The 2026 Nations Championship gets underway this weekend as three-time world champions New Zealand entertain France.
The inaugural edition of the Nations Championship consists of two groups of six nations, with one group for the Northern Hemisphere teams and one for the Southern Hemisphere teams.
Each nation will play all of the teams from the opposing group across two international rugby periods.
The first three rounds of fixtures will take place in the Southern Hemisphere this month, before the Northern Hemisphere series gets underway in November.
The winners of the two groups will then face each other in the first ever Nations Championship final, which will take place at Twickenham at the end of November.
New Zealand will have the likes of South Africa and Australia to compete with for a place in the final, while France start as the odds-on favourites to progress from the Northern Hemisphere.
How to watch New Zealand v France live stream and TV channel
New Zealand v France will be available to watch live in the UK on ITV 1.
Live streaming of New Zealand v France is also available via ITV X.
New Zealand v France start time, date and venue
New Zealand v France will be played at One New Zealand Stadium in Christchurch and will get underway at 08:10 BST on Saturday 4th July.
New Zealand v France head-to-head stats
New Zealand wins | 51 |
Draws | 1 |
France wins | 15 |
