STAR RUGBY PREVIEW: Six Nations 2026

It’s the first week of February, which means European rugby fans will be gearing up for one of the highlights of their year as the Six Nations begins this week, writes WILLIAM KEDJANYI.

The tournament starts early with a game that should tell us much about the championship that’s still to come – defending champions France host Ireland at the Stade de France to get the action started, on a first weekend which sees England host Wales whilst Scotland travel to Rome on Saturday.

Guinness Men’s Six Nations Championship 2026
February – March 2026
Live on BBC & ITV in UK, S4C in Wales, RTÉ in Ireland, and France TV in France

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🇫🇷 France – ? with starsports.bet

Defending champions and perhaps unlucky not to win a Grand Slam – they lost with the last play of the game but would have taken victory in drier conditions, with three big chances spurned by knock-ons and a Dupont drop with the line beckoning. Since then they’ve possibly not matched that form – a 2-0 defeat for their now traditional development-side tour to New Zealand is easily forgiven, but they were very well beaten by South Africa despite leading at half time with a man advantage and they needed time to pull away from an exhausted Wallabies side to end their Autumn in Paris.

Fabien Galthié has rich pickings to choose from in terms of domestic form players, with defending Champions Cup winners Bordeaux providing four backline players including red-hot fly-half Mathieu Jalibert, wing sensation Louis Bielle-Biarrey (top try-scorer in the 2025 Six Nations with eight and with ten for Bordeaux in this year’s Top 14), and centres Nicolas Depoortere and Yoram Moefana to boot.

Thomas Ramos is an exceptional fullback who has shone in a Toulouse side that struggled by their high standards in the Champions Cup, and Antoine Dupont needs no introduction even for the casual reader. Possible negatives – and they are hard to find – include the decision to leave out Gregory Alldritt, Gaël Fickou and Damian Penaud, Toulouse perhaps showing some vulnerability in the Champions Cup pool stages and the sudden retirement of powerhouse prop Uini Atonio on medical grounds, but France will take some stopping once again.

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🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England – ? with starsports.bet

Things are bright and rosy for Steve Borthwick, who has a squad full of in-form players who have excelled in the Champions Cup pool stages whilst also building 11 straight wins over the past year, including a comprehensive 33-19 win against the All Blacks. A summer tour of the Americas without the Lions tourists allowed Borthwick the chance to build plenty of squad depth and the Red Rose arguably have the most depth of any team right now, a key factor given that there’s only one fallow week and a key rival is starting with several absences in the shape of Ireland.

George Ford is one of the in-form fly-halves on the international stage, Immanuel Feyi-Waboso has been exceptional for Exeter Chiefs, Henry Arundell can provide wicked pace on the left, Tommy Freeman and Fraser Dingwall have built an exceptional pool of work at Northampton in the centres together whilst upfront Henry Pollock will provide massive impact off the bench, with Sam Underhill and Guy Pepper able to provide heavy-duty carrying.

The one big concern for English fans and backers is that they are – relatively speaking – untested away from Twickenham at European level over the last year. Their only away fixtures of last year’s Six Nations were a loss in Ireland (27-22) and an easy win in Wales. Two wins against Argentina in the summer will provide confidence on that front, however, and based on the autumn’s evidence, neither Scotland nor France are unbeatable on home soil and a bonus-point win against Italy would be expected for Steve Borthwick’s side.

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🇮🇪 Ireland – ? with starsports.bet

Ireland have been perennial contenders for the title in recent years but Andy Farrell’s men are at a crossroads here, with a squad that is no doubt talented but one that is also well known and possibly in need of a refresh, according to some in certain quarters.

In the autumn, they were out-fought and out-thought by New Zealand in Chicago and whilst defeat to South Africa was no embarrassment, they were flattered by the final scoreline after heroic defensive efforts and other teams looked to have much more inventiveness going forward.

The Leinster core that provides 10 of their first 15 against France had a decent Champions Cup pool outing with four wins from four including victory at Leicester and Bayonne, although front-row pair Tadhg Furlong and Andrew Porter are missing along with Mack Hansen, arguably the outstanding member of their back three in a fully fit side. The return of Jacob Stockdale to proceedings is a bonus for them at least in the backline and for development reasons this year could be more useful than most, but there’s a feeling Ireland may be entering transition over the next year or so with the World Cup the main aim.

