Six Nations verdict: Team analysis, preview and betting tips for the Six Nations

Rugby union betting tips: Six Nations outright

3pts England to win the Triple Crown at 10/11 (General)

2pts England to win the Six Nations at 11/4 (AK Bets)

1pt England to win the Grand Slam at 4/1 (General)

3pts Wales to finish bottom at 11/10 (BetVictor)

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook

The Guinness Six Nations is no longer the preserve of terrestrial TV viewers; it can now be watched via streaming channel, Premier Sports, which is fitting, really, given that the ball spends increasingly less time at ground level than ever before in top-level rugby union.

Last year’s law amendments have made kicking from hand a prime attacking weapon, and the teams that win the battle for the skies tend to come out on top. This was evident during the autumn when the Springboks reigned supreme in the air. Thankfully for France, England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales and Italy, this is one northern hemisphere competition the South Africans haven’t joined – for now.

Internationals featuring major Test teams average seven more kicks per game than they did 12 months ago, placing a real emphasis on players' ability, on both sides of the ball, to retain possession once the ball is booted into the skies. And this Championship is likely to follow a similar pattern, which may have 1970s rugby romantics longing for sweeping backs moves, baggy cotton jerseys, long hair and mutton chops, crying into their Toby Bitter.

England backed to claim Six Nations crown

Outside of South Africa, the two best teams in the kick-to-compete stakes in November were ENGLAND and Ireland, strengthening our belief that the former can go all the way this year. As for the men from the Emerald Isle, they have too many other factors going against them.

It is now paramount that back-three players can get high off the ground and be comfortable catching balls under extreme pressure, and England has some of the finest exponents in this facet of the game.

Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, Tommy Freeman and Freddie Steward, England’s likely wings and first-choice full-back, can be relied upon to field whatever comes their way, unless Steve Borthwick decides to deploy Freeman at outside-centre and overlook Steward for either Marcus Smith or George Furbank at 15. But those appear riskier options, and he’s not a man known for rolling the dice.

This has all the makings of being England’s year. In addition to their kicking prowess, Steve Borthwick’s side go into the Championship full of confidence. Their 11-match winning streak, stretching back to the round one defeat to Ireland last February, can’t be underplayed, as all of the victories bar the one against the USA came against top 10-ranked opposition, and included a famous win against the All Blacks, where all elements of their game came together.

England also boast talismanic players in key positions playing at the top of their games, such as loose-head prop and occasional captain Ellis Genge, the aforementioned Feyi-Waboso, and the young man of the moment, Henry Pollock. Pollock came off the bench and scored twice on his Test debut against Wales at the end of last year’s Championship and has positioned himself as a valued member of England’s so-called ‘Pom Squad’ – England’s take on South Africa’s ‘Bomb Squad’.

The Pom Squad made a huge impact last year, especially in the try-scoring stakes. England’s benchmen accounted for almost a third of all their tries in 2025, more than any other leading nation. So, even when things are looking rough, which they undoubtedly will at some point, especially when they play Scotland and France away in rounds two and five, England can be relied upon to stand tall and defend a lead or turn things around if they are under scoreboard pressure.

Another significant factor in my confidence that England can win the Six Nations for the first time since 2020 is the reduction in the tournament's duration from seven weeks to six. The Six Nations will have only one fallow week, not two, as is normally the case, which will favour squads with greater depth. And no team has greater depth in multiple positions than England, even if it is through sheer weight of playing numbers.

But what about the fact that they have three away games, not two? England begin their campaign with a guaranteed five-pointer at home to Wales, then they travel to Scotland in round two, which is always a tough test, before welcoming Ireland to Twickenham. After a one-week break, England round off the Championship with consecutive away games against Italy and France.

To call that a disadvantage would be a misnomer. Looking at the last 10 years, teams that played just two home games have won more titles (six) than those who’ve had three at home. Narrow that down to the last seven championships, and it is five from seven.

For me, the Six Nations will get the ‘Super Saturday’ ending it craves, with defending champions France and England going toe-to-toe for the title. With Les Bleus axing some of the most experienced and influential campaigners, like record try-scorer Damian Penaud, midfield general Gaël Fickou and their pack leader, Grégory Alldritt, from their squad, that tournament finale looks a 50:50 game.

So, my advice would be to take the 4/1 on an England Grand Slam while you can, because unless the Murrayfield curse strikes again, they should be four wins from four heading to Paris.

Can Les Bleus put it up to England?

France are the only team that can match, and possibly better, England in terms of depth. They must have a wealth of playing resources to be able to leave out three players with 215 caps and 63 tries between them and still go into the tournament as favourites. However, going back-to-back is no easy task, and there’s a feeling that Les Bleus lack the cohesiveness needed to deliver a second title in as many years.

As for Ireland, holders of the trophy in consecutive years before France took over, injuries and a drop-off in form among some of their players have hit them hard.

The Lions tour to Australia last summer appears to have had an adverse effect, and the four provincial teams, in general, have not performed to the levels expected of them in the United Rugby Championship and the Investec Champions Cup. Having the injured Mack Hansen, a master of the skies, ruled out for the tournament is also damaging to their chances, and they could be pipped to third place by Scotland, who know it is now-or-never to deliver the goods for under-pressure boss Gregor Townsend.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results. This can be loosely applied to Scotland, as Townsend has largely remained faithful to the group that produced below-par results in the autumn. They handsomely won the games they were expected to win, against the USA and Tonga, but failed to seize a golden chance to beat the All Blacks for the first time in history, after suffering a ‘bottle job’, and then lost to Argentina in abject fashion, having once again let a lead slip.

Townsend needs to get his team mentally right, not just for the Calcutta Cup clash, which the Scots never fail to turn up for, but all the other games, too. Ireland have had the hex on them for too long now, with Scotland seemingly unable to penetrate the Irish defence, but there’s arguably never been a better time for them to get one over their Celtic cousins and move into the top half of the table after successive fourth-place finishes.

For Scotland, though, there should be no looking past the first job in hand – to win in Rome, a task that has proved beyond them on a handful of previous occasions.

More agony awaits Wales

Gonzalo Quesada is quietly making the Azzurri more competitive, and they won’t be easy beats, which isn’t the case with our wooden-spoon pick, WALES, who couldn’t have asked for a worse preparation going into the tournament, given the turmoil surrounding regional rugby in the country.

The Ospreys contingent in the Wales squad does not know whether they’ll have a job or not beyond the end of next season, and you’ve got to think it’ll be hard for them to put such concerns to one side during the Six Nations.

Injuries to proven performers like skipper Jac Morgan and Taulupe Faletau have come at just the wrong time, and while the return of Louis Rees-Zammit is most welcome, and captain Dewi Lake and Nicky Smith are two class operators in the front row, and Tomos Williams is one of the best nines around, the rest of the squad looks threadbare in terms of quality and experience.

More injuries are inevitable, given the physicality of Test rugby, and Wales simply don't have the depth to cope with too many more setbacks. Another winless campaign looks likely for a side, and a rugby nation, on the ropes.

Posted at 13:30 GMT on 26/01/26

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