paris.
The Stade de France will be as highly charged as usual despite the odd start time, which has been brought forward 24 hours to avoid a clash with the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milano Cortina.
It usually takes an Olympian feat to upset the French in their own backyard, with the Irish in something of a rebuilding phase after a third-placed finish a year ago.
That said, the pair did both finish with a record of four wins and a defeat, separated only by bonus points and with England sandwiched between them in second.
Les Bleus are thrilled to welcome back captain and talisman Antoine Dupont, who has missed almost a year of rugby since rupturing his ACL during the reverse fixture in last season’s Six Nations.
He is reunited with Mathieu Jalibert in the half-backs, while Anthony Jelonch earns a start at eighth man.
Caelan Doris leads a relatively settled Irish side, boasting plenty of experience in the likes of Tadgh Beirne and Josh van der Flier in the pack, as well as the settling presence of Garry Ringrose in the centres.
France Starting XV: 15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Theo Attissogbe, 13 Nicolas Depoortere, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, 9 Antoine Dupont (captain), 8 Anthony Jelonch, 7 Oscar Jegou, 6 Francois Cros, 5 Mickael Guillard, 4 Charles Ollivon, 3 Dorian Aldegheri, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Jean-Baptiste Gros.
Replacements: 16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Rodrigue Neti, 18 Regis Montagne, 19 Hugo Auradou, 20 Emmanuel Meafou, 21 Lenni Nouchi, 22 Baptiste Serin, 23 Kalvin Gourgues.
Ireland Starting XV: 15 Jamie Osborne, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Sam Predergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Cian Predergast, 5 Tadgh Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Jeremy Loughman.
Replacements: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Michael Milne, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 James Ryan, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Nick Timoney, 22 Craig Casey, 23 Jack Crowley.
Italy vs Scotland – Saturday 7 February
The first weekend of the 2026 Guinnes Six Nations Rugby Championship continues on Saturday with the contest between Italy and Scotland in Rome.
While the Winter Olympics is in full swing in the north of the country, it’s all eyes on the capital city’s Stadio Olimpico for the pair’s first international outing of the year.
Both feel they have improvements to make, although the Italians did at least avoid the wooden spoon thanks to their solitary victory over sorry Wales.
The Scots, meanwhile, fell into their familiar recent pattern of nearly-but-not quite, chalking up wins over the Azzurri and the Welsh but coming up short againsteventual winners France, England and Ireland.
Gregor Townsend heads into what could well be his final Six Nations in charge with Sione Tuipulotu as his Scotland captain.
There are several notable absentees for the opener including Duhan van der Merwe, Darcy Graham and Blair Kinghorn.
Italy Starting XV: TBC
Replacements: TBC
Scotland Starting XV: 15 Tom Jordan, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Jamie Dobie, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Ben White, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge, 6 Matt Fagerson, 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Scott Cummings, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Ewan Ashman, 1 Pierre Schoeman.
Replacements: 16 George Turner, 17 Nathan McBeth, 18 Elliot Millar Mills, 19 Max Williamson, 20 Gregor Brown, 21 George Horne, 22 Adam Hastings, 23 Darcy Graham.
England vs Wales – Saturday 7 February
A proper international derby polishes off the first round of 2026 Guinness Six Nations Rugby Championship action on Saturday, as England and Wales go toe-to-toe at Twickenham.
It marks the start of a big year for both and particularly the hosts, who are locked in on a realistic push to reclaim the Rugby World Cup title in Australia in 2027.
The Welsh are in one hell of a rebuilding phase – wooden spoon recipients last time around and with boardroom chaos threatening to engulf their union.
Stuart Borthwick’s men came ever so close to reclaiming the Six Nations title 12 months ago, eventually squeezed into second by tournament winners France, whom they had earlier pipped in a classic in south west London.
Veteran Jamie George captains the home side for the tournament opener, with Maro Itoje among the replacements following a spell of compassionate leave in Nigeria after the death of his mother.
Louis Rees-Zammit makes his Six Nations comeback and will do so at full back rather than on the wing, having last featured in the 2023 tournament before his Stateside stint in the NFL.
England Starting XV: 15 Freddie Steward, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 13 Tommy Freeman, 12 Fraser Dingwall, 11 Henry Arundell, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Guy Pepper, 5 Ollie Chessum, 4 Alex Coles, 3 Joe Heyes, 2 Jamie George (captain), 1 Ellis Genge.
Replacements: 16 Luke Cowan-Dickie, 17 Bevan Rodd, 18 Trevor Davison, 19 Maro Itoje, 20 Tom Curry, 21 Henry Pollock, 22 Ben Spencer, 23 Marcus Smith.
Wales Starting XV: 15 Louis Rees-Zammit, 14 Ellis Mee, 13 Eddie James, 12 Ben Thomas, 11 Josh Adams, 10 Dan Edwards, 9 Tomos Williams, 8 Aaron Wainwright, 7 Josh Macleod, 6 Alex Mann, 5 Adam Beard, 4 Dafydd Jenkins, 3 Archie Griffin, 2 Dewi Lake (captain), 1 Nicky Smith.
Replacements: 16 Liam Belcher, 17 Rhys Carre, 18 Tomas Francis, 19 Ben Carter, 20 Taine Plumtree, 21 Harri Deaves, 22 Kieran Hardy, 23 Mason Grady.
Predictions:
France vs Ireland
Prediction: France by 11
| Team | Predicted Points | Chance of Winning |
|---|---|---|
| France | 29 | 63 |
| Ireland | 18 | 37 |
Italy vs Scotland
Prediction: Scotland by 14
| Team | Predicted Points | Chance of Winning |
|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 31 | 71 |
| Italy | 17 | 29 |
England vs Wales
Prediction: England by 19
| Team | Predicted Points | Chance of Winning |
|---|---|---|
| England | 33 | 78 |
| Wales | 14 | 22 |