The longest tournament in Six Nations history draws to a close end today - and 2020's prolonged competition certainly has a dramatic finale in store for us on Super Saturday. England, Ireland and France all still have a shot at being crowned this year's Six Nations winner, so read on as our guide explains how to watch a Six Nations live stream - including for FREE in many places!
Watch a free Six Nations live stream
The 2020 Six Nations will go down as the longest in the tournament's storied history, stretching from February to this October and today's final round of fixtures. Every match is 100% FREE to watch in the UK, with coverage spread across the BBC, ITV, and S4C - and with the help of a good VPN, you can watch you preferred coverage from anywhere in the world right now.
While England have already won the Triple Crown, defeat at the hands of France in their opening match back in February means that Ireland are masters of their own destiny heading into this Saturday's final round of fixtures, following a bonus point win over Italy last weekend.
Another five points in Paris would send Andy Farrell and his team back to Dublin as this year's Six Nations champions, regardless of how ruthless England in their afternoon match against Italy, but if England win and Ireland lose, the trophy is headed to Twickenham this evening.
Should both teams finish level on points, various tie-breakers come into play, while if France beat Ireland and England (almost inevitably) triumph in Rome, this year's Championship will also be decided by razor thin margins. Scroll down for all the possible Six Nations 2020 permutations explaining who can win and how.
Wales vs Scotland is the first match of Super Saturday today, before one of the most tightly contested Championships in recent memory gets decided later in the day, so follow our guide as we explain all the ways to get a Six Nations live stream this Saturday - starting with how to watch the Six Nations for FREE in the UK.
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How to watch a Six Nations live stream FREE in the UK today
It's great news for UK-based rugger fans as every Super Saturday fixture is being shown on free-to-air British television today. A bit further down this page, yu'll find specific details of who's showing what, but coverage is shared between the BBC and ITV, with S4C also stepping in to offer Welsh-language coverage of the Wales/Scotland game.
If you're trying to watch online (either live or on catch-up) then this means you can easily get a free Six Nations live stream on the BBC iPlayer and ITV Hub websites or mobile apps. Alternatively, just head to an online streaming TV service such TVPlayer.com, which has all of the UK's freeview channels (including the BBC and ITV) in one place. This means you can catch the match on TV, computer, tablet and smartphone for free if you're in the UK - or subscribe to TVPlayer Plus if you want to record it and watch later.
Not in the UK for the final 2020 Six Nations fixtures? No worries - just download and install a VPN and use a UK location to watch live as if you were back home. Full instructions of how to do this are below.
How to live stream the Six Nations when you're not in your country
If you're outside your country of residence - whether that be the UK or anywhere else - and try to start streaming the rugby via your native broadcaster, you'll soon discover that you can't as it is location restricted. But there's a way you can watch anyway.
By downloading and installing a VPN, you can effectively trick your computer into thinking that it's back at home. That way you can enjoy your home coverage without having to find an illegal stream - assuming you comply with the broadcaster's fine print, of course - specifically its terms and conditions.
Use a VPN to watch Six Nations rugby from anywhere
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Six Nations 2020 fixtures: Super Saturday TV schedule and kick-off times
For clarity, home teams are listed first and all matches take place on Saturday, October 31.
- Wales vs Scotland, 2.15pm GMT kick-off on BBC One and S4C (coverage starts 1.45pm)
- Italy vs England, 4.45pm GMT kick-off on ITV (coverage starts 4pm)
- France vs Ireland, 8.05pm GMT kick-off on BBC Two (coverage starts 7.45pm, match moves to BBC One at 9pm for second-half)
How to watch Six Nations free online and live stream rugby in the US today
NBC once again has the rights to show Six Nations rugby in the US, which used to mean coughing up the best part of $80 for an NBC Sports Gold Rugby Pass.
No more. NBC's Rugby Pass has been dissolved into it's new streaming platform, Peacock, which makes rugby more accessible to US fans of the sport and ex-pats living in the States than ever before.
For starters, Peacock costs just $4.99 a month for a service that gets rugby fans not only the final weekend of Six Nations games but also features Premiership Rugby and Heineken Champions Cup coverage as well (plus loads more premium sports coverage, TV shows, and movies).
Coverage of all three of this weekend's matches is available both live and on-demand, and best of all, Peacock even offers a FREE 7-day trial you can take advantage of.
If you've already hopped on the Peacock bandwagon but find yourself abroad for this Saturday's big matches, don't forget that you can still tune-in like you at home with the help of a good VPN.
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How to watch a Six Nations live stream in Australia
If you don't mind the late nights/early mornings, then subscription service beIN Sport is showing every game of the 2020 Six Nations in Australia.
If you're a Foxtel customer, you can add beIN to your package for an extra fee. No worries if you aren't though as you can also subscribe to beIN as a standalone subscription that can be watched on your laptop, desktop computer or mobile device. That costs $19.99 per month after you've taken advantage of a FREE two week trial.
