Six Nations 2026: What impact might the new schedule have?

After speaking to Six Nations coaches, everyone agrees that playing management and the coaching load will be more important than ever.

England vice-captain Jamie George agrees that the schedule could help teams with more strength and depth.

“It’s more focused on recovering and getting better, which is definitely more challenging,” George told BBC Sport.

“At the same time, this perhaps underscores the importance of squad depth, something we are blessed with in the squad.

“I think you will see more rotation between players, whether it is due to injury, form or something else.”

“We are happy with our depth,” insists Scotland coach Gregor Townsend, who estimates between 30 and 35 players will have to be called up over the six weeks.

“If you had gone further [30-35 players] You’ve probably had a lot of injuries and any team will be affected by that.

“Let’s hope we don’t get too many injuries during the five games.”

Ireland coach Andy Farrell has had to deal with several injuries already in his squad, but feels three high-intensity games in a row will serve the teams well at the 2027 Rugby World Cup as the pool stage has been shortened to add a new round of 16 round.

“International rugby is tough, it takes longer to get through, but the World Cup has also changed and we are all trying to prepare for that in the future,” Farrell told Rugby Union Weekly.

Perennial underdogs Italy start with Scotland at home before traveling to Ireland and then France – a treacherous trilogy of fixtures.

Gonzalo Quesada, coach of the Italian national team, said: “Frankly, this is the situation and we will adapt to it.”

“There are positives, we have a lot of players playing abroad [and return to clubs in fallow weeks] So keeping it for three weeks in a row is good.

“But it will be difficult. We must not suffer too many injuries if we want to reach the France match and be able to compete.”

For Steve Tandy and Wales, another team that could find themselves stretched to the limit, it will be a matter of smart boxing to keep players active.

“It’s a huge ask, but that’s where you want to be,” Tandy explained. “There will be injuries and fatigue but it will create an opportunity for someone else.

“But you realize sometimes less is more. In certain weeks, you have to get the players in a mental state. So we have to make sure we manage their weeks correctly. We have to be smart.”

The beauty of the Six Nations is the consistency with which David brought down Goliath. Wales (population 3 million) have won twice as many Grand Slams this millennium as England (population 57 million).

But with England and France being the better-resourced nations and favorites for the tournament, scheduling could make it more difficult for the underdogs to win their day.