Age-old Six Nations well able to embrace the madness of modernity

No-one likes events like a Six Nations launch, no-one gets everything they want, but everyone gets something.

The launch of the 2026 Six Nations took place in Edinburgh on Monday. Pic: Ross MacDonald/Sportsfile

The Six Nations likes to trade on its history, its tradition and the sheer simplicity of the same sides indulging in the same neighbourly disputes year after year, decade on decade. That only holds on the pitch.

Step outside the white lines and this tournament is as modern and complicated as any corporate entity. The 2026 launch in Scotland’s capital on Monday morning was a blizzard of photo ops and content creators and bitesized quotes tailor-made for the modern age.