Italy will look to continue developing in the 2026 Six Nations in their most successful period, fighting alongside Europe’s elite.
Gli Azzurri avoided finishing bottom over the last two editions of the competition, breaking a 15-year spell rooted to the foot of the table.
The Italians enter the 2026 tournament buoyed by a victory over Australia during a record-setting autumn series.
Italy’s fixture list
Round 1: Italy vs Scotland – Stadio Olimpico, Rome; February 7 (14:10 GMT on BBC)
Round 2: Ireland vs Italy – Aviva Stadium, Dublin; February 14 (14:10 GMT on ITV)
Round 3: France vs Italy – Stade Pierre Mauroy, Lille; February 22 (15:10 GMT on ITV)
Round 4: Italy vs England – Stadio Olimpico, Rome; March 7 (16:40 GMT on ITV)
Round 5: Wales vs Italy – Principality Stadium, Cardiff; March 14 (16:40 GMT on BBC and S4C)
Italy begin their Six Nations campaign at the Stadio Olimpico against Scotland, an opportunity to use stronger home form to beat a low-confidence Scottish team.
Gli Azzurri defeated Scotland 31-29 in 2024 in Rome, winning a home tie in the Six Nations two years in a row.
A home win would keep the Italians on track to chase their four-season streak of at least one home win from 2010 to 2013.
An away trip to Ireland is second up, a tough task given Ireland will be fired up after their opening round fixture against England in the title fight.
Italy have defeated Ireland once since 2000 in 2013. However, the Blues scared the Irish with a passionate 22-17 performance last year.
The Italians return to Lille in France before the mid-tournament break, where the visitors were a penalty kick away from a famous win in 2024, eventually stalemating 13-13.
The second block starts with the visit of England, who have never lost to Italy across 32 meetings since 1991.
The campaign climaxes on the final weekend, with likely the playoff to avoid the wooden spoon.
Italy defeated Wales for the first time in 15 years, 22-21 in 2022, Toulouse’s Ange Capuozzo carving a 70-metre run to pass off to Edoardo Padovani to score with a minute left.
After being beaten in 2023, the Italians got the better of Wales back-to-back, 24-21 in Cardiff again and 22-15 in Rome for a first home win over Wales since 2007.
Gli Azzurri return to Cardiff looking to make it three-in-three in Cymru.
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Italy’s preparation
The Italians toured South Africa in the summer, facing the four-time defending world champions and falling to defeat over two fixtures.
A much brighter 42-24 result was punctuated by a 45-0 thumping, extending the Italian winless run against the Springboks to nine years.
The autumn internationals, however, were kick-started by a 26-19 victory over Australia in Udine, scoring two tries in the final quarter after shrewdly claiming points off the tee.
The victory was just the second Italian victory over the Wallabies after a 28-27 win in Florence in 2022, extending a win streak for the hosts over the Green and Gold.
A third meeting between Italy and South Africa saw the hosts pushing the Springboks within six points with less than 10 to go.
The 14-man Springboks pulled away in the final plays to defeat the Blues 32-14 in Turin in a spirited performance for the home squad.
The November fixtures concluded with a 34-19 win over 2023 Rugby World Cup debutants Chile, securing a second win in an autumn series for the first time.
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