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Six Nations Championship

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This article is about the men's rugby union tournament. For the women's tournament, see Women's Six Nations Championship.

Six Nations Championship
Current season or competition:
2021 Six Nations Championship
The Guinness Six Nations logo
SportRugby union
Instituted1883 (as Home Nations Championship)
1910 (as Five Nations Championship)
2000 (as Six Nations Championship)
Number of teams6
Country England
 France
 Ireland
 Italy
 Scotland
 Wales
Holders England (2020)
Most titles England &  Wales (39 titles)
Websitewww.sixnationsrugby.com

The Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations[n 1] for sponsorship reasons) is an annual international men's rugby union competition between the teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, and Wales. The current champions are England, who won the 2020 tournament.

The Six Nations is the successor to the Home Nations Championship (1883–1909 and 1932–39), played between teams from England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, which was the first international rugby union tournament.[2] With the addition of France, this became the Five Nations Championship (1910–31 and 1947–99), which in turn became the Six Nations Championship with the addition of Italy.

England hold the record for outright wins with 29. Since the Six Nations era started in 2000, only Italy and Scotland have failed to win the Six Nations title.

The women's tournament started as the Women's Home Nations in the 1996 season.

History and expansion

The tournament was first played in 1883 as the Home Nations Championship among the four Home Nations – England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. However, England was excluded from the 1888 and 1889 tournaments due to their refusal to join the International Rugby Football Board. The tournament then became the Five Nations Championship in 1910 with the addition of France. The tournament was expanded in 2000 to become the Six Nations Championship with the addition of Italy.

Following the relative success of the Tier 2 nations in the 2015 Rugby World Cup, there were calls by Octavian Morariu, the president of Rugby Europe, to let Georgia and Romania join the Six Nations due to their consistent success in the European Nations Cup and ability to compete in the Rugby World Cup.[3][4]

Format

The locations of the Six Nations participants

The tournament begins on the first weekend in February and culminates with Super Saturday on the second or third Saturday in March. The format of the Championship is simple: each team plays every other team once (making a total of 15 matches), with home ground advantage alternating from one year to the next. Prior to the 2017 tournament, two points were awarded for a win, one for a draw and none for a loss. Unlike many other rugby union competitions the bonus point system had not previously been used.

On 30 November 2016, the Six Nations Committee announced that a bonus point system would be trialled in the 2017 Championship. The system is similar to the one used in most rugby championships (0 points for a loss, 2 for a draw, 4 for a win, 1 for scoring four or more tries in a match, and 1 for losing by 7 points or fewer), with the only difference being that a Grand Slam winner will be given 3 extra points to ensure they finish top of the table.

Prior to 1994, teams equal on match points shared the championship. Since then, ties have been broken by considering the points difference (total points scored minus total points conceded) of the teams. The rules of the championship further provide that if teams tie on both match points and points difference, the team that scored the most tries wins the championship. Were this decider to be a tie, the tying teams would share the championship.[5] To date, however, match points and points difference have been sufficient to decide the championship.

Also, the team that finishes at the bottom of the league table is said to have won the Wooden Spoon, although no actual trophy is given to the team. A team that has lost all five matches is said to have been whitewashed. Since the inaugural Six Nations tournament in 2000, only England and Ireland have avoided the Wooden Spoon award. Italy are the holders of the most Wooden Spoon awards in the Six Nations era with 15, and have been whitewashed eleven times. However, each of the other five nations has accumulated more than that through competing in previous eras.

Home advantage in the Six Nations
Three home matches Two home matches
Even years  France  Ireland  Wales  England  Italy  Scotland
Odd years  England  Italy  Scotland  France  Ireland  Wales

Trophies

Championship Trophy

The Original Six Nations Championship Trophy (1993–2014) and The Triple Crown Trophy

The winners of the Six Nations are presented with the Championship Trophy.[6] This was originally conceived by the Earl of Westmorland, and was first presented to the winners of the 1993 championship, France. It is a sterling silver trophy, designed by James Brent-Ward and made by a team of eight silversmiths from the London firm William Comyns.

