Six Nations Headlines the Rejigged Autumn of Sports
Both teams line-up for the national anthem before the Guinness Six Nations match at Twickenham Stadium, London.
September, October, and November look to be some great months for sports fans, with the biggest dates looking to be those of the Six Nations Championship.
International rugby and the closing chapters of the major tournament will be a huge draw and finally give the answers to debates that have been raging since the beginning of March. Autumn is set to be pretty crowded this year, with rugby union being joined by the cricket and the boxing. All three sports are weighing in with huge events that’ll dominate the headlines throughout the season.
Six Nations to conclude in October
A brand new calendar of rugby has been put out, scheduling matches from 24 October to 5 December. A Rugby Championship in the southern hemisphere has been set for a six-week schedule from 7 November to 12 December, with northern hemisphere international matches planned in Europe from 14 November to 5 December. Before all of that, though, the Six Nations is billed to conclude.
On 24 October, the Six Nations is to resume. As it stands, Ireland and Italy have games in hand on everyone, with an Irish victory pulling them into the joint-lead with England and France on three wins and one loss. As Italy are without a win so far, Ireland are expected to pull off the victory. From there, England looks to have the upper hand. Not only do England only have Italy left on their schedule, but France and Ireland will be facing each other in their final game.
The biggest domestic cricket competition is changing scenery
Each year, by far the biggest domestic competition in cricket is the big-money Indian Premier League. Clubs bid millions to bring in the leading names in T20 cricket, with the explosive short-form and the epic fan following from around the world making it one of the most impressive annual sporting events in the world.
Approval is forthcoming for the incredibly popular tournament to move to a different country in 2020. The Emirates Cricket Board has received a letter of intent for the IPL to take place in the UAE, with 19 September to 8 November earmarked as the dates for the competition.
Big British rumble headlines autumn boxing
The end of October has some tremendous fights scheduled, including the undefeated Gervonta Davis taking on the 37-1-1 Leo Santa Cruz and the Charlo brothers, Jermall and Jermell, taking on Sergiy Derevyanchenko and Jeison Rosario, respectively. However, the really eye-catching event is the British heavyweight clash between Daniel Dubois and Joe Joyce.
Joyce comes as a seasoned amateur with an 11-0 professional record. The 34-year-old went to the Olympics, narrowly missing out on the gold medal. Dubois is also a top up-and-coming boxer from Britain, boasting a 14-0 record. He skipped over the amateur scene but is now favoured to defeat Joyce despite being only 22-years-old. The two will meet on 24 October, with the other fights mentioned taking place over the ensuing few days.
Autumn looks to be a very exciting time for rugby, cricket, and boxing fans – especially as the Six Nations will get to conclude in October.