FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, March 13th, 2019

NBC SPORTS PRESENTS FINAL ROUND OF 2019 GUINNESS SIX NATIONS RUGBY CHAMPIONSHIP THIS SATURDAY, HIGHLIGHTED BY WALES V. IRELAND AT NOON ET ON NBC

Wales, England, and Ireland All Have a Chance to Clinch the Six Nations Championship Title

Table Leaders Wales Face Defending Champions Ireland on NBC at 12 p.m. ET

Live Coverage Begins with Italy v. France at 8:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN, Followed by England v. Scotland at 1 p.m. ET on NBCSN

All Matches Stream Live and Commercial-Free on NBC Sports Gold’s Rugby Pass

2019 Six Nations Rugby Viewership on NBCSN Up 19% vs. 2018 Heading into Final Weekend; Up 41% in P18-49 Demo

STAMFORD, Conn. – March 13, 2019 – NBC Sports presents the final round of the 2019 Guinness Six Nations Championship this Saturday, March 16 as Wales, England and Ireland all enter the weekend with an opportunity to claim the vaunted title.

Coverage is highlighted by a pivotal match at noon ET on NBC, when defending Six Nations champions Ireland travel to Cardiff to face table leaders Wales, who are in search of their first title since 2013. Saturday’s Ireland-Wales match will air on NBC nationwide, but will be shown on PIX11 in the New York City tri-state area, due to preemptions by WNBC’s coverage of the New York City St. Patrick’s Day parade.

Saturday’s coverage begins at 8:30 a.m. ET on NBCSN when Italy face France in Rome and continues at 1 p.m. ET when England take on Scotland.

NBC Sports Gold – NBC Sports Digital’s direct-to-consumer live streaming product – will provide live streaming coverage of Wales v. Ireland on Saturday at 10:45 a.m. ET. All matches will stream live, commercial-free and on-demand on NBC Sports Gold. Click here to purchase NBC Sports Gold’s Rugby Pass.

NBC Sports’ Derek Rae will anchor studio coverage alongside Alex Corbisiero (analyst), who played for England in the Six Nations Championship, and former USA Rugby captain and Premiership Rugby player Dan Lyle (analyst).

The annual tournament, which has roots that date back more than a century, consists of 15 matches played in a round-robin format between six teams – England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland, and Wales.

2019 SIX NATIONS RUGBY VIEWERSHIP ON NBCSN UP 19% VS. 2018; UP 41% IN P-18-49 DEMO

Viewership of NBC Sports’ coverage of the 2019 Six Nations Rugby Championship on NBCSN continues to show gains from the 2018 championship. 2019 Six Nations viewership on NBCSN is up 19% vs. 2018, averaging 127,000 viewers through 12 telecasts. The 12 matches have also delivered significant gains in the P18-49 demo, up 41% vs. the average for the demo for 2018 Six Nations matches on NBCSN.

ITALY V. FRANCE – SATURDAY AT 8:30 A.M. ET ON NBCSN AND NBC SPORTS GOLD

Italy hope to earn their first points of the competition and their first Six Nations victory in more than four years. France look to end the tournament on a high note following their tough 26-14 defeat at the hands of Ireland. During Round Three of last year’s competition, France defeated Italy 34-17.

WALES V. IRELAND – SATURDAY AT 10:45 A.M. ET ON NBC SPORTS GOLD; NOON ET ON NBC

Wales can clinch the Grand Slam and Triple Crown with a win when they host defending champions Ireland. Wales would earn their first Six Nations title since 2013 with a win. Ireland look to win their fourth straight match following their hard fought 26-14 victory against France in Round Three. Ireland can clinch the title with a bonus-point win and an England loss/draw. Last year, Ireland defeated Wales by a score of 37-27 during their title campaign.

ENGLAND V. SCOTLAND – SATURDAY AT 1 P.M. ET ON NBCSN AND NBC SPORTS GOLD

Second-place England are very much in contention for the competition’s title and will look to continue their strong play when they host Scotland at Twickenham Stadium in London. England can clinch the Six Nations title by earning a victory and Wales drawing or losing to Ireland. Scotland will hope to spoil England’s championship aspirations. Scotland defeated England 25-13 in last year’s Six Nations meeting.

Following is this Saturday’s slate of NBC Sports’ Guinness Six Nations coverage. Click here for more information.

Date

Match

Time (ET)

Network

Sat., March 16 Italy v. France 8:30 a.m. NBCSN & NBC Sports Gold
Wales v. Ireland 10:45 a.m. NBC Sports Gold
Wales v. Ireland*^ 12 p.m. NBC
England v. Scotland 1 p.m. NBCSN & NBC Sports Gold

*Same-day delay

^ PIX11 in New York tri-state area

2019 GUINNESS SIX NATIONS TABLE

Position Team Wins Draws Losses Points
1 Wales 4 0 0 16
2 England 3 0 1 15
3 Ireland 3 0 1 14
4 Scotland 1 0 3 6
5 France 1 0 3 6
6 Italy 0 0 4 0

 

ABOUT SIX NATIONS RUGBY

The Six Nations Championship is held annually in February and March in England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, France and Italy. Since 2003, Average TV viewing of the Six Nations has increased by over 30% across the core six territories (now over 125 million TV viewers annually). The Six Nations Championship is broadcast in over 180 countries globally, and over 1 million people attend the 15 games of the Championship annually.


ABOUT NBC SPORTS GOLD

NBC Sports Gold is NBC Sports’ direct-to-consumer live streaming product that provides sports fans with access to exclusive premium sports events and content, live and on-demand, at an affordable price. Launched in 2016 with a single cycling product, NBC Sports Gold currently offers 13 individual sports “passes” – eight domestic (PGA TOUR LIVE, Premier League, Cycling, Track & Field, Speed Skating, Rugby, Supercross, and Snow, consisting of seven Winter Olympic sports); two regional (Blazers and Philly); one international (Notre Dame Football); and two domestic and international (Figure Skating and Pro Motocross). In 2019, NBC Sports Gold will add INDYCAR and lacrosse. Among the premium events and content offered by NBC Sports Gold are 28 PGA TOUR events, including THE PLAYERS and FedExCup Playoffs; 150 Premier League matches; the Tour de France and many more prominent cycling races; USA Track & Field and IAAF Diamond League events; domestic and international figure skating competitions; every Gallagher Premiership Rugby match; the entire 2018 Lucas Oil Pro Motocross Championship season; 700+ hours of seven Winter Olympic sports; and all Notre Dame Football home games for international fans.

-NBC SPORTS-