9:35 PM GMT ESPN staff Australia has been announced as the “preferred candidate” for the 2027 Rugby World Cup, virtually guaranteeing the tournament will return Down Under for the first time in 24 years. The World Rugby Council made the announcement on Wednesday night as part of an approved revision process that the governing body

5:20 PM GMT International rugby players will be allowed to switch national teams from next year subject to certain criteria, the World Rugby Council announced on Wednesday. The revised regulation will apply from Jan. 1, and a player must either be born in the country to which they wish to transfer or have a parent

10:14 PM GMT Liam Napier As summer descends on Aotearoa New Zealand, dark clouds greet the All Blacks’ arrival home. While they complete one-week hotel isolation the team would be best advised to switch off the wireless, unplug the Wi-Fi and close the curtains to block out the circulating storm. Three defeats are hardly cause

10:52 AM GMT Kevin Sinfield, the former captain of Super League side Leeds Rhinos, returned to the Headingley ground on Tuesday to reach the finish line of a gruelling 101-mile run, within 24 hours, from Leicester to raise money for the motor neurone disease charity, MND Association. Sinfield has completed a number of remarkable challenges

5:25 PM GMT The England women’s rugby team completed an autumn clean sweep with an emphatic 89-0 thrashing of the United States on Sunday to extend their winning streak to 18 matches. The world’s top-ranked side, who crushed Canada 51-12 last weekend, fired a warning ahead of next year’s World Cup as Simon Middleton’s team

4:22 PM GMT Ireland made it a clean sweep of Test victories this November as they followed up last weekend’s memorable triumph over New Zealand with a more routine 53-7 thrashing of an ill-disciplined Argentina at the Aviva Stadium on Sunday. After Mateo Carreras caught the hosts napping to give Argentina an early lead, Ireland

10:21 PM GMT France survived a brief yet brutal meltdown to claim their first victory against New Zealand since their 2009 win in Dunedin as they beat the All Blacks 40-25 in their last autumn Test with some free-flowing rugby on Saturday. Les Bleus, who had not beaten the three-time world champions on home soil

8:52 PM GMT Kathleen McNamee TWICKENHAM, London — There is an argument to be made that England’s dramatic 27-26 win over South Africa at Twickenham on Saturday was Eddie Jones’ greatest masterclass. Much has been made of this England side since the summer, but no longer will fans be able to jibe this team as

8:03 PM GMT Wales’ Rhys Priestland kicked a penalty after the hooter as the hosts poured more misery on Australia with a 29-28 victory at the Principality Stadium on Saturday following an early red card for visiting No. 8 Rob Valetini. Valetini became the fifth player to see red against Wales in the last 12

6:08 PM GMT England’s Marcus Smith landed a last-minute penalty to snatch a 27-26 win over South Africa on Saturday as the hosts looked full of early promise but were hauled back by the battling Springboks in the teams’ first meeting since the 2019 World Cup final. England fashioned excellent early tries for Manu Tuilagi