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🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 Scotland – ? with starsports.bet

It’s been said often but this is a now-or-never moment for Gregor Townsend. There have been years of thrilling rugby and some top-tier moments but what is arguably Scotland’s best generation of players in the modern era haven’t managed to stage a title challenge and they come here after a gutting autumn, having taken big leads against the All Blacks and Argentina only to crumble on both occasions.

Optimism this year comes from the brilliant performance of the Glasgow Warriors in the Champions Cup. Fourteen of the matchday 23 that will travel to Italy play for a Warriors side that came back from 21-0 down against Toulouse to win 28-21 at Scotstoun before they dismantled a strong Saracens side 28-3, including the “Huwipotu” centre pairing, winger Kyle Steyn, prop Zander Fagerson and an all-Warriors back-row of Matt Fagerson starting at blindside flanker, Rory Darge at openside, and Jack Dempsey at No. 8.

If those players can repeat those performances, Scotland will take beating anywhere they go – and the half-back pairing of Finn Russell and Ben White are having fine domestic seasons – but maintaining their peak over a whole championship has been beyond them and there are mental questions to answer after those two galling defeats in the autumn, both of which came at home.

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🇮🇹 Italy – ? with starsports.bet

Once the odds-on favourite for the wooden spoon – and rarely good enough to get close to upset wins – Italy have taken big steps forward in recent years and will be looking to avoid a wooden spoon for the third straight year.

They have genuine top quality now, with Ignacio Brex and Tommaso Menoncello two of the best centres in the competition, whilst Louis Lynagh had a strong autumn to boot. Northampton Saints’ sensational winger Edoardo Todaro is a top-quality talent as well, and Martin Page-Relo has been thriving for Bordeaux-Bègles, Paolo Garbisi can take on other fly-halves and more than hold his own and there is proper pack grunt with Danilo Fischetti, Giacomo Nicotera, Simone Ferrari and Marco Riccioni.

Benetton and Zebre were first and second in their Challenge Cup pools, whilst a number of Italian players get top-level exposure in the Champions Cup to boot, so Italy bring plenty of quality to the table even if their three defeats to the Springboks show the levels they are still trying to reach. A trip to Rome is not an easy thing anymore.

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🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 Wales – ? with starsports.bet

Welsh rugby has been in crisis mode for what must feel like forever, with the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) currently facing legal action from Swansea Council following the bombshell revelation that the Ospreys—historically Wales’ most successful region—could cease to exist as a professional entity after the 2026/27 season. This stems from a controversial deal where the Ospreys’ owners, Y11, are in exclusive negotiations to acquire Cardiff Rugby from the WRU. The fallout has sparked public protests and a potential extraordinary general meeting (EGM) as clubs and fans accuse the governing body of a conflict of interest and “managed decline” that sacrifices the sport’s heartlands to balance the books.

Despite the turmoil, there were some bright spots towards the end of 2025, including a narrow win over Japan and some decent rugby played against New Zealand to boot, for all that they also conceded 50+ points on three occasions in the autumn and suffered their heaviest-ever home defeat to the Springboks as well.

Rebuilding will be the name of the game but it’s impossible to expect anything concrete – the bright spots for fans come in the shape of those who have impressed for the Scarlets, including Ellis Mee and Eddie James, whilst Louis Rees-Zammit and Josh Adams return to the backline. Anything more than the wooden spoon would be a bonus, however, and the focus for Steve Tandy will be to rebuild confidence and take gradual steps.

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🏆 Tournament Verdict 🏆

Scheduling plays a huge part in the markets each year, so it’s no surprise that France, who won last year despite having to travel to Dublin and Twickenham, where it was just the rain that stopped them from completing a Grand Slam, are favourites. However, they were not as convincing in the Autumn Nations Series as expected, being comprehensively overpowered by South Africa despite having a man advantage and being pushed harder than expected by both Fiji and a tired Australia side, and a price of 8/11 with starsports.bet makes no outright appeal given the often tight margins at this level with little room for error even in the bonus-point era.

