"Italy beat England" - 5 Bold Predictions for the Return of the 2026 Six Nations

France currently top the table after three weeks of fixtures, with Fabien Galthie's side chasing down the Grand Slam and a historic title retention. Antoine Dupont has spearheaded Les Bleus upon a mesmeric return to the Championship, with four points currently between France and second placed Scotland. Gregor Townsend's men have bounced back from their opening round defeat against Italy, with a pair of solid wins under their belt against England and Wales.

Ireland take up the mid-table spot, as Andy Farrell's men remain in the title picture through a glimour of hope that France slip-up. Following back-to-back defeats, England have dropped down to fourth, despite the pre-tournament expectations of a Grand Slam decider against France to conclude 'Super Saturday'. Italy sit at fifth, with Wales currently bottom of the rankings, as the dreaded wooden spoon looms over Steve Tandy's side.

The 2026 Six Nations is set to resume on Friday, March 6th as Ireland host Wales under the lights at the Aviva Stadium. As the countdown continues towards the return of Rugby's Greatest Championship and a fortnight of fixtures left to play, we've once again dusted off the crystal ball for a look to the future.

Throughout the previous 32 senior men's test matches between England and Italy, there has only ever been one winner. England have never been defeated by the Azzurri, however the pieces are steadily falling into place for a first ever Italian triumph when the Six Nations returns to Rome.

Steve Borthwick's side have already had their 12-match winning run snapped by Scotland in round two, yet a defeat to Italy would send shock-waves around the international landscape just 18 months from the 2027 Rugby World Cup. There is no denying that Italy have changed the narrative around their place within the Six Nations, as gone are the days of pundits calling for their total exit from the competition.

Italy have been on a steady upward trajectory since their catalytic 2022 victory over Wales, which ended a 36-match tournament losing streak, dating back to 2017. Gonzalo Quesada is now overseeing his third Championship as head coach, with the Italians in hot form following the Autumn Series. After defeating Australia and taking the Springboks to their limit, Italy opened their account with a gutsy first round win over Scotland (18-15), and pushed Ireland to the brink for their second round defeat in Dublin (20-13).

The Azzurri were then undone by a dangerous French team (33-8), who are establishing themselves as serious contenders for next years' World Cup. England by contrast, will be ever grateful to have the fallow week come around. After a dominant opening round triumph in Cardiff, England collapsed upon their trip North of the Border, as the Calcutta Cup was won by Scotland (31-20) for the fifth time in six years.

England then hosted Ireland for their third round clash, as Andy Farrell's side ran out a record setting margin of victory (42-21) at the Allianz Stadium. This impressive victory for the men in green was a far cry from their narrow clash with the Italians. This coupled with both nations' recent results against Scotland, sees the stars begin to align for a first ever England defeat to Italy, unless drastic changes are made.

Whilst there is plenty of debate as to whether this prediction falls under the 'bold' category, there is no denying that France are once again the standard bearers of the 2026 Six Nations. Fabien Galthie's men laid down a marker from the opening whistle, as Les Bleus put Ireland to the sword for an emphatic first round win under the unique setting of the Stade de France's Thursday night lights.

Despite the alteration upon where the match fell in the week, there was no diverging from the French script, as the defending champions entered the competition with a title retention in their sights. Looking back to the tournament's launch event in Edinburgh towards the end of January, Antoine Dupont had a steely look in his eyes when the France captain held the Six Nations trophy aloft for a photo opportunity, with a glare that seemed to say 'I will get my hands back on this very soon'.

Dupont has not missed a step upon his return to the Six Nations, with a commanding role in France's 36-14 hammering of Ireland, in a sweet act of revenge upon the side that side-lined him for eight months. Aside from their scrum half skipper, France have showcased an arsenal of attacking weapons, with the likes of Thomas Ramos, Matthieu Jalibert and Theo Attissogbe all making their marks on the tournament. Louis Bielle-Biarrey could well eclipse his record-setting eight tries from last year's Championship, as the French wing already has four trips across the whitewash under his belt, with two matches left to play.

Following their dominant first round clash with Ireland, France then made light work of their following week's trip to Wales with a 54-12 drubbing. Les Bleus took their road-show up to Lille for round three, in a bid to grow their game even further and break into the football heartland of Northern France. Italy took their aforementioned 33-8 defeat at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy, with a fresh fan-base introduced to the formidable force of the French front-foot.

With a fortnight of fixtures left to play, France's road to the Grand Slam will not be straightforward. The next challenge is a trip to Murrayfield, in a first versus second clash between the current table toppers. Should Galthie's men weather the storm inside the Edinburgh cauldron, they can close the show with a Super Saturday swansong against England - in a match that is heavily favouring the French at this stage.

