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Defending champions England against secret favorites France - it could be the title duel of this tournament
Photo: MARTIN BUREAU / AFP
Six Nations 2021
Once a year, the six largest rugby nations in Europe compete against each other.
In the 22nd edition, the national teams from England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales will choose the best team in Europe between February 6 and March 20.
The games are played decentrally in the respective participating countries.
Even if the regulations for dealing with the coronavirus are different there, fans will not be allowed to play in any stadium at the start of the tournament.
The organizers want to watch how the situation develops over the course of the tournament.
Due to the currently strict entry conditions in France with mandatory corona tests for entries from EU countries and a seven-day quarantine for entries from the United Kingdom, the participation of the French team was questionable for a long time.
However, shortly before the start of the tournament, the French government decided to relax the regulations for teams participating in the tournament.
Some players and coaches had already canceled their participation in the tournament in advance.
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France will also be represented at the Six Nations in 2021
Photo: FRANCK FIFE / AFP
game schedule
First round
Saturday 6th February (3:15 pm): Italy v France
Saturday 6 February (5:45 pm): England v Scotland
Sunday 7 February (4:00 pm): Wales v Ireland
Second round
Saturday 13 February (3:15 pm): England v Italy
Saturday 13 February (5:45 pm): Scotland v Wales
Sunday 14 February (4:00 pm): Ireland v France
Third round
Saturday 27 February (3:15 p.m.): Italy v Ireland
Saturday 27 February (5:45 p.m.): Wales v England
Sunday 28 February (4 p.m.): France v Scotland
Fourth round
Saturday 13th March (3:15 pm): Italy v Wales
Saturday 13 March (5:45 pm): England v France
Sunday 14 March (4:00 pm): Scotland v Ireland
Fifth round
Saturday March 20 (3:15 pm): Scotland v Italy
Saturday March 20 (5:45 pm): Ireland v England
Saturday March 20 (9 pm): France v Wales
Tournament mode and rules
The Six Nations is a round-robin tournament in which each team competes once against each other team.
The following criteria, in descending order of importance, are decisive for determining the final table:
· Number of points
· Point difference
· Number of attempts achieved
Points are awarded for the individual games as follows:
· 4 points if you win
· 2 points in the event of a tie
0 points in the event of a defeat (before possible bonus points)
3 bonus points in a Grand Slam (five wins)
· 1 bonus point for four or more attempts, regardless of the final score
· 1 bonus point for a loss of seven points or less
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Defending champions England will start the tournament against the Scottish selection at Twickenham Stadium
Photo: Laurence Griffiths / Getty Images
Where is it played?
The tournament is traditionally held in all participating countries.
The venues are the Olympic Stadium in Rome, the Twickenham Stadium in London, the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff, the Murrayfield Stadium in Edinburgh, the Aviva Stadium in Dublin and the Stade de France in Saint-Denis.
As of now, it is planned to hold all games without a live audience.
Who are the participants and favorites?
The defending champion is the record winner England.
The vice world champion, coached by the Australian Eddie Jones, has hardly seen any changes in the team worth mentioning.
The tests for the team await from the second half of the tournament, when the team will have to face one another in Wales, against France and finally in Ireland.
It remains to be seen how the Welsh selection will change with the transition from longtime coach Warren Gatland to Wayne Pivac.
The same applies to Ireland, where Andy Farrell took over for Joe Schmidt.
However, both nations have a team together that can playfully take on the English.
France was the dominant European team at the Six Nations in the 2010s, but the last title in the competition was more than ten years ago.
Nevertheless, experts act the French team as a secret favorite for the title after the exciting performances at the last World Cup.
The Scottish team and the notoriously unsuccessful Italians in this competition have little chance of a good result.
Where can I follow the Six Nations?
The streaming service DAZN will broadcast all games live this year with German commentary.
However, the offer is not freely available and costs 11.99 euros per month as part of the DAZN subscription.
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Italy cannot compete with the major rugby nations in the Six Nations
Photo: CHRISTOPHE ARCHAMBAULT / AFP
All Six Nations winners at a glance:
2000: England
2001: England
2002: France (Grand Slam)
2003: England (GS)
2004: France (GS)
2005: Wales (GS)
2006: France
2007: France
2008: Wales (GS)
2009: Ireland (GS)
2010 : France (GS)
2011: England
2012: Wales (GS)
2013: Wales
2014: Ireland
2015: Ireland
2016: England (GS)
2017: England
2018: Ireland (GS)
2019: Wales (GS)
2020: England (Triple Crown )
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