2026 Rugby Europe Championship

Last updated

2026 Rugby Europe Championship
Date7 February – 15 March 2026
Countries
Tournament statistics
Matches played11
Attendance25,680 (2,335 per match)
Tries scored89 (8.09 per match)
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The 2026 Rugby Europe Championship will be the tenth Rugby Europe Championship, the annual rugby union competition for the top European national teams outside the Six Nations Championship, and the 55th edition of the competition (including all its previous incarnations as the FIRA Tournament, Rugby Union European Cup, FIRA Nations Cup, FIRA Trophy, and European Nations Cup).

Contents

Eight teams took part in the 2024 championship. The championship was contested by Belgium, Georgia, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain and Switzerland.

Georgia entered the tournament as defending champions. They won the final against Spain in the 2025 tournament, claiming their 17th title. The serpentine system was applied to allocate each team to their respective groups. [1] Each team played a total of five games (three round robin group matches to determine the team's path and two play-off matches). [1] Seeding (for a group) and relegation are calculated over a two-year cycle, as is the promotion from the Trophy competition. [1]

All matches on the final day will be staged in Spain. The fifth and seventh place playoffs will be hosted at Estadio Nacional Complutense in Madrid, with the third place playoff and final hosted at the Butarque Stadium in Leganés. [2]

Participants

NationStadiumHead coachCaptain
Home stadiumCapacityLocation
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium Stade Charles Tondreau 8,000 Mons Flag of France.svg Laurent Dossat  [ fr ]Jens Torfs
Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia Avchala Stadium  [ fr ]3,500 Tbilisi Flag of Italy.svg Marco Bortolami (interim) Vasil Lobzhanidze
Flag of Germany.svg  Germany Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark
Paul Greifzu Stadium 		5,000
20,000		 Heidelberg
Dessau-Roßlau 		Flag of Germany.svg Mark Kuhlmann Justin Renc
Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands NRCA Stadium 7,000 Amsterdam Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg Bryan EassonMees Voets
Flag of Portugal (official).svg  Portugal Estádio Nacional 37,593 Oeiras Flag of New Zealand.svg Simon Mannix Tomás Appleton
Flag of Romania.svg  Romania Emil Alexandrescu Stadium 11,390 Iași Flag of France.svg David Gérard Ovidiu Cojocaru
Flag of Spain.svg  Spain Estadio Nueva Balastera
Estadio Nacional Complutense
Butarque Stadium 		8,100
6,000
14,500		 Palencia
Madrid
Leganés 		Flag of Argentina.svg Pablo Bouza Jon Zabala
Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland Stade Municipal Yverdon 6,600 Yverdon-les-Bains Flag of France.svg Olivier NierCyril Lin
2025–26 Rugby Europe Championships
Pos
Event 
Team
 2025 2026Points
total
1Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 10
2Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 8
3Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 6
4Flag of Portugal (official).svg  Portugal 5
5Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 4
6Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 3
7Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 2
8Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 1

Tables and fixtures

Pool A

PosTeamPldWDLPFPAPDTFTATBLBPtsQualification
1Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 330015745+1122353015 Grand Finals Semi-Finals
2Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 320113489+4520132010
3Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 310246130−84619004 Ranking Finals Semi-Finals
4Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands 300368141−73921011
Updated to match(es) played on 22 February 2026. Source: Rugby Europe [3]
Rules for classification:
If two teams have the same number of points the best ranked will be: 1) match points in the games played between the tied Unions; 2) tries in the games played between the tied Unions; 3) match points difference in all pool games; 4) tries difference for in all pool games; 5) match points for in all pool games.
If three or more teams have same number of points, the best ranked will be: 1) match points difference in all pool games; 2) tries for in all pool games; 4) match points for in all pool games.
Points were awarded to the teams as follows: Win – 4 points, Draw – 2 points, At least 3 more tries than opponent – 1 point, Loss within 7 points – 1 point [4]

