Six Nations Thursday start is smart from organisers
It feels slightly odd to be looking forward to the Six Nations beginning this evening when it is only Thursday.
That’s because Ireland’s trip to take on champions France in Paris has been brought forward to tonight to ensure there’s no clash with the opening ceremony of the Winter Olympics in Milan tomorrow.
At first glance it looks as though rugby hasn’t been confident enough to go up against the quadrennial snowsports event, nor forward-thinking enough to schedule round one over a Saturday and Sunday. But in reality this is an example of rugby union doing the right thing, realising what it is up against and rightly ceding ground for the greater good.
What’s the point in rugby’s greatest annual sporting tournament going up against a Winter Olympics in the same time zone, just across the Alps? There isn’t any.
Smart move
The game would have undoubtedly drawn a good audience if it was scheduled for Friday but it would also have lost some fans from competing nation Italy, who will be hoping tomorrow night’s opening ceremony provides a Danny Boyle-style moment of national pride.
And for those neutrals who are looking for something to watch on free-to-air television, there’s something about the artistry of an opening ceremony that’ll be more attractive than rugby.
Further to that, there’s a patriotism surrounding Team GB at an Olympics that isn’t quite replicated, for the casual fan, for England, Ireland, Scotland and so on during the Six Nations.
The smart decision made by tournament chiefs will ensure the widest net possible is cast for this year’s tournament, which could be really exciting.
The opener between Andy Farrell’s Ireland and Les Bleus could go a long way to deciding who is in the mix for the title come March.
And the matches on Saturday, between Italy and Scotland and England and Wales, are bound to cause headlines.
Six Nations close
The tournament feels in a really good place, especially given England will now be on free-to-air until the end of the decade. They had a positive year in 2025, losing just once, but will need to travel to France in the final matchweek – and likely win – if they’re going to triumph in this year’s tournament.
So chapeau to the Six Nations, for identifying a problem like this weekend’s television clash and rightly altering their schedule.
There’s a reason major events such as the Fifa World Cup and Olympic Games never clash, because it would be detrimental to both. They have their own long-standing slots, often months or years apart, to ensure maximum reach for their products.
The Six Nations was on the ball this time and that’s great. Now it is down to the six teams to make sure that the 15 matches are worth the hype. It could be a close tournament, and that’s exactly what the competition needs this year ahead of the Nations Championship.
Former England Sevens captain Ollie Phillips is the founder of Optimist Performance and recently finished rowing the Atlantic to raise money for MND charities. Donate at World’s Toughest Row