Inaugural Nations Rugby World Cup continues this weekend as the best and most ambitious emerging teams continue their quest for victory. A champion will be crowned from each pool, with the United States and Georgia currently occupy the first positions in their groups.
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Chile and Portugal are hot on their heels, however, and other major players are jockeying for position and momentum as they count down to Rugby World Cup 2027 is intensifying.
The matches will be played all the way to Lisbon, Angouleme and Hong Kong China this month, creating a colorful backdrop for a tournament worthy of your attention.
Lelos and Eagles fly the highest… for now
After three rounds, USA in group A and Georgia in pool B ruled, which came out of the first block of matches in July with three wins and 14 points each. The Eagles and Lelos claimed a bonus point in every game except against Portugal and Samoa, showing their dominance.
With Luka Matkava and Christopher Hilsenbeck masterfully pulling the strings and the likes of Perry May (what an impact the wing had on the USA), Tornika Jalagonia, Kapeli Pifeleti and Ilia Spanderashvili massively influencing every game, it was no surprise when the USA and Georgia went unscathed last month.
Although most did not think Romania’s Stejarii could challenge for the title, the truth is that David Gérard’s side had enough firepower to draw against Uruguay and achieve a monumental victory in the last game over Samoa. With the Eastern European country looking set to be strengthened and developing a dynamic backline that scored nine of their 15 tries in July, it would come as no shock if Romania collect at least two wins in November.
Portugal have top firepower in Rodrigo Marta, who is the second highest scorer in the Top 14, Manuel Cardoso Pinto, Nicolás Martins, Cody Lee Thomas, Manuel Vareiro and Tomás Appleton. In July, they went to North America without Marta and Martins, but were still defeated Canada and Tonga.
Chile, who host the Lobos on Saturday, will have Lucas Berti, Rodrigo Fernandez, Matías Garafulic, Martín Singren and Diego Escobar as their leading superstars. Pablo Lemoine’s side have a big ambition to achieve three historic victories, which should cause alarm in Portugal, Spain and Zimbabwe. In July, the Condores put in two stunning performances against Romania and Hong Kong China, but could not topple Georgia.
Meanwhile, Hong Kong China produced one of the most spectacular results of the new tournament, beating Uruguay for the first time in a regular World Cup. With seconds remaining, Logan Asplin’s side trailed by two points and won a penalty in the Los Teros half. Having made five of six shots to that point, Paul Altier took one last look at the posts before slotting the ball cleanly between the uprights, sparking wild celebrations.
This moment was the Cup of Nations in microcosm: history made, record broken and a moment written into Hong Kong Chinese rugby folklore.
Road to Australia
The Cup of Nations is much more than the matches themselves. Teams have massively accepted what the competition has to offer. Portugal captain and icon Tomas Appleton sees the wide range of benefits of regular, guaranteed and meaningful Test matches for his side.
“The Nations Cup is a big competition for us because it allows us to develop our core team and game plan, but without losing sight of the competitive side,” he says. “We want to play against top teams, but the Cup of Nations gives us a platform to play competitive matches.
“Now we know that we will play at least six games in November and July, which makes it easier for us to prepare and gather fans in the stands. It’s not the World Cup, but it’s not far, because the environment and the landscape have some similarities.”
Captained Portugal to their first win at the 2023 Rugby World Cup and co-skipped the Lobos to their first European Rugby Championship title in nearly three decades earlier this year, Appleton has big ambitions.
“We want to win every game. We can’t shy away from being favorites and we’ll try to show how alive and well the Lobos are!”
Spain will not meet their Iberian neighbors this month, but Los Leones will be vying for a chance to reach the top while earning vital representation as they prepare for their long-awaited return to the World Cup.
“The opportunity to face and compete with teams at the same stage of development as us, who will also be playing in the next World Cup, undoubtedly contributes to our growth,” says captain Jon Zabala.
“The Cup of Nations is not only a title, but also an opportunity to compete Tonga and Samoa, two very physical teams, give us the opportunity to develop other areas of the game, which is crucial for our future.”
With Spain hosting matches in Madrid, Leganes and Malaga, the Section Paloise prop and his teammates are determined to deliver more than a few special memories to their fans.
“We have a lot of expectations for November. Uruguay, Chile and Samoa they will be big spectacles, and we will aim for those three games, for sure. We want to finish on a high and have the opportunity to celebrate on the podium.”
There is often little choice between the teams in the Cup of Nations, despite the wide range of playing styles. Georgia, for example, needed only eight tries to sweep the board in July, relying on grunt forwards and brutal defence. It was Chile, however, who had the best defensive record, conceding just six tries in their three games. Uruguay, on the contrary, ran in 17 attempts in the tournament.
Unprecedented influence
In July, the Chilean cities of Santiago, Viña del Mar and La Reina hosted Romania, Hong Kong China and Georgia on consecutive weekends, creating buzz around the national rugby team and a hub for fans to enjoy and experience the sport.
The game with Georgia was postponed due to bad weather and had to be played behind closed doors, but the Estadio Nacional Julio Martínez Pradanos in Santiago attracted a healthy crowd of around 15,000, while Viña del Mar attracted an additional 12,000. The commercial and local impact of the tournament should not be overlooked.
“Hosting the first Cup of Nations was a key milestone for us, as it positioned our country as a capable destination for hosting international sporting events,” says Francisco Rayo, director of media for the Chilean Rugby Union.
“It created a lot of buzz in our sports community, as more and more fans came to games, bought tickets and got involved in rugby. As we aim to make rugby the second biggest sport in Chile, hosting tournaments like the Cup of Nations allows us to get closer to that goal.”
As the Cup of Nations resumes and Europe takes center stage, even more growth beckons.