The waiting is over, the Rugby Europe Championship for 2026 is here!

Between this Saturday and March 15 last year’s champions Georgia, last year’s runners-up Spain, Romania, Portugal, Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland and Germany will battle it out to see who will be crowned this year’s overall winners in Leganés on Championship Finals.

The first match of two on Sunday is Switzerland, who finished seventh 12 months ago, versus Georgia at the Stade Municipal in Yverdon-les-Bains at 1pm local time (12pm UTC).In Tbilisi at the same time last year, Georgia really put the Swiss to the sword and won 110-0. This Pool A clash pits 28 in the world against 13 and the Georgians are getting bready for the World Cup and Marco Bortolami is their interim head coach.

Swiss skipper Jules Porcher said:  “Preparations have been going well ahead of the competition. There’s a good dynamic in the squad and we feel ready for the challenge. Our main goal this season is to stay in the Championship, but we also want to show all the progress our team has made. Facing Georgia in the opening match is a huge challenge, they have been champions many times and set the standard inn this competition. In front of our home crowd at the Stade Municipal in Yverdon we want to play an open, dynamic game, move the ball and put on a performance that’s enjoyable for those watching. It’s about showing our identity and taking another step forward as a team.”

Read the full article via Rugby Europe News