It has 15 side panels representing the 15 members of the team and with three handles to represent the three officials (referee and two touch judges). The cup has a capacity of 3.75 litres – sufficient for five bottles of champagne. Within the mahogany base is a concealed drawer which contains six alternative finials, each a silver replica of one of the team emblems, which can be screwed on the detachable lid.

A new trophy was introduced for the 2015 Championship.[7] The new trophy was designed and crafted by Thomas Lyte silversmiths and replaces the 1993 edition, which is being retired as it represented the nations that took part in the Five Nations Championship. Ireland were the last team to win the old trophy, and coincidentally, the first team to win the new one.[8]

Grand Slam and Triple Crown

A team that wins all its games wins the 'Grand Slam'.

The Triple Crown may only be won by one of the Home Nations of England, Ireland, Scotland or Wales, when one nation wins all three of their matches against the others. The Triple Crown dates back to the original Home Nations Championship, but the physical Triple Crown Trophy has been awarded only since 2006, when the Royal Bank of Scotland (the primary sponsor of the competition) commissioned Hamilton & Inches to design and create a dedicated Triple Crown Trophy. It has since been won four times by Ireland, four times by England and three times by Wales.

Rivalry trophies

Several individual competitions take place under the umbrella of the tournament. Some of these trophies are also awarded for other matches between the two teams outside the Six Nations.

Trophy Teams Since Notes
Calcutta Cup England and Scotland 1879[9] Made from melted-down Indian rupees donated by the Calcutta Club.
Millennium Trophy England and Ireland 1988 Presented to celebrate Dublin's millennium in 1988.[10]
Centenary Quaich Ireland and Scotland 1989[11][12][13]
Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy France and Italy 2007 On the 200th anniversary of Giuseppe Garibaldi, leader in the unification of Italy and volunteer in the French Republican Army against Prussia.
Auld Alliance Trophy France and Scotland 2018 In memory of the war dead from the rugby communities of Scotland and France.[14]
Doddie Weir Cup Wales and Scotland 2018 In recognition of Doddie Weir, who founded the My Name'5 Doddie Foundation which supports and aids research into Motor neuron disease.[15]

Venues

The national rugby union stadiums of the six countries host the events.

As of the 2021 competition, Six Nations matches are held in the following stadia:

Team Stadium Capacity
England Twickenham Stadium, London 82,000
France Stade de France, Saint-Denis 81,338
Wales Principality Stadium, Cardiff 74,500
Italy Stadio Olimpico, Rome 72,698
Scotland Murrayfield Stadium, Edinburgh 67,144
Ireland Aviva Stadium, Dublin 51,700

The opening of Aviva Stadium in May 2010 ended the arrangement with the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) that allowed the all-Ireland governing body for rugby union, the Irish Rugby Football Union, to use the GAA's flagship stadium, Croke Park, for its international matches. This arrangement was made necessary by the 2007 closure and subsequent demolition of Ireland's traditional home at Lansdowne Road; Aviva Stadium was built on the former Lansdowne Road site. During this construction, Croke Park was the largest of the Six Nations grounds, with a capacity of 82,300.

In 2012 Italy moved their home games from the 32,000 seat Stadio Flaminio, to Stadio Olimpico, also in Rome, with a capacity of 72,000.