Our next prediction sees Ireland finish the 2026 Six Nations with a flourish, and complete their roller-coaster ride which began with Parisian turmoil. Heading into the Championship, it was well documented how Andy Farrell's side had been hit with a plethora of injuries, with the front row and centres needing a solid re-shuffle ahead of the first round's trip to France.

With the likes of Munster's Jeremy Loughman and Michael Milne called into action, Ireland put in a solid scrummaging performance against France. However, the set-piece success was not enough to keep Les Bleus from crossing the whitewash, as Farrell's men returned home and went back to the drawing board.

The second match then started slow, as Italy raced away for a 10-5 half-time lead that silenced the fans at the Aviva Stadium. Italy had never won a senior men's match in Dublin, and some key alterations ensured that the streak stayed alive. The replacement pairing of Jamison Gibson-Park and Jack Crowley steered Ireland back on track, to wrestle the win away from the Azzurri for a first victory in the Championship.

Gibson-Park and Crowley would be promoted back into the starting XV for the following week's trip to Twickenham, as Farrell dropped Sam Prendergast and sent Craig Casey back to the substitutes bench. The stunning win showcased Gibson-Park and Crowley at their very best, with Stuart McCloskey also riding a tidal wave of momentum upon his extended run with Garry Ringrose in the Ireland midfield. Andy Farrell has unleashed plenty of new and returning faces upon the Six Nations, with the likes of Edwin Edogbo, Cormac Izuchukwu, Cian Prendergast and Rob Baloucoune all maximising their minutes in green.

Ireland close out their 2026 Six Nations with two home matches, with Wales next to arrive in Dublin for a fourth round clash under the Friday night lights. Following the recent turnaround in form against England, Ireland are the favourites and will arrive in the capital with a spring in their step. A straight-forward victory should follow for the men in green, before Ireland ignite Super Saturday's trilogy by hosting Scotland.

This one could well go down to the wire, yet we predict the form finding Emerald Islanders to complete a strong finish to their Six Nations campaign with a win over Gregor Townsend's men. Scotland would also likely be feeling the effects of a defeat to France prior to this match, with momentum expected to be with the Irish ahead of the closing round of the tournament.

Taking over the head coach mantle of the Wales men's team is no short order in this day and age. With the future not looking good for the Ospreys, and a plethora of top talents all heading to the PREM or across to France, Steve Tandy could rightly feel that he has been appointed captain of a sinking ship.

Wooden spoon holders in their past two Six Nations campaigns, Wales will feel the burning desire of scorched dragon fire, to avoid the dreaded piece of cutlery with two rounds left to play. After succumbing to landslide defeats against England and France in the first two rounds, the capacity Cardiff crowd was left heart-broken, following a last-ditch defeat to Scotland this past weekend.

Wales led the Scots 23 points to 19 with six minutes left on the clock, as the sea of red believed that they were about to see a hard-fought triumph last Saturday night. However, Scotland rallied back with a series of strong pick and drives, before replacement hooker George Turner crashed across the line from close range. Finn Russell capitalised on the score with an expertly struck conversion, to send Scotland three points into the lead for the closing five minutes.

The Wales players, coaches and fans were all rightfully gutted to see their side come unstuck in the latter stages, in what could well have been their best chance to bag a Six Nations victory this year. Wales take on Ireland when the competition gets back up and running, with Andy Farrell's side returning to form in a stellar away win against England last time out. The very same England side pinned 48 points on Wales just a few weeks prior, with the incoming Celtic clash predicted to go the way of the men in green.

That leaves Wales with one last roll of the dice to avoid an entirely win-less Six Nations campaign. Whilst our predictions leave little space for Wales to move up off the bottom of the table, they could salvage the incoming wooden spoon with a long awaited victory over Italy in round five. This match has now become a Six Nations staple for the neutrals, who want to see whether the Azzurri continue to improve, or if Wales can end their run of defeats to Gonzalo Quesada's side.

As we discussed at the top of this piece, it can be argued that Italy have never looked stronger than they do today. The Azzurri have a taste for winning, and try their hardest to take their opponents to their very limit where they may have previously rolled over in defeat. With serious world class talents like Michele Lamaro, Tommaso Menoncello, Paolo Garbisi and (if fit) Ange Capuozzo around the park, and one of the best scrums in world rugby at their disposal, it looks like another up-hill battle for Wales in round five.

So with two rounds of the 2026 Guinness Men's Six Nations left to play, there is no doubt that fortune favours the French for this years title. Fabien Galthie has built a well-oiled machine, with high flying backs, powerful forwards and captained by one of the sharpest minds in world rugby.

Dupont will be chomping at the bit to lead his side back out onto the pitch, as the count-down continues for the return of the Six Nations. Having compiled the predictions, here's how we see the final table taking shape. This makes for a tough read for England and Wales fans, so can Steve Borthwick and Steve Tandy's sides prove us wrong and turn their campaigns around? Only time will tell.