2026 World Rugby Nations Cup
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| First season | 2026 |
| No. of teams | 12 |
The 2026 World Rugby Nations Cup is the inaugural edition of the World Rugby Nations Cup, a second tier rugby union competition for international men's teams, run by World Rugby, that will take place concurrently with the 2026 Nations Championship. It is due to consist of twelve teams.
Although promotion and relegation are intended for a future date, there will be no promotion or relegation in the 2026 edition between the Nations Championship and the Nations Cup.
Background
In December 2024 it was reported that the second division would initially consist of the 12 teams that successfully qualify for the 2027 Men's Rugby World Cup through the qualification process, meaning all the qualified teams for the 2027 tournament will take part in the inaugural edition of either the Nations Championship itself or the second division.[1]
On 17 November 2025, World Rugby confirmed that the second division competition would be called the World Rugby Nations Cup.[2]
At the same time, it was announced that in Rugby World Cup and British & Irish Lions years, when the Nations Championship and Nations Cup are not played, 'cross competition matches' between the Nations Championship teams and the Nations Cup teams will be prioritised.
Teams
Teams that will compete in the 2026 Nations Cup are:[2]
| Team | Competition | Region |
|---|---|---|
| Afro-Eurasia pool | ||
| Georgia | Rugby Europe Championship | Europe |
| Hong Kong | Asia Rugby Championship | Asia |
| Portugal | Rugby Europe Championship | Europe |
| Romania | Rugby Europe Championship | Europe |
| Spain | Rugby Europe Championship | Europe |
| Zimbabwe | Rugby Africa Cup | Africa |
| Americas-Pacific pool | ||
| Canada | Pacific Nations Cup | North America |
| Chile | Sudamérica Rugby Championship | South America |
| Samoa | Pacific Nations Cup | Pacific |
| Tonga | Pacific Nations Cup | Pacific |
| United States | Pacific Nations Cup | North America |
| Uruguay | Sudamérica Rugby Championship | South America |
Format
As with the 2026 Nations Championship the initial competition will consist of two broadly geographic pools:
- an America-Pacific pool, consisting of the four Americas teams plus Tonga and Samoa; and
- a European-African-Asian pool, consisting of the four European sides, Zimbabwe and Hong Kong.
Each team will play all the teams in the opposite pool across the summer and autumn international windows.
For the first two editions in 2026 and 2028, there will not be a finals day, and two champions will be crowned, one in each pool.
In addition, Samoa, Tonga, Zimbabwe and Hong Kong will play their home matches in neutral venues; in the case of Samoa and Tonga, in South and North America respectively and in the case of Hong Kong and Zimbabwe, in Continental Europe and England respectively, However Hong Kong's final match, against Tonga, will be played in Hong Kong as it is a convenient venue for Tonga in their journey back to the island. The Americas series will take place in the northern hemisphere summer, and the European series in the northern hemisphere autumn.[3]
Standings
European-African-Asian pool
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Georgia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Champions |
| 2 | Hong Kong | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Portugal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | Romania | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | Spain | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 6 | Zimbabwe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Americas-Pacific pool
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | PF | PA | PD | TF | TA | TB | LB | Pts | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Canada | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | Champions |
| 2 | Chile | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 3 | Samoa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 4 | Tonga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 5 | United States | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 6 | Uruguay | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Fixtures
Americas-Pacific Series
Matches will be held in the Americas region, with Samoa playing their matches in South America and Tonga playing their matches in North America.
Round 1
Round 2
Round 3
European-African-Asian Series
European teams will host all of their matches at home. Hong Kong will play their first two matches in Europe, with the third (against Tonga) being held in Hong Kong. Zimbabwe will host their games in England.
Round 4
Round 5
Round 6
See also
References
- ^ Kelleher, Will (12 December 2024). "England risk treacherous World Cup draw if results don't improve next year". The Times. Retrieved 19 November 2025.
- ^ a b "World Rugby Nations Cup to launch in July 2026 to transform international calendar". World Rugby. Retrieved 17 November 2025.
- ^ a b c News.com, Americas Rugby (17 November 2025). "Canada, Chile, Uruguay and USA all in 2026 World Rugby Nations Cup". AmericasRugbyNews.com. Retrieved 20 November 2025.