The match officials for the 2026 Guinness Men’s Six Nations have been announced, with Australian Nic Berry set to referee the France v England showdown on March 14.
Berry will have the whistle for the tournament-ending meeting in Paris as Super Saturday concludes with a blockbuster fixture between two of the sport’s leading teams.
14 referees from eight nations with 487 Tests between them will take charge of the 15 matches that comprise the Championship, which kicks off on Thursday, February 5.
Karl Dickson (England) will referee the opening clash, between France and Ireland, at the Stade de France, with Berry set to bring down the curtain at the same venue.
Two games for Dickson
Dickson is the only match official to be given two fixtures to referee as a whopping total of 33 officials representing nine nations are named across the 15 Test matches.
Matthew Carley (England) will take charge of his 50th Test with Wales v Scotland in Cardiff on February 21, becoming the 17th official in history to reach that landmark.
Carley will become the fourth official on the current panel to referee that number after Luke Pearce (England), Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand) and Angus Gardner (Australia).
Meanwhile, World Rugby Referee Award 2025 recipient Hollie Davidson will create another piece of history as the first female to referee a Men’s Six Nations match with Ireland v Italy on February 14.
There will be other firsts in the tournament as Luc Ramos (France) is set to make his Men’s Six Nations referee debut while Katsuki Furuse (Japan) will make his Men’s Six Nations debut as an assistant referee, as will Olly Hodges (Ireland) as a Television Match Official.
World Rugby High-Performance 15s Match Officials Manager Joël Jutge said: “Congratulations to all selected. As we look ahead to another busy and exciting year of international rugby, we remain focused on delivering high performance through consistency, clarity and accountability. Like any high-performance team, we are relentless in our pursuit of growth, with a strong ability to review, learn and move forward in collaboration with the game’s major stakeholders.
“The team is highly motivated to set the highest standards and we recognise the need to double-down on aiding game flow and ensuring consistency of decision-making when it comes to permanent red cards and 20-minute red cards. This means, any foul play meeting the yellow card threshold should go to the bunker for review, while the permanent red card remains for acts of intentional foul play. With that in mind, we are fully committed to strengthening alignment and shared understanding with coaches, broadcasters and fans ahead of the Six Nations.”