The French Rugby Federation (FFR) had planned to build a new stadium of its own, seating 82,000 in the southern suburbs of Paris,[16] because of frustrations with their tenancy of Stade de France.[17] However the project was cancelled in December 2016.[18] France played their 2018 match against Italy at Stade Vélodrome in Marseille.[19]

In 2020, Wales played their final game at Parc y Scarlets in Llanelli due to the Millenium Stadium being used as Dragon's Heart Hospital in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[20]

Results

Overall

 
England
France
Ireland
Italy
Scotland
Wales
Tournaments 128 95 130 25 130 130
Outright wins (shared wins)
Home Nations 5 (4) — 4 (3) — 9 (2) 7 (3)
Five Nations 17 (6) 12 (8) 6 (5) — 5 (6) 15 (8)
Six Nations 7 6 6 0 0 6
Overall 29 (10) 18 (8) 16 (8) 0 (0) 14 (8) 28 (11)
Grand Slams
Home Nations — — — — — 2[21]
Five Nations 11 6 1 — 3 6
Six Nations 2 4 3 0 0 4
Overall 13 10 4 0 3 12
Triple Crowns
Home Nations 5 — 2 — 7 6
Five Nations 16 — 4 — 3 11
Six Nations 5 — 7 — 0 5
Overall 26 — 13 — 10 22
Wooden Spoons
Home Nations 7 — 10 — 5 6
Five Nations 10 12 15 — 15 10
Six Nations 0 1 0 18 4 2
Overall 17 13 25 18 24 18

Home Nations (1883–1909)

Year Champions Grand Slam Triple Crown Calcutta Cup
1883  England Not contested  England  England
1884  England  England  England
1885 Not completed Not completed
1886  England and  Scotland – –
1887  Scotland – –
1888  Ireland,  Scotland and  Wales England did not participate
1889  Scotland England did not participate
1890  England and  Scotland –  England
1891  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1892  England  England  England
1893  Wales  Wales  Scotland
1894  Ireland  Ireland  Scotland
1895  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1896  Ireland –  Scotland
1897 Not completed Not completed  England
1898 Not completed Not completed –
1899  Ireland  Ireland  Scotland
1900  Wales  Wales –
1901  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1902  Wales  Wales  England
1903  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1904  Scotland –  Scotland
1905  Wales  Wales  Scotland
1906  Ireland and  Wales –  England
1907  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1908  Wales  Wales  Wales  Scotland
1909  Wales  Wales  Wales  Scotland

Five Nations (1910–1931)

Year Champions Grand Slam Triple Crown Calcutta Cup
1910  England – –  England
1911  Wales  Wales  Wales  England
1912  Ireland and  England – –  Scotland
1913  England  England  England  England
1914  England  England  England  England
1915–19 Not held due to World War I
1920  Scotland,  Wales and  England – –  England
1921  England  England  England  England
1922  Wales – –  England
1923  England  England  England  England
1924  England  England  England  England
1925  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1926  Ireland and  Scotland – –  Scotland
1927  Ireland and  Scotland – –  Scotland
1928  England  England  England  England
1929  Scotland – –  Scotland
1930  England – – –
1931  Wales – –  Scotland

Home Nations (1932–1939)

Year Champions Grand Slam Triple Crown Calcutta Cup
1932  England,  Ireland and  Wales – –  England
1933  Scotland –  Scotland  Scotland
1934  England –  England  England
1935  Ireland – –  Scotland
1936  Wales – –  England
1937  England –  England  England
1938  Scotland –  Scotland  Scotland
1939  England,  Ireland,  Wales – –  England

Five Nations (1940–1999)