Foxtel's streaming-only platform, Kayo Sports, also usually airs Six Nations matches - but its listings for this weekend don't currently include any mention of Super Saturday games, though this could change. The service offers a FREE 14-day trial, so check back closer to the weekend and you may be in luck.
Not in Australia for the rugby? Don't forget to take advantage of the VPN option as detailed above to make sure you can watch your domestic coverage anyway.
How to get a 2020 Six Nations live stream in New Zealand
beIN Sport is also the place to be for rugby fans in New Zealand looking to watch all the prime European action this weekend.
Sky subscribers can add beIN to their package at an additional cost or, like in Australia, you can subscribe to a standalone package that can be watched on laptop, desktop or mobile app. It costs $19.78 per month after you've taken advantage of the FREE two week trial.
Live stream the 2020 Six Nations for free in Canada today
DAZN is a streaming service available in a select few countries including Canada, Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Luckily, it has secured streaming rights for the Six Nations rugby.
You can even watch for free as DAZN offers a 30 day FREE TRIAL.
Super Saturday permutations: who can win the Six Nations today and how?
Ireland have their fate in their own hands going into Super Saturday, with a bonus point win sending them back to Dublin as 2020 Six Nations champions regardless of how England fare in Rome earlier in the day.
Should Ireland win but fail to get the extra point awarded for scoring four tries or more against France, then an England bonus point win would see them finish the tournament level with Ireland on points earned, and the Championship would come down to points difference.
Heading in, Ireland stand at +38 on points compared to England +15, so Eddie Jones' men would need to beat Italy by 24 or more points to win. In the unlikely event England and Ireland end up level on both points and points difference, the next tie-breaker is tries scored, where Ireland currently hold a significant advantage (14 to 9).
France, for their part, are level on points with England, so their hopes of winning the 2020 Six Nations starts with beating the Irish at Stade de France. Assuming the unthinkable doesn't happen and England beats Italy as expected, then this year's Championship would be decided on points differential - England currently with +15 and France with +13, so the French would need to beat the Irish by 3 or more points than the English beat the Italians.
Should things end even on that , then it's down tries scored as before and the French enter Super Saturday with an advantage of 13 tries scored to England 9.
Six Nations 2020 results: what's happened so far?
Little has separated England, France and Ireland in the 2020 Six Nations, which is why it all comes down to such razor thin margins on Super Saturday.
The three teams have traded blows throughout, with France topping England 24-17 on the opening weekend all the way back in February, England earning a deserved 24-12 victory over Ireland in the third round of fixtures, and Scotland stunning France 28-17 in week 4 in March, just before the tournament was postponed due to coronavirus.
With victories over Wales and Scotland as well, England have won the Triple Crown yet may fail to win the tournament itself, while Italy have already added another wooden spoon to their collection with zero points to their name so far.
There have been plenty of headline-making moments through, most infamously hot-headed England prop Joe Mauler earning a (frankly pathetic) two-game ban and £20k for grabbing Welsh captain Alun Wyn Jones by the genitals in an ill-tempered match that also saw Manu Tuilagi red carded.
Elsewhere, Scotland's victory over France by a score of 28-17 was another match packed with drama and bad manners, French prop Mohamed Haouas being red carded for punching Scotland's Jamie Ritchie square in the face.
This time next week it will all be done and dusted. Who will be top of the log after Super Saturday?#GuinnessSixNations pic.twitter.com/cwKyxSgPwYOctober 25, 2020
What is the format of the Six Nations?
Taking place each year from the beginning of February and usually concluding by the end of March, the tournament is contested by the international sides of France, England, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales.
Each Six Nations team plays the other five once per season with home advantage in alternate seasons, giving a total of 15 matches per Championship. A win earns that team four points, while a draw earns both teams two points. A losing side receives no points, however a bonus point can be picked up by a team regardless if they won, lost or drew if they score four or more tries in a game. Losing sides can also still pick up two bonus points if they score four tries or more in the process and lose by a margin of seven points or fewer.
The team with the most points at the season wins the Six Nations Championship Trophy. If the winning team has defeated all five other Unions, it is given the title ‘Grand Slam Winner’. No one will win the honour this year, though, following Scotland's victory over France. However, England has already won the 'Triple Crown', which is when one of the 'home nations' (England, Wales, Scotland and Ireland) defeat all the others in a single tournament.
Who are the favourites to win the 2020 Six Nations?
Beaten World Cup finalists England started the Six Nations as favourites with most bookies and are still fancied to take the title back to Twickenham, given they face the tournament's weakest side, Italy, so a bonus point win is regarded as a likely outcome.
Current leaders Ireland face a tough task away against France and are therefore only second favourite heading into Super Saturday, as winning let alone earning a bonus point in Paris is no easy task.
France have the longest odds of the three sides in with a chance of winning this year's Six Nations Championship.
What happened in the 2019 Six Nations?
Regarded as outsiders at the beginning of the tournament, Wales clinched their first grand slam in seven years, with a clean sweep of victories against their five opponents.
Who has won the most Six Nations championships?
England lead the pack with six championship wins, their last in 2017. Wales and France are both close behind on five.
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