Planet Rugby’s seven bold predictions for 2026: Springboks reign to ‘end’, a new job for Ronan O’Gara and Gregor Townsend’s last Six Nations
Springboks head coach Rassie Erasmus, Ronan O'Gara of La Rochelle and Scotland boss Gregor Townsend.
As we are now in 2026, we have put our heads on the block to bring you seven bold predictions that could happen in the upcoming 12 months.
The clue is in the title, so to speak, as while these calls are not nailed on, they could well become reality by the time the year is out.
England to finish the year as number one
The Springboks’ reign at the summit could well end, going into 2027 at least. Rassie Erasmus’ men may well be clear at the top at the moment, but Steve Borthwick’s outfit appears to be the coming force and will likely be their closest challengers this year.
Some may think that France will fulfil their potential, while the All Blacks will always be there or thereabouts, but the Red Rose are building nicely ahead of the next Rugby World Cup and will fancy their chances of reaching the next level in 2026.
Erasmus has managed these past two years superbly given that South Africa need to overhaul their ageing squad, but in many ways, England have already passed that period of experimentation. Borthwick already has a youthful group of players that are beginning to perform against the very best and this will be the test of whether silverware can follow.
Their showdown with France in Saint-Denis in the final match of the Six Nations has been billed as a potential title decider and is possibly their standout fixture this year – one of the games that will ultimately decide their position in the rankings.
Focus will then shift to the newly introduced Nations Championship and an opening encounter against the Boks in a mouth-watering clash in July. Should they win in South Africa, the number one ranking may well be theirs with a kind set of matches until the end of the year, ending in a home game against the All Blacks.
2026 Six Nations to be Gregor Townsend’s last
The Scottish Rugby Union have been staunch in their support of the head coach, but there is not much goodwill coming from the supporters at the moment. They remain incredibly frustrated by their continued underachievement under Townsend, particularly since this is meant to be their ‘golden generation’.
Their Calcutta Cup domination against England has rather masked their other failures and Scotland’s inability to produce consistently good results. Their exits from the 2019 and 2023 Rugby World Cups also aren’t talked about enough after they bowed out of the pool stages with a whimper on both occasions.
The boos which rang around Murrayfield following their defeat to Argentina – after being 21-0 up in the second period – rather summed up the feeling from the fans and they won’t accept another Six Nations of mediocrity. The SRU certainly don’t want to act, especially with the World Cup not too far away, but they may not have a choice.
Ronan O’Gara to take Test job – as an assistant
La Rochelle’s head honcho has been open in his desire to coach at the highest level and in interviews he has been rather picky about who he would like to lead. However, that came at a time when his stock was high, with fans still toasting their back-to-back Investec Champions Cup triumphs.
Much has changed in the past year or so and O’Gara now finds himself under pressure after presiding over 12 months of underwhelming results. His contract runs until midway through 2027, but he – or potentially the La Rochelle board – may want out before then.
Understandably, the hierarchy at the Stade Marcel-Deflandre are reluctant to pull the trigger given the amount of success O’Gara has brought but, like the Gregor Townsend situation, they may not have a choice. Equally, the Ireland legend is both a proud and astute man, and knows that his time at the club may be coming to an end.
So where could he go? The 48-year-old previously stated that he only wants to be a head coach, and with the biggest nations, but that appears unlikely now. There are always some good assistant roles going, though, and one stands out at the All Blacks, considering they have lost both Leon MacDonald and Jason Holland. Given that he worked with Scott Robertson at the Crusaders, New Zealand’s head coach may well be sending an SOS his way and it would not be a surprise if O’Gara answers.
Wales to go through 2026 winless
Is this a bold prediction? Even accounting for the dire state of Welsh rugby since the 2023 World Cup, it really should be. Everyone knows this Wales side are currently in a rut but, with home games against Japan – the only team they have beaten since the global tournament – and Italy, most would fancy them to pick up at least one win.
However, we are evidently not quite so sure. They were fortunate against the Brave Blossoms in the November series while the Azzurri are quite simply a better team than Wales at the moment, even at the Principality Stadium. Every other match feels a write-off currently and it all points to another abysmal year.
Joe Schmidt to lead Wallabies into 2027 Rugby World Cup
The 60-year-old is set to relinquish the reins in July with Les Kiss taking up the position as Australia’s head coach. Schmidt is leaving for personal reasons as he quite rightly does not want to be away from his son for too long, who has severe epilepsy, but he has compromised in the past and could do so again.
His original contract only went until the conclusion of the 2025 British and Irish Lions series, but he was willing to go beyond that in order to help Rugby Australia and his successor, Kiss, who wanted to see out the 2026 Super Rugby season with the Reds.
The former Ulster boss will duly take charge ahead of the Nations Championship in July, but it is an appointment we are not necessarily convinced about. When it was announced, it was all going well at the Reds, but they then endured a pretty poor run in the second part of the 2025 campaign.
With Kiss joining a Wallabies outfit that remain a second-class side, despite their improvement under Schmidt, there is huge pressure on the 61-year-old. If it all goes wrong and his stay is short-lived, do RA then ask the New Zealander, who will be an advisor to the head coach, to lead them into their home World Cup? It would be tempting.
Stormers to go through the season unbeaten
The Cape Town-based outfit have impressed everyone by their superb start to the campaign, winning their opening seven league matches. They have already defeated Leinster (home) and Munster (away), and looking at their fixtures it would not be a surprise if they do not lose in the regular United Rugby Championship season.
Their next few fixtures are derby clashes against their fellow South African sides but, at the moment, they are well clear of their rivals. The Sharks and Bulls would ordinarily be their closest competitors, but both endured their troubles in 2025.
If they can get through those fixtures, then the Stormers have four successive home matches before they finish with games against Ulster and Cardiff. John Dobson may want to rest the players ahead of the play-offs but, should they still be unbeaten by that point, they will probably want to see out the job.
That would then give them a series of home games in the knockout stages and produce the tantalising prospect of going through the whole season without tasting defeat.
Toulouse to win the Champions Cup the hard way
The six-time winners were among the favourites for the title before the tournament but those odds lengthened somewhat when they succumbed to Glasgow Warriors. Toulouse could still finish top of their pool and be one of the highest seeds, but they have made life much harder for themselves after shipping 28 unanswered points at Scotstoun.
Glasgow will fancy finishing top with matches against Clermont Auvergne (away) and Saracens (home) to come, which will leave Les Rouge et Noir with a tough run in the knockout stages, where several away games could await should they make their way through the competition.
It will therefore be extremely difficult for Toulouse if they are to earn a seventh star but, with Antoine Dupont back, anything is possible.
Ugo Mola’s men rather imploded against the Warriors but they are very much hitting their stride in the Top 14, playing some of the best rugby in Europe, and will be in the mix when the Champions Cup reaches its climax. Is it enough to beat the likes of Leinster and Bordeaux-Begles away from home? We certainly think so.