Week 1

7 February 2026
13:00 CET (UTC+1)
Netherlands  Flag of the Netherlands.svg33–51Flag of Spain.svg  Spain (1 TBP)
Report
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: Flag of Italy.svg Filipo Russo
8 February 2026
13:00 CET (UTC+1)
Switzerland  Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg3–54Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia (1 TBP)
Report
Stade Municipal, Yverdon-les-Bains
Attendance: 2,200
Referee: Flag of Romania.svg Alex Ionescu

Week 2

14 February 2026
16:00 CET (UTC+1)
(1 TBP) Spain  Flag of Spain.svg53–14Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland
Report
Estadio Nueva Balastera, Palencia
Attendance: 1,715
Referee: Flag of the Netherlands.svg Edwin Van Der Spek
15 February 2026
13:00 CET (UTC+1)
Netherlands  Flag of the Netherlands.svg12–61Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia (1 TBP)
Report
NRCA Stadium, Amsterdam
Attendance: 2,000
Referee: IRFU flag.svg Max Weston

Week 3

21 February 2026
15:00 GET (UTC+4)
(1 TBP) Georgia  Flag of Georgia.svg42–30Flag of Spain.svg  Spain
Report
Avchala Stadium, Tbilisi
Attendance: 2,965
Referee: Flag of Scotland.svg Sam Grove-White
22 February 2026
13:00 CET (UTC+1)
Switzerland  Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg29–23Flag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands (1 LBP)
Report
Stade Municipal, Yverdon-les-Bains
Attendance: 1,800
Referee: Flag of Portugal (official).svg Diogo Miranda

Pool B

PosTeamPldWDLPFPAPDTFTATBLBPtsQualification
1Flag of Portugal (official).svg  Portugal 330015936+1232253015 Grand Finals Semi-Finals
2Flag of Romania.svg  Romania 31025480−26611015
3Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium 31024173−3257105 Ranking Finals Semi-Finals
4Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 310245110−65616004
Updated to match(es) played on 21 February 2026. Source: Rugby Europe [3]
Rules for classification:
If two teams have the same number of points the best ranked will be: 1) competition points; 2) match points difference; 3) match tries difference; 3) match points difference in all pool games; 4) tries for in all pool games; 5) match points for in all pool games.
If three or more teams have same number of points, the best ranked will be: 1) competition points; 2) tries for in all pool games; 3) match points for in all pool games.
Points were awarded to the teams as follows: Win – 4 points, Draw – 2 points, At least 3 more tries than opponent – 1 point, Loss within 7 points – 1 point [4]

Week 1

7 February 2026
20:00 CET (UTC+1)
Belgium  Flag of Belgium (civil).svg17–47Flag of Portugal (official).svg  Portugal (1 TBP)
Report
Stade Charles Tondreau, Mons
Attendance: 5,000
Referee: Flag of France.svg Jérémy Rozier
8 February 2026
16:00 CET (UTC+1)
Germany  Flag of Germany.svg30–24Flag of Romania.svg  Romania (1 LBP)
Report
Fritz-Grunebaum-Sportpark, Heidelberg
Attendance: 1,600
Referee: Flag of Georgia.svg Saba Makharadze

Week 2

14 February 2026
13:00 CET (UTC+1)
Germany  Flag of Germany.svg12–68Flag of Portugal (official).svg  Portugal (1 TBP)
Report
Paul Greifzu Stadium, Dessau-Roßlau
Attendance: 3,400
Referee: Flag of Italy.svg Alberto Favaro
15 February 2026
19:00 EET (UTC+2)
Romania  Flag of Romania.svg23–6Flag of Belgium (civil).svg  Belgium
Report
Emil Alexandrescu Stadium, Iași
Attendance: n/a
Referee: Flag of Georgia.svg Saba Abulashvili

