ITV has won the rights to broadcast every England rugby union Test from next year after submitting a successful £80m bid for the inaugural Nations Championship.
The terrestrial broadcaster is understood to have beaten off rivals to secure a deal that will ensure that all of the home nations matches will be available free-to-air for at least the next three years, in a major boost for the exposure of the sport.
ITV already has a joint £63m deal with the BBC for the Six Nations Championship, with the commercial channel having the rights to every England game and 10 of the 15 matches overall as it is paying a greater share of the bill, and once the contracts are signed it will also have exclusive rights for the first two editions of the Nations Championship. The 2027 World Cup in Australia will also be broadcast live on ITV, as it has been since 1991.
The Nations Championship deal gives ITV the right to show every game in the new 12-team competition, which features all the Six Nations and their major southern hemisphere rivals – South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Argentina, Fiji and Japan.
Under a new tournament structure announced last month, the Six Nations will tour the southern hemisphere for three Tests in July, with England beginning their campaign against South Africa in Johannesburg, before hosting Australia, Japan and New Zealand in November followed by a final series. As revealed by the Guardian, the first final will be at Twickenham next year before being staged in Qatar in 2028.
TNT had been expected to win the Nations Championship rights, as it has broadcast the autumn Tests for the past three years. The Guardian has learned that as incumbent TNT was given first refusal to make a bid but declined, allowing ITV to swoop in.
While the asking price was a consideration, sources involved in the discussions have disclosed that the new competition’s format was also a factor. Although the number of games on offer was similar, the autumn internationals take place every year, while the Nations Championship is biennial.
It has been a torrid few weeks for TNT, which as revealed by the Guardian lost its UK rights to the Champions League to Paramount+ last month and was outbid by Sky Sports for the Europa League and Uefa Conference League. TNT is broadcasting the Ashes this winter but its coverage from Australia has been widely criticised.
ITV’s winning bid will be regarded as a boost for rugby given the finances involved and the exposure provided by free-to-air. Its live coverage of England v France in the Six Nations last February was watched by a peak of 6 million viewers, compared to about 1 million who watched England’s win against New Zealand on TNT last month, which was ITV’s biggest audience since the 2024 European Championship.
TNT, which has Gallagher Premexclusive live rights for the Gallagher Prem, is now expected to attempt to rebrand itself as the home for England club rugby in England by reclaiming the Investec Champions Cup from Premier Sports in 2027.