England have to prove themselves on the road but under Steve Borthwick, they’ve made giant strides, building an 11-game winning run that included a deserved victory against the All Blacks. They will have to travel to Scotland and Paris but the Autumn Nations Series showed plenty of weaknesses for the Scots, especially when under pressure in the second half of games, and a win there would put them in pole position on paper for at least four overall wins with a Welsh side that’s in disarray heading to Twickenham on Saturday and an Irish side dealing with a number of absences and form concerns also due to visit London. Steve Borthwick has arguably the most strength in depth of any coach in the tournament – his bench for Saturday at Twickenham features Luke Cowan-Dickie, Bevan Rodd, Trevor Davison, Maro Itoje, Tom Curry, Henry Pollock, Ben Spencer and Marcus Smith – and there were others who were unlucky to miss out on selection.

England look like a team ready to take the next step and in what the betting has described as a two-horse race, they look much too big. The 4/5 on the Triple Crown with starsports.bet is also most appealing with Wales and Ireland having to visit Twickenham. Ireland have been perennial contenders and must be respected, but an ageing squad looked in need of a refresh over the autumn when other teams were more effective in attack, and they travel to France with multiple injuries and absentees to begin their challenge.

The form of Glasgow Warriors in the Champions Cup is a strong signifier for Scottish hopes, although the way they crumbled against the All Blacks and Argentina in the second half would be a worry, despite the skill they possess with ball in hand.

Italy are quietly on the improve under Gonzalo Quesada and will fancy their chances of taking a scalp or two, especially at home, although the gap between them and the top two is still too large for anything more than that. Wales are in a state of disarray, with a threadbare squad also hit by injury, and unfortunately for fans who have been badly led by the WRU, they look set for the wooden spoon on paper.

Louis Bielle-Biarrey is a short-priced favourite but the right one here in the top try-scorer markets. He topped the try-scoring charts last year, scored the most tries of anyone in the summer, is leading the Champions Cup scoring, and is only behind the absent Damian Penaud in the Top 14. Both Bielle-Biarrey and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso are top prospects, and the Exeter winger might be worth having as an each-way saver to boot. He has 10 tries for Exeter this season and has looked exceptionally comfortable in England’s attacking system.

Elsewhere, Edoardo Todaro is overpriced to be the top Italian try-scorer – he’s looked exceptionally comfortable since stepping up for Northampton this season – and Louis Rees-Zammit is likely to be the main focus point for Wales, who have given him the 15 shirt on his return to the Six Nations.

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🏉 SIX NATIONS 2026 SPECIAL MARKETS 🏉

Louis Bielle-Biarrey is a short-priced favourite to be the top tryscorer with starsports.bet but the right one here. He topped the tryscoring charts last year, scored the most tries of anyone in the summer, is leading the Champions Cup scoring, and is only behind the absent Damian Penaud in the Top 14. Both Biarrey and Immanuel Feyi-Waboso are top prospects, and the Exeter winger might be worth having as an each/way saver to boot. He has 10 tries for the Chiefs this season and has looked exceptionally comfortable in England’s attacking system.

Elsewhere, Edoardo Todaro is overpriced to be the top Italian tryscorer – he’s looked exceptionally comfortable since stepping up for Northampton this season – and Louis Rees-Zammit is likely to be the main focus point for Wales, who have given him the 15 shirt on his return to the 6 Nations.

Thomas Ramos is the right favourite for the most points but he’s maybe short against George Ford, Sam Prendergast and Finn Russell so the 4/7 can be left alone.

In the team markets, England could be a little overpriced to be the highest scoring nation. They have 40 points to make up on France from 2025 but playing Wales at home first up might allow them to get a proper total on the board as a platform and their attack has been improving through the last year. England’s second half replacement power should allow for more running opportunities and the market might be overreacting to France hosting Italy.

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RECOMMENDED BETS
BACK England Outright Winner 4 pts at 9/4 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK England Triple Crown Winner 2 pts at 10/11 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK England-France Dual Forecast 2 pts at 10/11 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Wales to finish bottom 3 pts at 8/11 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK England Top Tryscoring Nation 2 pts at 5/2 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Louis Bielle-Biarrey Top Tryscorer 3 pts at 7/4 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Immanuel Feyi-Waboso Top Tryscorer 1 pt each/way at 6/1 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Edoardo Todaro Top Italy Tryscorer 1 pt each/way at 9/2 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)
BACK Louis Rees-Zammit Top Wales Tryscorer 2pts win at 3/1 (⭐️ ? CLICK TO BET NOW)

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PROFIT/LOSS (FEB 2026): -2.30 points

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