Year Champions Grand Slam Triple Crown Calcutta Cup Millennium Trophy Centenary Quaich
1940–46 Not held due to World War II Not contested
1947  England and  Wales – –  England
1948  Ireland  Ireland  Ireland  Scotland
1949  Ireland –  Ireland  England
1950  Wales  Wales  Wales  Scotland
1951  Ireland – –  England
1952  Wales  Wales  Wales  England
1953  England – –  England
1954  England,  France and  Wales  England  England
1955  France and  Wales – –  England
1956  Wales – –  England
1957  England  England  England  England
1958  England – – –
1959  France – – –
1960  England and  France –  England  England
1961  France – –  England
1962  France – – –
1963  England – –  England
1964  Scotland and  Wales – –  Scotland
1965  Wales –  Wales –
1966  Wales – –  Scotland
1967  France – –  England
1968  France  France –  England
1969  Wales –  Wales  England
1970  France and  Wales – –  Scotland
1971  Wales  Wales  Wales  Scotland
1972 Not completed  Scotland
1973  England,  France,  Ireland,
 Scotland,  Wales 		– –  England
1974  Ireland – –  Scotland
1975  Wales – –  England
1976  Wales  Wales  Wales  Scotland
1977  France  France  Wales  England
1978  Wales  Wales  Wales  England
1979  Wales –  Wales –
1980  England  England  England  England
1981  France  France –  England
1982  Ireland –  Ireland –
1983  France and  Ireland – –  Scotland
1984  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland
1985  Ireland –  Ireland  England
1986  France and  Scotland – –  Scotland
1987  France  France –  England
1988  France and  Wales –  Wales  England
1989  France – – –  England  Scotland
1990  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland  Scotland  England  Scotland
1991  England  England  England  England  England  Scotland
1992  England  England  England  England  England  Scotland
1993  France – –  England  Ireland  Scotland
1994  Wales – –  England  Ireland –
1995  England  England  England  England  England  Scotland
1996  England –  England  England  England  Scotland
1997  France  France  England  England  England  Scotland
1998  France  France  England  England  England  Scotland
1999  Scotland – –  England  England  Scotland

Six Nations (2000–present)

Year Champions Grand Slam Triple Crown Calcutta Cup Millennium
Trophy 		Centenary
Quaich 		Giuseppe Garibaldi
Trophy 		Auld Alliance
Trophy 		Doddie Weir
Cup 		Wooden spoon
2000  England – –  Scotland  England  Ireland Not contested Not contested Not contested  Italy
2001  England – –  England  Ireland  Scotland  Italy
2002  France  France  England  England  England  Ireland  Italy
2003  England  England  England  England  England  Ireland  Wales
2004  France  France  Ireland  England  Ireland  Ireland  Scotland
2005  Wales  Wales  Wales  England  Ireland  Ireland  Italy
2006  France –  Ireland  Scotland  Ireland  Ireland  Italy
2007  France –  Ireland  England  Ireland  Ireland  France  Scotland
2008  Wales  Wales  Wales  Scotland  England  Ireland  France  Italy
2009  Ireland  Ireland  Ireland  England  Ireland  Ireland  France  Italy
2010  France  France – –  Ireland  Scotland  France  Italy
2011  England – –  England  Ireland  Ireland  Italy  Italy
2012  Wales  Wales  Wales  England  England  Ireland  France  Scotland
2013  Wales – –  England  England  Scotland  Italy  France
2014  Ireland –  England  England  England  Ireland  France  Italy
2015  Ireland – –  England  Ireland  Ireland  France  Scotland
2016  England  England  England  England  England  Ireland  France  Italy
2017  England – –  England  Ireland  Scotland  France  Italy
2018  Ireland  Ireland  Ireland  Scotland  Ireland  Ireland  France  Scotland  Italy
2019  Wales  Wales  Wales –  England  Ireland  France  France  Wales  Italy
2020  England –  England  England  England  Ireland  France  Scotland  Scotland  Italy

Titles and awards

Grand Slams and Triple Crowns
Nation Grand Slams Last Grand Slam Triple Crowns Last Triple Crown
 England 13 2016 26 2020
 Wales 12 2019 21 2019
 France 9 2010 — —
 Ireland 3 2018 11 2018
 Scotland 3 1990 10 1990
 Italy 0 — — —

Wooden Spoon

Wooden Spoon winners (last place)
Team Wooden Spoons Last Wooden Spoon HNC FNC SNC
 Ireland 25 1998 11 14 0
 Scotland 24 2015 5 15 4
 England 19 1987 7 12 0
 Wales 17 2003 6 10 1
 Italy 15 2020 — — 15
 France 13 2013 — 12 1