Week 3

21 February 2026
20:00 CET (UTC+1)
(1 TBP) Belgium  Flag of Belgium (civil).svg18–3Flag of Germany.svg  Germany
Report
Stade Charles Tondreau, Mons
Attendance: 3,000
Referee: Flag of Georgia.svg Shota Tevzadze
22 February 2026
17:30 WET (UTC+0)
(1 TBP) Portugal  Flag of Portugal (official).svg44–7Flag of Romania.svg  Romania
Estádio Nacional, Oeiras
Referee: Flag of France.svg Kevin Bralley

Ranking Finals

Semi-finals

7-8 March 2026
TBA
Switzerland  Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svgvFlag of Germany.svg  Germany
TBA
Referee: TBA
7-8 March 2026
TBA
Belgium  Flag of Belgium (civil).svgvFlag of the Netherlands.svg  Netherlands
TBA
Referee: TBA

Seventh-place final

15 March 2026
11:00 CET (UTC+1)
Loser SF1vLoser SF2
Estadio Nacional Complutense, Madrid
Referee: TBA

Fifth-place final

15 March 2026
13:30 CET (UTC+1)
Winner SF1vWinner SF2
Estadio Nacional Complutense, Madrid
Referee: TBA

Grand Finals

Semi-finals

7-8 March 2026
TBA
Georgia  Flag of Georgia.svgv Romania  Flag of Romania.svg
TBA
Referee: TBA
7-8 March 2026
TBA
Flag of Portugal (official).svg  Portugal vFlag of Spain.svg  Spain
TBA
Referee: TBA

Bronze Final

15 March 2026
16:00 CET (UTC+2)
Loser SF1vLoser SF2
Butarque Stadium, Leganés
Referee: TBA

Final

15 March 2026
18:45 CET (UTC+2)
Winner SF1vWinner SF2
Butarque Stadium, Leganés
Referee: TBA

Final standings

Pos.TeamPoints
1TBA10
2TBA8
3TBA6
4TBA5
5TBA4
6TBA3
7TBA2
8TBA1

International broadcasters

CountryBroadcaster [5] Summary
Flag of Belgium (civil).svg Belgium LN24
AUVIO
VRT/Sporza 		Belgium games shown live via LN24, AUVIO and VRT/Sporza.
Flag of Georgia.svg Georgia Rugby TV
Imedi TV 		Georgia games shown live via Rugby TV and Imedi TV. Also Georgia games are streamed and free on Rugby TV Facebook page.
Flag of Germany.svg Germany Ran
Joyn
ProSieben Maxx 		Germany games shown live via ProSieben Maxx and Joyn, other games are streamed and free on Ran.
Flag of the Netherlands.svg Netherlands Ziggo Sport Selected games live on Ziggo Sport.
Flag of Portugal (official).svg Portugal Sport TV Portugal games shown live on Sport TV.
Flag of Romania.svg Romania TVR SportRomania games shown live via TVR Sport.
Flag of Spain.svg Spain Teledeporte
RTVE Play 		Spain games shown live via Teledeporte and .RTVE Play digital platform.
Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg  Switzerland RTS PLAY Switzerland games shown live via RTS PLAY digital platform.
North America FloRugby All games available through streaming via FloSports.
Rest of the World Rugby Europe
Rugbypass 		All games available through streaming via Rugby Europe (registration required) and Rugbypass (registration required). Some games are streamed and free on Rugby Europe Youtube channel

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "New Format for Rugby Europe Championship". Rugby Europe. 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  2. ↑ "Men's Championship 2026 Calendar confirmed, Madrid to host Finals Day". Rugby Europe. Retrieved 5 November 2025.
  3. 1 2 "2026 Rugby Europe Championship Standings".
  4. 1 2 "September 2025 Edition (2025-2026 season v1) Rugby Europe International XV Championships Men & Women 2025-2026 Tournament Manual" (PDF). Rugby Europe. Retrieved 1 October 2025.
  5. ↑ "Unprecedented Coverage for 2025 Men's Rugby Europe Championship". Rugby Europe.
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