Scotland take on Argentina, South Africa and Fiji this month
Scotland in the Nations Championship
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Scotland's opening half of the Nations Championship campaign presents one of the most demanding challenges in rugby union. The team faces two away matches against top-five ranked sides Argentina and South Africa, followed by a home game against Fiji at Murrayfield on consecutive weekends.
The campaign involves approximately 18,000 air miles, including a match against the reigning world champions at altitude after a long and taxing season, highlighting the magnitude of the task ahead for Gregor Townsend's squad.
Despite the challenges, the campaign offers Scotland the chance to secure significant victories and build momentum towards the 2027 World Cup, while also aiming to make an impact in rugby's new international competition.
"It is a much tougher tour than ever before, certainly in the time I've been coach. Not only with the travel but the opposition. Three teams in the top nine in the world and one being the number one team [South Africa] in the world." – Gregor Townsend
No Finn Russell but Jonny Gray returns for Scotland's match in Argentina.
Coverage includes the North vs South battle for global rugby supremacy, with the latest Scottish rugby news, views, and analysis available.
What is the Nations Championship?
The Nations Championship is a new competition designed to pit the best teams from the northern hemisphere against the best from the southern hemisphere during non-World Cup years.
This competition formalizes what were previously one-off Test matches and series played during summer and autumn seasons.
In July, the Six Nations teams will each travel to face three of the southern hemisphere teams: Argentina, South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Fiji, and Japan.
In November, the fixtures reverse, with Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, France, and Italy hosting three games each.
Results contribute to two league tables: one for northern hemisphere teams and one for southern hemisphere teams.
After six rounds, nations will play the equivalently ranked team from the opposite table. Points will be awarded to each hemisphere based on these results to determine rugby union supremacy.
The top two teams from each table will meet in a final at Allianz Stadium in London at the end of November to crown an overall winner.
How does the Nations Championship work?
Air miles & daunting opposition
Scotland's campaign is a demanding journey spanning three continents and three time zones. The team began with a week-long training camp in Madrid at the end of June.
Following this, they traveled 6,200 miles to Argentina, presumably with the forwards traveling business class, to face the Pumas in Córdoba on Saturday.
Immediately after that match, Scotland will travel 5,000 miles to Pretoria, South Africa, where they must acclimatize to the altitude at Loftus Versfeld Stadium, which is situated 1,350 meters above sea level.
After playing the physically demanding Springboks on 11 July, Scotland will fly 6,000 miles back home to face another significant challenge against Fiji in Edinburgh.
Fiji has chosen to play their home games in the UK due to the majority of their players being based in Europe.
"In terms of the travel, I think the players are more used to it than ever, especially guys playing in the URC and now in Europe. You get English teams going out to South Africa and have to play a game the week later. A lot of planning has gone into making it as efficient as possible, making sure we get the recovery right." – Gregor Townsend
Scotland relish chance to improve
Despite the logistical challenges and the high calibre of opposition, Scotland welcomes the opportunity to test themselves.
While other northern hemisphere teams such as England, Ireland, and Wales have regularly toured the southern hemisphere, Scotland has not done so frequently.
Previous summers have mostly involved development tours to North and South America, which have provided opportunities for emerging players to gain Test experience.
However, these tours have not offered the same level of exposure to the intense conditions and competitive edge gained from playing away at renowned venues like Eden Park or Loftus Versfeld.
Scotland has not played the Springboks on South African soil since 2014 and has yet to secure a victory there. This tour presents a rare chance to achieve that milestone.
Argentina defeated Scotland at Murrayfield in November after overcoming a 21-0 deficit. During Scotland's 2022 tour to Argentina, the Pumas won the series 2-1.
Fiji also defeated Scotland in Suva last summer, although Scotland was missing several key players who were with the British and Irish Lions at that time.
"Although I enjoyed bringing through players on previous tours, this one is not really about development. It does feel like a preparation for a World Cup with playing those top nations, the top 10 nations this summer for us, two in the top five. That's what we're going to have to face at some point as we get closer to the knockouts in the World Cup. We'll get our development through our games and the experiences we'll have in our games. But it's about putting our best performance out in those games and our best players will give us more chance of doing that." – Gregor Townsend
Only Grant Gilchrist and Blair Kinghorn have been rested for the summer, underscoring the intensity of the campaign.
Scotland squad for Nations Championship
Forwards: Ewan Ashman, Josh Bayliss, Magnus Bradbury, Gregor Brown, Scott Cummings, Rory Darge, Jack Dempsey, Freddy Douglas, Matt Fagerson, Zander Fagerson, Jonny Gray, Gregor Hiddleston, Will Hurd, Nathan McBeth, Liam McConnell, Elliot Millar Mills, D'arcy Rae, Alex Samuel, Pierre Schoeman, Seb Stephen, Rory Sutherland, Max Williamson.
Backs: Fergus Burke, Jamie Dobie, Darcy Graham, George Horne, Rory Hutchinson, Tom Jordan, Stafford McDowall, Kyle Rowe, Finn Russell, Ollie Smith, Kyle Steyn, Sione Tuipulotu (captain), Duhan van der Merwe, Ben White.