Home Nations and Five Nations

Wooden Spoon winners (alone in last place)
Team Wooden Spoons Years awarded
 Ireland 25 1884, 1890, 1891, 1893, 1895, 1900, 1904, 1909, 1920, 1934, 1938, 1955, 1958, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964, 1977, 1981, 1984, 1986, 1992, 1996, 1997, 1998
 Scotland 20 1902, 1911, 1930, 1932, 1935, 1936, 1939, 1947, 1952, 1953, 1954, 1956, 1959, 1965, 1968, 1971, 1978, 1979, 1985, 1994
 England 17 1887, 1899, 1901, 1903, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1931, 1948, 1950, 1966, 1972, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1983, 1987
 France 9 1910, 1912, 1913, 1925, 1926, 1929, 1957, 1969, 1999
 Wales 9 1889, 1892, 1937, 1949, 1963, 1967, 1990, 1993, 1995
1883, 1885, 1886, 1888, 1897, 1898 and 1914 were not completed and 1973 was shared between each nation.

Bold indicates that the team did not win any matches.

Six Nations

Wooden Spoon winners (last place)
Team Wooden Spoons Years awarded
 Italy 15 2000, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020
 Scotland 4 2004, 2007, 2012, 2015
 Wales 1 2003
 France 1 2013
 England 0
 Ireland 0

Bold indicates that the team did not win any matches.

Player awards

Player of the tournament
Year Winner
2004 Ireland Gordon D'Arcy
2005 Wales Martyn Williams
2006 Ireland Brian O'Driscoll
2007 Ireland Brian O'Driscoll (2)
2008 Wales Shane Williams
2009 Ireland Brian O'Driscoll (3)
2010 Ireland Tommy Bowe
2011 Italy Andrea Masi
2012 Wales Dan Lydiate
2013 Wales Leigh Halfpenny
2014 England Mike Brown
2015 Ireland Paul O'Connell
2016 Scotland Stuart Hogg
2017 Scotland Stuart Hogg (2)
2018 Ireland Jacob Stockdale
2019 Wales Alun Wyn Jones
2020 France Antoine Dupont

Records

Main article: List of Six Nations Championship records

Ronan O'Gara of Ireland holds the career scoring record with 557 points. England's Jonny Wilkinson currently holds the records for individual points in one match (35 points against Italy in 2001) and one season with 89 (scored in 2001).

The record for tries in a match is held by Scotsman George Lindsay who scored five tries against Wales in 1887.[22] England's Cyril Lowe and Scotland's Ian Smith jointly hold the record for tries in one season with 8 (Lowe in 1914, Smith in 1925). Ireland's Brian O'Driscoll has the Championship record for tries with 26.

The record for appearances is held by Sergio Parisse of Italy, with 69 appearances,[23] since his Six Nations debut in 2004.

The most points scored by a team in one match was 80 points, scored by England against Italy in 2001. England also scored the most ever points in a season in 2001 with 229, and most tries in a season with 29.[22] Wales hold the record for fewest tries conceded during a season in the Six Nations era, conceding only 2 in 5 games in 2008, but the 1977 Grand Slam-winning France team did not concede a try in their four matches. Wales hold the record for the longest time without conceding a try, at 358 minutes in the 2013 tournament.

