International rugby union fans will welcome a new tournament this year – the Autumn Nations Cup.
Taking place from 13 November to 6 December, eight countries will play 16 matches across four consecutive weekends. Three rounds of fixtures will then be followed by a finals weekend.
Governing body World Rugby says the competition has been set up due to the traditional November international fixtures not being able to be held because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Six Nations rugby championship teams England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France and Italy are joined by Fiji and Georgia for the inaugural cup. The 2020 Six Nations will conclude just two weeks ahead of the new competition.
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What the organisers say
Ben Morel, CEO of Six Nations Rugby, said: “We are absolutely delighted to formally announce details of the Autumn Nations Cup. A significant amount of time and effort has gone into delivering this new tournament format in testing circumstances and the spirit of collaboration amongst key stakeholders has been outstanding.
“While the challenges presented by the Covid-19 pandemic made the traditional Autumn Test window unfeasible, we remained determined to deliver a unique and compelling tournament proposition which would ensure world class rugby for our fans globally, and competitive matches for players, unions and federations.
“We cannot wait for the tournament to get underway in November and fans can look forward to some outstanding matches featuring some of the greatest players in the world. We are especially pleased to be joined by Fiji and Georgia and expect them both to be tremendous additions to the competition.”
How to watch on TV
Fourteen of the matches will be streamed live by Amazon Prime Video. Channel 4 and RTE in Ireland will show live coverage of Ireland’s fixtures while every Wales match will be shown live on Welsh language channel S4C. Channel 4 will also show highlights.
Autumn Nations Cup fixtures
What: 16 matches over four weekends
When: 13 November to 6 December 2020
Teams: England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, France, Italy, Fiji, Georgia
Round one fixtures
13 November: Ireland vs. Wales (Aviva Stadium; live on Channel 4)
14 November: Italy vs. Scotland (TBC; live on Amazon Prime)
14 November: England vs. Georgia (Twickenham; live on Amazon Prime)
15 November: France vs. Fiji (TBC; live on Amazon Prime)
Round two fixtures
21 November: Italy vs. Fiji (TBC; live on Amazon Prime)
21 November: England vs Ireland (Twickenham; live on Amazon Prime/Channel 4)
21 November: Wales vs. Georgia (TBC; live on Amazon Prime)
22 November: Scotland vs. France (Murrayfield; live on Amazon Prime)
Round three fixtures
28 November: Scotland vs. Fiji (Murrayfield; live on Amazon Prime)
28 November: Wales vs. England (TBC; live on Amazon Prime)
28 November: France vs. Italy (Stade de France; live on Amazon Prime)
29 November: Ireland vs. Georgia (Aviva Stadium; live on Channel 4)
Autumn Nations Cup finals weekend
5 December: Georgia vs. TBC (Murrayfield; live on Amazon Prime)
5 December: Ireland v TBC (Aviva Stadium; live on Amazon Prime)
5 December: Wales v TBC (TBC; live on Amazon Prime)
6 December: England v TBC (Twickenham; live on Amazon Prime)
Main image credit: sixnationsrugby.com
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