Rugby fans thought there may have been a misprint when the men’s Six Nations schedule for 2026 was revealed on Monday.
The headline news was undoubtedly the introduction of a first-ever Thursday night game in the competition, which will see arguably still its biggest fixture take centre stage straightaway for the second time in three years.
As they did in 2024, France - this year’s winners - and Ireland will kick off next year’s Six Nations with a huge showdown.
But while that previous game was played on a Friday night in Marseille amid renovation work on the Stade de France undertaken ahead of the Olympics, next year it will be on a Thursday - February 5 - and likely back in Paris.
Elsewhere on opening week, England are set to host rivals Wales at Twickenham as Scotland travel to meet Italy in Rome.
Steve Borthwick’s side - who ended up finishing second ahead of defending Grand Slam champions Ireland this year - go to Murrayfield in round two, then hosting Ireland ahead of closing trips to Italy and France.
Why is the Six Nations starting on a Thursday in 2026?
France vs Ireland in the 2026 Six Nations opener is being played on Thursday, February 5 to avoid a clash with the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics that takes place the following day.
Next year’s Winter Olympics are taking place in northern Italy.
It is the first time ever in the Six Nations that a game has been played on a Thursday.
It previously happened in the old Five Nations era all the way back in 1948, when Ireland beat France 13-6 in Paris on New Year’s Day.
What other changes have been confirmed?
The other notable (and more expected) Six Nations change for 2026 relates to fallow weeks.
Traditionally there are two, but next year there will only be one, covering the weekend of February 28/March 1 and condensing the competition down into six weeks in total.
This is a change that was first announced back in 2023 and is aimed at aligning the new global rugby calendar, which will include a new biennial men’s Nations Championship starting in 2026.
However, talk of the tournament potentially going behind a paywall in the UK from 2026 have proven unfounded after a new four-year broadcasting deal with the BBC and ITV was confirmed in March, running until 2029. All England games will be shown live on ITV as part of that agreement.
Six Nations 2026 fixtures
*all times GMT unless stated
Round 1
Thursday, February 5
France vs Ireland (8:10pm, ITV)
Saturday, February 7
Italy vs Scotland (2:10pm, BBC)
England vs Wales (4:40pm, ITV)
Round 2
Saturday, February 14
Ireland vs Italy (2:10pm, ITV)
Scotland vs England (4:40pm, ITV)
Sunday, February 15
Wales vs France (3:10pm, BBC)
Round 3
Saturday, February 21
England vs Ireland (2:10pm, ITV)
Wales vs Scotland (4:40pm, BBC)
Sunday, February 22
France vs Italy (3:10pm, ITV)
Round 4
Friday, March 6
Ireland vs Wales (8:10pm, ITV)
Saturday, March 7
Scotland vs France (2:10pm, BBC)
Italy vs England (4:40pm, ITV)
Round 5
Saturday, March 14
Ireland vs Scotland (2:10pm, ITV)
Wales vs Italy (4:40pm, BBC)
France vs England (8:10pm, ITV)