Administration

The Championship is run from headquarters in Dublin, Ireland by Six Nations Rugby Ltd,[24] which also takes responsibility for the British and Irish Lions tours. Benjamin Morel became the CEO of the Six Nations Championship as of 5 November 2018,[25][26][27] replacing John Feehan, who stepped down on 20 April 2018.[28][29]

Media

The BBC has long covered the tournament in the United Kingdom, broadcasting all matches apart from England home matches between 1997 and 2002, which were shown live by Sky Sports with highlights on the BBC.[30] Between 2003 and 2015, the BBC covered every match live on BBC Sport either on BBC One or BBC Two with highlights also on the BBC Sport website and either on the BBC Red Button or late at night on BBC Two. In 2011, it was announced that the BBC's coverage of the tournament on TV, radio and online would be extended to 2017.[31]

On 9 July 2015, in reaction to bids by Sky for the rights beginning in 2018, the BBC ended its contract two seasons early, and renegotiated a joint contract with ITV Sport for rights to the Six Nations from 2016 through 2021. ITV acquired rights to England, Ireland and Italy home matches, while the BBC acquired rights to France, Scotland and Wales home matches. By ending its contract early, the BBC saved around £30 million, while the new contract generated £20 million in additional revenue for the Six Nations.[32] With the end of the contract nearing, speculation once again emerged in 2020 that Sky was pursuing rights to the Six Nations from 2022 onward; under the Ofcom "listed events" rules, rights to the tournament can be held by a pay television channel if delayed broadcasts or highlights are made available on free-to-air television. It was reported that a bid for CVC Equity Partners to purchase a stake in the Six Nations was being hindered by a desire for a more lucrative broadcast contract; a call for the Six Nations to be moved to Category A (which requires live coverage to air free-to-air) was rejected.[33][34]

In Ireland, RTÉ have broadcast the championship since RTÉ's inception and continued to do so until 2017, while TG4 televised highlights. However, in late 2015 RTÉ's free-to-air rival TV3 was awarded the rights for every game from the Six Nations on Irish television from 2018 to 2021.[35]

France Télévisions covered the competition in France.[36]

In Italy, from 2014 to 2017 DMAX of Discovery Communications broadcast all matches, and will do so until 2021.

In the United States, NBC Sports broadcasts matches in English and TV5 Monde airs matches in French.[37] In Wales, S4C also broadcasts matches featuring the Welsh team shown by the BBC in Welsh.

International broadcasters

Participating nations

Country Broadcaster Summary
 England
 Scotland
 Northern Ireland
 Wales
S4C Wales games in the Welsh language
 France France 2 All games.
 Republic of Ireland Virgin Media One All games until 2021.
 Italy DMAX All games until 2021

Non-participating nations

Country/region Broadcaster
International TV5Monde (France games only)
 Albania DigitAlb
 Kosovo
Asia Premier Sports
 Australia beIN Sports
 Middle East and North Africa
Balkans Arena Sport
Baltics TV3 Sport
 Canada DAZN
DACH
ProSieben Maxx[38]
 Caribbean ESPN
 South America
 Czech Republic Nova Sport
 Slovakia
 Fiji FBC
 Georgia Rugby TV
 Malta GO
 Netherlands Ziggo Sport
 New Zealand Sky Sport
Nordics NENT
 Poland NC+
 Portugal Sport TV
 Romania Telekom Romania
 Russia Match TV
 Slovenia Šport TV
 Spain Movistar Deportes
Sub-Saharan Africa SuperSport
 United States NBC Sports

Sponsorship

Until 1998, the Championship had no title sponsor. Sponsorship rights were sold to Lloyds TSB Group for the 1999 tournament and the competition was titled the Lloyds TSB 5 Nations and Lloyds TSB 6 Nations until 2002.[39]

The Royal Bank of Scotland Group took over sponsorship from 2003 until 2017, with the competition being branded the RBS 6 Nations. A new title sponsor was sought for the 2018 tournament and beyond.[40] However, after struggling to find a new sponsor, organisers agreed a one-year extension at a reduced rate. As the RBS brand was being phased out, the tournament was named after the NatWest banking subsidiary, becoming the NatWest 6 Nations.[41]

On 7 December 2018, Guinness was announced as the Championship's new title sponsor, with the competition to be named the Guinness Six Nations from 2019 to 2024.[42][n 1]

