Fine margins dictate the winners of the Six Nations – just ask France.
The reigning champions return to defend their crown in 2026 having sneaked into top spot by the barest of margins.
France, England and Ireland each won four matches last year and lost one each. However, France ended top of the pile by virtue of bonus points, with England one point behind and Ireland two points off the top. But how?
The Six Nations has had a bonus point system since 2017, having been prevalent in club competitions and other international tournaments previously.
RadioTimes.com brings you all the details about the bonus points system for the Six Nations.
How do Six Nations bonus points work?
When a team scores four or more tries in a match, they earn a bonus point on top of the points they earn from the game. Another bonus point is also available if a team loses a match within seven points. Here's the full round-up of how Six Nations points work:
Points
Four points are awarded for a win.Two points are awarded for a draw.Zero points are awarded for a defeat.Bonus points
One try bonus point is awarded for scoring four or more tries in a match.One losing bonus point is awarded for losing by seven or fewer points.Two bonus points can be earned if teams meet both of the criteria above.Using last year as an example, France won four matches with four or more tries in each, and lost one match by a single point. Therefore, they earned 16 points for victories, plus five bonus points.
England won four matches but their clash with Scotland only yielded a single try, meaning they missed out on a crucial bonus point that would have drawn them level with France by that metric of success.
When was the bonus point system introduced?
Bonus points in rugby first made their official appearance New Zealand’s domestic competition the National Provincial Championship in 1995.
The 2017 Six Nations was the first time that bonus points were used in the tournament.
They had been avoided in the Six Nations because a team could win all five games, known as a Grand Slam, but lose out on the title if another team won four games with a bonus point and then lost one match by seven points or fewer, getting a losing bonus point.
Organisers solved this by awarding any team that wins all five games an additional three points. This ensures that a Grand Slam winning team tops the table with at least 23 points.
England’s last Six Nations title win, in 2020, was decided by a bonus point.
A crucial penalty from Owen Farrell at the end of the game meant that despite losing 24-17 in Paris, it gave them a losing bonus point that proved to be the difference as they tied on points with France, beating them on points difference to win the title.
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