Six Nations: Who Will Lift the Title?

February and March are the best months of year to be a Rugby Union fan because this is when the Six Nations, the best rugby tournament in the world, bar the World Cup, takes place. This prestigious tournament has been going on for over a century now and sees France, England, Wales, Scotland, Ireland, and Italy fight it out for the trophy. The 6 Nations has become more and more competitive in recent years, which is great as this means that there is some great rugby for us to enjoy. By the time you have reached the bottom of this article, you will know a lot more about this great tournament and who the favourites are to win it.

The Six Nations Structure

The Six Nations usually starts on the very first weekend of February and carries on until the middle of March, often coming to a crescendo on St. Patrick’s Day weekend. The format for this competition is as simple as it comes really – the six aforementioned teams play each other once, meaning that each tournament consists of 15 games overall. Home advantage alternates every year, so if one year France plays against Ireland at the Stade de France, the following year they will play against each other at the Aviva Stadium.

In 2017, the points system was changed from the usual two points for a win, one for a draw, and one for a loss. Now, there is the points system that is popular at all the big rugby events, and this is four points for winning a game, two for getting a draw, and zero points for a loss. However, if a team manages to score four tries, they will receive a try-scoring bonus point, and if a side loses by fewer than 7 points, they will receive a losing bonus point. Any team that beats the other five to win the Grand Slam will receive three extra bonus points to make sure that they do not end up finishing second because another team got a load of bonus points.

Until 1994, if two teams finished level on points after all the rounds of matches have been played, then both sides would have won the title. However, as of 1994, if two teams sit at the top of the points table after all matches, then the title will be given to the side that has the better points difference. If it turns out that the points difference is also the same, then the team that landed the most tries will be declared the winners. If both sides are tied on the number of tries to, then it will be a shared championship.

The Wooden Spoon, which is not actually a trophy, is metaphorically given to the team that finishes in sixth place. Since this competition became the 6 Nations in 2000, only England and Ireland have not had the ignominy of picking up the Wooden Spoon. Italy have received it 15 times, and they have lost every match at one edition on 11 occasions.

The Favourites and Latest Odds

Like with all big sporting events, when the 6 Nations rolls around each February, there will always be one team that is favourite to win, and this is what we shall look at right now. We have already had one round of this competition, so the odds will have changed quite considerably. In case you happened to miss the First Round of matches, the results were as follows:

• Ireland beat Wales by 29 points to 7
• Scotland beat England by 20 points to 17
• France beat Italy by 37 points to 10

If you are thinking about doing a spot of Six Nations betting, then check out the table below as you can find the latest outright winners odds from three of the best sports betting sites for 6 Nations odds. We should add that betinireland.ie were the ones responsible for providing us with the names of the best bookies for betting on this tournament.

So, as you can see from the above table, after the first weekend of fixtures, France are the favourites to win the title, which is not surprising considering the dearth of talent that they have at their disposal. England were pretty close to France at the start of the tournament with regards to odds, but they have dropped to third favourites now after an opening defeat to Scotland. Ireland took on the Welsh at the Aviva Stadium and beat them easily, and this win has seen them climb to second favourites with the bookies to lift the title.

Other Markets to Bet on in the 2022 Six Nations

Apart from placing bets on the outright winner of the 2022 6 Nations, there are plenty of other markets that you can select from that will keep you highly entertained. We shall now take a look at some popular betting markets that you will be able to put your money on when betting on this rugby tournament.

Match winner: With this sort of wager, you are putting your money on the team that you believe will go on to win a certain game. You can bet on a draw as well if you like but draws are not common in rugby.

Top Try Scorer: Select a player that you believe will score the most tries in the tournament, and if they do finish as the top scorer, then you will win the wager.

Triple Crown Winner: With this type of bet, you have to pick one of England, Wales, Scotland, or Ireland to collect the Triple Crown. This trophy is awarded to the home nation that wins their matches against the other home nations.

Team to Score First: In a game of rugby, you can place a bet on the team that you feel will score the first points in a match. It does not matter if these points are scored courtesy of a try or a penalty kick.

Winning Margin: This is one of the trickiest bets to get correct in the rugby betting world. To win this type of bet, you have to try and predict the number of points that will separate the two sides come the end of the game. The margin will usually start around 1-5 points, but can go to like 46-50 points, depending on the sides that are playing.

Six Nations Betting Tips

If you want, you can jump straight in and start betting on the Six Nations, but if you end up doing this without doing any kind of research, then do not be surprised if you start losing more bets than you win. Below you can find some awesome betting tips for the Six Nations, and we really suggest that you pay attention to these when you are betting on this tournament.

The Venue is Important

If you are going to make an outright winner wager, then this is something that needs to be taken into consideration. In other sporting tournaments, teams will usually play opponents at home and away to make sure the competition remains fair, but this does not happen with the Six Nations. In this event, some teams will play three home games while others will only play two. Then, the following year, they will play three home matches and only have two away games.

When you are betting on such events, it is important to take a look at the records of every nation. For instance, when it comes to home games, England have a really good record, so it would not be wise to bet against them if they are playing at Twickenham. On the other hand, the Scots usually struggle when they play away from home.

Pay Attention to Team Selection

Before you go and place any kinds of bets on a rugby game in the 6 Nations, please make an effort to check out the team news. If a team is missing some of their top players because of suspension or injuries, then it will hinder them out on the pitch. If a team are missing a lot of key players, we definitely would not recommend that you place your hard-earned cash on them winning.