All three editions of the Six Nations are held annually
The men’s Six Nations tournament is held every year across February and March.
The competition sees England, Wales, Scotland, Italy, Ireland and France all compete for a trophy. While each nation plays each other once every year the fixtures are not in the same order. The tournament organisers announce the fixtures months in advance with the order in which they happen changed every year.
Related: Six Nations history
The tournament has been called the Six Nations since 2000 when Italy joined the competition. Previous to this the other nations had competed in the Five Nations with Scotland the last winners in 1999.
Scotland have never won the Six Nations and are bidding for the title this year, starting their campaign with a 27-26 win over Wales. A huge second half comeback almost saw Wales claw a famous win. Gregor Townsend said: “If we’d lost, it would have been a big blow. There’s no denying that.”
When are the U20s and women’s competitions?
The men’s competition is not the only version of the Six Nations to take place every year. U20s men’s players also compete in the competition against other youth players, this tournament runs at the same time as the senior men.
The Women’s Six Nations is also annual but has a separate window in March and April, it used to run co-currently with the men’s competition but it was moved to grow the sport.
The women’s game is growing with the 2023 Six Nations demonstrating a record fan interest. England women hosted France at Twickenham for the title and Grand Slam decider and the match broke the record for the most attended women’s rugby game ever. 58,498 supporters watched on at the home of English rugby to see the Red Roses lift a fifth-consecutive title in a 38-33 victory.
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