Six Nations quiz questions: Europe's rugby championship

The Six Nations is one of rugby's oldest tournaments, and it's packed with the kind of oddities quiz teams love: a championship that never finished, a team that got thrown out for more than a decade, and a prize nobody wants. Below are 20 questions in four rounds, running from warm-ups anyone can have a go at through to harder history and a round on the 2026 championship. There's advice on running the round at the end.

If you want something broader, our rugby quiz questions cover the World Cup and the wider game.

Warm-up questions

1Which country joined in 2000 to turn the Five Nations into the Six Nations?Use in quizUse

Answer:Italy(click to reveal)

2What is "Le Crunch"?Use in quizUse

Answer:The nickname for England v France matches (source)(click to reveal)

3The Triple Crown can only be won by four nations. Why can't France or Italy win it?Use in quizUse

Answer:It's only for the four Home Nations (England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales)(click to reveal)

A team wins it by beating the other three. There was no physical trophy until 2006, which is why it was once nicknamed "the invisible cup" (source).

4What name is given to the unofficial "prize" for finishing bottom of the table, and which nation has collected it most often since 2000?Use in quizUse

Answer:The Wooden Spoon, and Italy (18 times, source)(click to reveal)

Over the championship's whole history, though, it's Ireland who've finished bottom most often.

5Which Welsh stadium, known for its retractable roof, hosts Wales' home Six Nations matches?Use in quizUse

Answer:The Principality Stadium (accept the Millennium Stadium, its old name)(click to reveal)

Trophies and history

6The Calcutta Cup is contested between England and Scotland. What animal sits on top of its lid?Use in quizUse

Answer:An elephant(click to reveal)

7Why is it called the "Calcutta" Cup?Use in quizUse

Answer:It was made from the melted-down silver rupees of the disbanded Calcutta rugby club in India (source)(click to reveal)

When the club wound up in 1878, its members withdrew the funds and had them turned into a trophy, which they gave to the Rugby Football Union.

8After the 1988 England v Scotland match, two players took the Calcutta Cup out in Edinburgh. What did they do with it?Use in quizUse

Answer:Played football with it along Princes Street, damaging it(click to reveal)

Scotland's John Jeffrey got a six-month ban and England's Dean Richards a one-match ban.

9In what year was the first championship (then the Home Nations Championship) played?Use in quizUse

Answer:1883 (source)(click to reveal)

10Why was the 1972 championship left unfinished?Use in quizUse

Answer:Scotland and Wales refused to travel to Dublin amid the political tensions after Bloody Sunday (source)(click to reveal)

11France were thrown out of the championship after 1931. What were they accused of?Use in quizUse

Answer:Professionalism (paying players in the supposedly amateur domestic game)(click to reveal)

They didn't play in the championship again until 1947 (source).

Harder history and records

12Italy won their very first Six Nations match, in Rome in 2000. Who did they beat?Use in quizUse

Answer:Scotland (34-20, source)(click to reveal)

Diego Domínguez kicked 29 of Italy's 34 points. Seven years later Italy got their first away win in the tournament against the same opponents, scoring three tries in the first six minutes at Murrayfield.

13What unorthodox tactic did Italy use against England at Twickenham in 2017?Use in quizUse

Answer:They didn't commit players to the breakdown, so no ruck formed and there was no offside line(click to reveal)

Italy led 10-5 at half-time before England won 36-15, and the ruck laws were changed later that year (source).

14Which nation won the last ever Five Nations, in 1999?Use in quizUse

Answer:Scotland (source)(click to reveal)

They needed help to do it. Wales beat England 32-31 in the final match, thanks to a try after the 80 minutes were up at Wembley, where Wales were playing while their new stadium was built.

15Which player holds the record for the most points in Six Nations history?Use in quizUse

Answer:Johnny Sexton (Ireland, 566 points, source)(click to reveal)

He overtook Ronan O'Gara, who had held the record with 557, in his final Six Nations match in 2023. Older quiz books still give O'Gara, so watch out for that one.

The 2026 championship

16Scottish referee Hollie Davidson made history in February 2026 when she took charge of Ireland v Italy in Dublin. What was the first?Use in quizUse

Answer:She was the first woman to referee a men's Six Nations match (source)(click to reveal)

17The Six Nations trophy had to be retired partway through the 2026 tournament. What damaged it?Use in quizUse

Answer:Fire (the vehicle carrying it was involved in an incident during round three)(click to reveal)

The winners were handed an identical exhibition trophy, and a new one is being made for 2027 (source).

18In March 2026, Italy won 23-18 in Rome to beat which team for the first time ever?Use in quizUse

Answer:England (source)(click to reveal)

It came at the 33rd attempt.

19Which nation won the 2026 Six Nations, sealing it with a penalty from the very last kick of the championship?Use in quizUse

Answer:France (source)(click to reveal)

Thomas Ramos kicked it to win a 13-try match 48-46 in Paris. It was their second title in a row and their eighth of the Six Nations era, more than any other country.

20Which winger scored nine tries in the 2026 championship, a record for a single Six Nations?Use in quizUse

Answer:Louis Bielle-Biarrey (France, source)(click to reveal)

He broke his own record of eight, set in 2025, and was named player of the championship for the second year running.

Tips for running a Six Nations round

Know your room before you pick the round. A Six Nations crowd usually has loyalties, and a pub full of Welsh fans will find Q14 and Q18 a lot more fun than a room of England supporters will. If the room is mixed, lean on the trophies and history questions, which don't favour anyone.

Pitch it in two halves. The warm-up and trophy questions work for casual fans who only watch the big games. The records and 2026 rounds are for the people who check the table on a Sunday morning, so save them for later in the night or a bonus round.

Decide on near misses before you start. For Q5, accept the Millennium Stadium. For Q8, "kicked it around the street" is the same answer. For Q2, any answer that names the fixture gets the point. For Q15, don't accept O'Gara, but be ready to explain why, because someone will argue.

Use a closest-wins tiebreaker. Ask: "In what year was the first Calcutta Cup match played?" The answer is 1879, a draw at Raeburn Place in Edinburgh (source). Nearest guess wins, and it's hard enough that nobody will know it outright.

Refresh the topical round every spring. The 2026 questions will age. Swap them for the latest tournament each year and the round stays useful. You can save your version as a reusable round in our pub quiz maker and only change the last five questions.

The 2027 tournament ends on 13 March, four days before St Patrick's Day, and our St Patrick's Day quiz questions suit the same crowd. For every other date, see the quiz calendar.