Upcoming season or competition: 2026 World Rugby Nations Cup | |
| Sport | Rugby union |
|---|---|
| First season | 2026 |
| No. of teams | 12 |
The World Rugby Nations Cup is a second tier rugby union competition for international men's teams, run by World Rugby, that will take place concurrently with the Nations Championship. It is due to consist of twelve teams, with promotion and relegation between the Nations Cup and the Nations Championship commencing from 2030.
In December 2024 when the Nations Championship was initially being planned, 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 would take part in the inaugural edition of either the Nations Championship itself or the second division competition. [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 that will compete in the 2026 Nations Cup are Canada, Chile, Georgia, Hong Kong, Portugal, Romania, Samoa, Spain, Tonga, Uruguay, United States and, Zimbabwe. [2]
As with the 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. 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 the Americas and in the case of Hong Kong and Zimbabwe, in Europe. [3]