World Rugby's new Nations Championship is set to take place for the first time in 2026.
Taking place every two years, the World Rugby Nations Championship will see the best of both hemispheres face off for bragging rights.
Here is everything you need to know about the format of the new World Rugby's Nations Championship.
World Rugby Nations Championship format
The World Rugby Nations Championship will split teams into a 'European Conference', made up of the Six Nations, and a 'Rest of World Conference' comprised of the four SANZAAR nations, alongside Japan and Fiji.
Each team will play the six nations in the opposing Conference, with a grand final to be played between whoever finishes top of each table.
Three of the matches will be played in the Southern Hemisphere across three weekends in the summer tour window in June, while the other three will be played in the North, across the usual Autumn Internationals window in November.
Alongside the grand final, five other matches will take place across finals weekend, as the respective teams face off against their positional counterparts from the other conference (e.g. second v second, third v third etc)
A second division, named the Challenger Series, will take place at the same time.
In the third edition of the World Rugby Nations Championship, promotion and relegation will be possible alongside the Challenger Series.
World Rugby Nations Championship teams
The World Rugby Nations Championship will comprise of six teams from the Northern Hemisphere and six teams representing the Southern Hemisphere.
England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and Italy will represent the North, while New Zealand, Australia, South Africa, Argentina, Japan and Fiji will represent the South.
Find out everything you need to know about the World Rugby Nations Championship here.
Check out the schedule and fixtures for the inaugrual edition of the World Rugby Nations Championship here.
