Scotland’s home Six Nations matches to be shown on BBC in new TV deal

The Six Nations Championship will remain on terrestrial TV after organisers confirmed that they had reached “an agreement in principle” in exclusive discussions with BBC and ITV.

The deal will cover the men’s Guinness Six Nations, the Women’s Six Nations and the Men’s Under-20 tournament.

The current contract expired at the end of the 2021 Championship and there were fears that the competition might go to pay-tv.

However, it now looks set to remain free to air.

A statement from the Six Nations said: “The agreement has a four-year term starting in 2022 and ending after the 2025 Championships.

"Subject to contract it is envisaged that all three Championships will be shared in the following manner:

“For the Men’s Guinness Six Nations Championship, ITV will show all of England, Ireland, Italian and French home matches, while BBC will broadcast all of Scotland and Wales’ home matches.

“The Women’s Six Nations, will be broadcast exclusively on the BBC with unprecedented broadcast investment.

“In addition the stars of tomorrow will get to showcase their skills with consistent coverage of the Men’s Under20’s Championship also being shown on the BBC.”

Ben Morel, chief executive officer of Six Nations Rugby, said: “This is exciting news for fans and for our Championships.

"Both BBC and ITV have been excellent partners in recent years playing an important role in sharing the incredible moments that the Six Nations always produces, and celebrating the special place our Championships hold in the hearts of fans.

"I’m particularly excited by the opportunity to grow the Women’s game with an invested broadcast partner in the BBC who is as committed as we are.

"We’re looking forward to working with them both as we continue to raise the bar and bring Rugby’s Greatest Championships to ever-growing numbers across the UK.”