Dates Announced for 2021 Women's & U20s Six Nations

Six Nations Rugby Limited has announced new dates for the rescheduled 2021 Women’s and U20s Six Nations Championships.

Last month it was announced that both tournaments had been postponed because of the challenges of COVID-19 but the 2021 Women’s championship will take place in April with the U20s championship taking place in June and July.

Starting on the weekend of 3/4 April and finishing on 24 April, this year’s Women’s championship will see a format similar to that of the recent Autumn Nations Cup, culminating in a grand final weekend to crown the Six Nations Champions 2021.

The format will comprise of two pools of three teams with each team playing one home and one away fixture. Once the pool round matches are complete, teams will face off against the opposing ranked team from the other pool in the play-offs matches, i.e. 1st place Pool A v 1st place Pool B. The detailed fixture dates, venues and kick off times will be announced in due course.

The intention for the 2021 U20s championship is to take place across June and July in the same format as originally planned, but through a condensed 3-week period. The tournament is expected to start on June 19 2021 and further planning work is required to finalise details on fixtures, venues and kick off times which will be shared in due course.

The Red Roses completed the 2020 Women’s Six Nations Grand Slam after they beat Italy in November and have won three of the last four tournaments, while the 2020 competition for the U20 men was cancelled last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We are delighted to make this announcement today and confirm new plans for our Women’s and U20s championships," said Ben Morel, CEO of Six Nations Rugby.

"The promotion and development of rugby at all levels is a key strategic priority for Six Nations. We see huge opportunity for growth in the women’s game in particular and feel it will benefit hugely from having its own specific window and being firmly placed in the limelight.” 

“Our priority has always been to deliver two outstanding tournaments but equally ensuring both competitions can be played safely, taking every consideration for player welfare. A significant challenge we faced in rescheduling the Women’s tournament was the limited available window due to World Cup Qualifiers, domestic leagues, rest periods and World Cup preparations for qualified teams. Following consultation with our unions and federations as well as other key stakeholders, it was agreed that April would be the best window in which to stage the championship. 

“The U20 Six Nations Championship is also a hugely important competition in terms of player development and for those representing their country at this level it is a major milestone in any career. We look forward to announcing fixture details for the U20’s in due course.”

Fixtures

• Weekend 3 April 2021 - England v Scotland, France v Wales
• Weekend 10 April 2021 - Italy v England, Wales v Ireland
• Weekend 17 April 2021 - Scotland v Italy, Ireland v France
• Weekend 24 April 2021 - Finals weekend (Pool A teams will host the play-off match)