Published 11 May 2026 ยท Six stadiums, six atmospheres, six cities. From the Allianz Stadium (Twickenham) to the Principality Stadium and Murrayfield, the Six Nations is played in some of the most iconic venues in world rugby. Here is the complete guide, stadium by stadium.
The Guinness Six Nations is unusual in that it is played each year in the same six venues โ an exception in the international sporting calendar, where most major championships rotate host cities. That stability creates cathedrals of rugby where generations of supporters have come and gone, with rituals, anthems and songs that are an integral part of the matchday experience.
Combined capacity of the six stadiums: around 425,000 seats. If you're planning to attend a Six Nations 2027 fixture, your choice of stadium matters as much as the fixture itself: the atmosphere inside a closed-roof Principality Stadium has nothing in common with that of Murrayfield on a misty Saturday in February.
Known as the "home of rugby", Twickenham is the oldest still-operating stadium of the six. Opened in 1909 and renamed Allianz Stadium in 2024 under a new naming-rights deal, it has a capacity of 82,000 โ the largest in the championship.
Twickenham is the headquarters of the RFU (Rugby Football Union) and the spiritual home of the England rugby team. It hosts Le Crunch (England v France) every other year, the Calcutta Cup against Scotland, and England's full programme of Autumn Internationals in November.
Twickenham sits in south-west London, about an hour by public transport from the city centre. Trains from Waterloo reach Twickenham station in around 15 minutes. The pre-match atmosphere in the pubs around the ground โ particularly along the famous Twickenham High Street and out towards Richmond โ is one of the most celebrated in world rugby.
Arguably the most distinctive stadium in the championship: the Principality Stadium sits in the heart of Cardiff city centre, 5 minutes' walk from the central railway station. Capacity: 73,900. Its trademark: a retractable roof, closed for most Six Nations fixtures, which turns the ground into a roaring cauldron.
When the roof is closed, the noise can't escape: the Welsh anthems (Hen Wlad fy Nhadau / Land of My Fathers, Bread of Heaven, Cwm Rhondda) take on an emotional intensity no other stadium can match. The decision to close the roof is made by the WRU in consultation with the visiting team based on weather and the stakes of the match.
Cardiff Central station is five minutes' walk from the stadium. Cardiff is compact and made for a matchday: a fixture at the Principality means a tour of the pubs along St Mary Street and the Brewery Quarter, before and after the game.
Home of Scottish rugby, Murrayfield sits to the west of Edinburgh city centre. Capacity: 67,100. Renamed Scottish Gas Murrayfield in 2023 under a naming-rights deal, it was first opened in 1925 and was completely rebuilt in the 1990s.
The anthem Flower of Scotland, sung a cappella by 67,000 supporters, is one of the most spine-tingling moments in world rugby. The emotional power, especially under rain or in the Edinburgh haar, turns every fixture into a ceremony.
The Edinburgh tram from Princes Street runs all the way to Murrayfield Stadium (around 15 minutes). The streets around the ground are largely residential, with few pubs in the immediate vicinity, but the traditional walk from the city centre โ supporters in kilts singing all the way โ is a matchday ritual that few visitors forget.
The most modern stadium in the championship: opened in 2010, the Aviva Stadium replaces the old Lansdowne Road (which had occupied the same site since 1872). Capacity: 51,700 โ the smallest of the six, but architecturally one of the most striking.
The glass-wave silhouette has become iconic of the Dublin skyline. The carefully designed acoustics push noise to exceptional levels when Ireland play at home. The Aviva regularly erupts on Super Saturday when Ireland are still in the title race in the closing fixture.
The DART suburban train serves Lansdowne Road, five minutes' walk from the stadium. From the centre of Dublin, count 15 minutes by public transport. The Ballsbridge district is elegant and calm, sprinkled with traditional Irish pubs.
Built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, the Stade de France has been the principal home of French rugby since the early 2000s. Capacity: 80,000, the second largest in the championship.
The Stade de France hosted the 2007 Rugby World Cup final (South Africa beat England 15-6) and the 2023 final (South Africa beat New Zealand 12-11). In the Six Nations, it has seen multiple French Grand Slams โ 2002, 2004, 2010, 2022 โ and remains the reference home stadium for Les Bleus supporters.
Metro / RER: RER B La Plaine โ Stade de France is 7 minutes' walk from the stadium, or RER D Stade de France โ Saint-Denis. Allow 25 minutes from central Paris. The pre-match atmosphere in the streets around the ground is festive; the Marseillaise sung by 80,000 supporters is a singular moment in French rugby.
The Stadio Olimpico in Rome is a multipurpose stadium shared with AS Roma and Lazio in football. Rugby capacity: 70,600, although Italy's home Six Nations fixtures rarely fill the whole ground (with reduced capacity for some matches).
Italy joined the Six Nations in 2000, and the Stadio Olimpico has been their main home ever since. More recently, some matches have been played at the Stadio Flaminio (smaller capacity, more authentic rugby atmosphere). For 2027, it is the Olimpico that hosts all three of Italy's home fixtures.
Metro line A to Flaminio + tram, or dedicated buses from the city centre. The Foro Italico (the sports complex around the stadium) is worth a look in itself: Fascist-era mosaics, parkour between the statues, an unusual slice of Roman atmosphere.
Every Six Nations stadium splits its seating into 5 categories (1 to 5), with sometimes a "Premium" tier above. A few useful principles:
For marquee fixtures (Le Crunch, Ireland v France on Super Saturday), Categories 1-2 sell out within hours of the general on-sale. For Italy's home matches, Category 1 seats often remain available for several weeks after the on-sale.
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