Americas Rugby Championship – The Equivalent of the 6 Nations

Not many people are aware of the fact that the Americas have their own 6 Nations rugby tournament. Here we are going to take a closer look at it.

When rugby fans think of the 6 Nations, their minds will automatically drift to the yearly competition between the best six teams in Europe – England, France, Scotland, Ireland, Italy, and Wales. This is a popular competition among rugby fans all over the world, so it will come as no shock to find out that many countries across the globe have decided to copy it. For example, in South America there is the Americas Rugby Championship, which is also unofficially known as the Americas’ Six Nations. Below we are going to take a closer look at this competition.

History of the Americas Rugby Championship

The inaugural edition of this tournament came into being in 2009 as a replacement for the North America 4 Series. The purpose of introducing this new tournament was to give the newly formed regions of Canada more competitive rugby against second string teams from Argentina and the United States. The winners of the first Canadian Rugby Championship, the BC Bears, got to compete on the international stage against the Argentina Jaguars and the USA Select XV.

In 2010, the Canadian division part of the tournament was scrapped in favour of an international tournament for developing sides. The Argentina Jaguars and USA Select XV were joined by Canada Selects and a second-string team from Tonga. Each team played everyone once, and the team that had the most points after 3 matches were crowned Champions. The tournament did not happen in 2011 due to the Rugby World Cup, but returned in 2012 with the same format. However, this time around, Tonga A were replaced by Uruguay. The Argentina Jaguars won every tournament from 2012 to 2014.

The tournament did not take place in 2015 as there was another World Cup, and it was relaunched again in 2016. However, this time around it expanded to six team thanks to the inclusion of Chile and Brazil. Since 2016, the teams that have competed at this annual tournament are Argentina XV, Canada, Brazil, United States, Chile, and Uruguay.

The Format of the Americas Rugby Championship

This competition is played annually in the months of February and March, which is exactly when the aforementioned 6 Nations takes place in Europe. The format is exactly the same too, with all teams playing each other once, either at home or away, meaning that a tournament is made up of 15 matches in all. If a team plays a team away one year, they will play that same team at home the following year, and so on. This means that in any given tournament a team will have either two or three games at home.

Teams are given four points for winning a match and two points if they manage to draw. Furthermore, if a team scores four or more tries in a match they will be awarded a try-scoring bonus point. Likewise, if a team loses a game by fewer than 7 points, they will be awarded a losing bonus point. The team that has collected the most points when all 15 matches have been played will be crowned the Champions.

 As was the case in the 2020 6 Nations, the aforementioned bonus points can be the difference between a team lifting the trophy or finishing as runners-up. England lost their opening game of the tournament to France, but Owen Farrell decided earned them a losing bonus point with the last kick of the match. Come the end of the tournament, England and France were tied on 18 points each, with England being declared the winners thanks to their superior points difference. If it was not for that losing bonus point at the start of the campaign, France would have been crowned Champions.

Another similarity between the 6 Nations and the Americas Rugby Championship is that plenty of money is bet on both each year. Fans of teams in the 6 Nations and fans of those in the Americas Rugby Championship just love backing their team to win each year. When you are betting on rugby, or any sport for that matter, it is imperative that you do so with the best odds possible, and this is where comparison sites such as www.apostarenlinea.cl come into action. They have a team of experts who will help you find the best sports betting sites to bet on rugby events such as the Americas Rugby Championship.

Most Successful Team

Argentina are the most successful team in this tournament, having won the title seven times out of the nine times it has been played. In fact, they have played 34 matches in the competition’s history and have won 31 of them, drawn 2 and lost just the once.

The only other team to have won this tournament is the USA, and they have managed to do so in 2017 and 2018. They have played 20 matches in this competition (before it was the USA Selects) and have won 14 of them, drawn 2, and lost on 4 occasions.

What about the least successful team? Well, unfortunately, that title has to be given to Chile. They have played 20 matches in the competition to date and have won just the one game. They have collected the wooden spoon every time that they have participated in this tournament. We guess that you can say that they are the Italy of the Americas Rugby Championship. To give you an idea as to the gulf in class between Chile and the rest of the competition, in 2019 they scored just 33 points while they conceded a staggering 247 in the five matches that they played – they picked up one losing bonus point, and this was thanks to a 15-10 defeat at the hands of Brazil.

How have the other teams performed? Well, Uruguay have played 26 matches in the tournament and have 14 wins and 15 losses under their belt – the best position they have finished in is second, which they achieved in 2019. Canada have played 20 matches in this tournament and have won 7 and lost the other 13, and their best finish was 3rd place in 2016. Meanwhile, Brazil have also played 20 games and have won 6 and lost 14, with a best finish of 4th in 2017 and 2019.