See also

References

Notes

  1. ^ a b The French Loi Évin prohibits alcohol sponsorship of sport, so Guinness does not appear in the name there; the slogan "Six Nations Greatness" is used to hint at the word Guinness.[1]

Sources

  • Godwin, Terry (1984). The International Rugby Championship 1883–1983. London: Willows Books. ISBN 978-0-00-218060-3.
  • Starmer-Smith, Nigel, ed. (1986). Rugby – A Way of Life, An Illustrated History of Rugby. Lennard Books. ISBN 978-0-7126-2662-0.
  • Narz, Naomi, ed. (2019). Rugby – Wales and United States Connection, A showing of LDR feats in sport. Rich Books.

Citations

  1. ^ Tézenas du Montcel, Magali (5 February 2019). "L'exception française au cœur du 'Guinness/Greatness Six Nations'". Les Échos (in French). Retrieved 11 March 2019.
  2. ^ Godwin (1984), pg 1. Though only matches involving Ireland could properly be considered international, and only after 1922, all other teams being from entirely within the nation state of the United Kingdom. The first ever Home Nations International Championship was played in 1883. No other Northern Hemisphere team played a recognised international match until France faced New Zealand in 1906
  3. ^ Brown, Oliver (25 March 2015). "Open up the Six Nations and let Georgia in". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
  4. ^ "let in Georgia and Romania, says governing body". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 February 2016.
  5. ^ "Rules of the RBS 6 Nations Championship". RBS 6 Nations. Archived from the original on 9 May 2008. Retrieved 24 February 2008.
  6. ^ "Six Nations Championship Trophy Trust". RBS 6 Nations. Archived from the original on 2 February 2007. Retrieved 5 February 2007.
  7. ^ "New Six Nations trophy unveiled". ESPN. 28 January 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  8. ^ "Will Ireland be getting their hands on this? New trophy for the RBS Six Nations unveiled". Irish Independent. 28 January 2015. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  9. ^ "The Calcutta Cup: the legacy of a club that died". Scottish Rugby. Archived from the original on 14 February 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2007.
  10. ^ "About Us". Rugby Football Union. Archived from the original on 6 September 2007. Retrieved 29 September 2007.
  11. ^ Massie, Alan (19 February 2000). "Lamenting the sad decline of the fighting Irish". The Scotsman. p. 31.
  12. ^ Ferrie, Kevin (22 March 1999). "Scotland now have quality in quantity". The Herald. p. 1.
  13. ^ Walsh, David (13 February 2005). "Scots torn apart by Irish mean machine". The Sunday Times. p. Sport 2.
  14. ^ "Auld Alliance Trophy unveiled | Scottish Rugby Union". scottishrugby.org. Retrieved 9 February 2018.
  15. ^ "Doddie Weir Cup |".
  16. ^ "Projet Stade" (in French). French Rugby Federation. Archived from the original on 15 June 2012. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  17. ^ "French national rugby team plan to quit Stade de France". BBC Sport. 25 November 2010. Retrieved 6 July 2012.
  18. ^ "Rugby-French federation drops plans for new stadium". Reuters. 14 December 2016. Retrieved 4 February 2017.
  19. ^ "France to host Italy in Marseille". rugby365.com. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  20. ^ "Wales to play at Parc y Scarlets - Welsh Rugby Union". Welsh Rugby Union | Wales & Regions. 23 September 2020. Retrieved 26 October 2020.
  21. ^ By convention, Wales is credited with two Grand Slams for the years 1908 and 1909 because, if France was admitted only in 1910, Wales already met France on the sidelines of the Tournament and doubled the Triple Crown of a victory against France.
  22. ^ a b "Six Nations records". Rugby Heaven. 1 February 2005. Archived from the original on 13 January 2006. Retrieved 8 August 2007.
  23. ^ "Records". Six Nations Rugby. Six Nations Rugby Ltd. Retrieved 16 March 2019.
  24. ^ "Contact Us". sixnationsrugby.com.
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