By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Photo Credit: Suresh Rajcoomar// Fullview.
The full Vodacom United Rugby Championship (VURC) fixture list for the 2026/27 season has been officially released, setting a new benchmark for the earliest-ever publication of league fixtures in competition history.
The reveal of next year’s fixture list comes in the immediate aftermath of the 2025/26 regular season, which saw one of the tightest play-off races since the league was formed in 2022.
With the new campaign set to kick off on Friday, 25 September, the release comes 129 days ahead of the opening round, beating last season’s previous record of 128 days and giving supporters, clubs, broadcasters, and venues more time than ever before to plan around the league’s biggest weekends.
The 2026/27 fixture list has been designed to provide greater balance across the regular season, with a more even spread of home and away fixtures and an optimised touring model for South African teams, who will each complete three two-game Vodacom URC tours during the campaign.
The competition will begin with fixtures across Ireland, Italy, South Africa, and Wales on the opening weekend, with all five competing territories in action across the first round. The pick of the opening round sees the 2023 Vodacom URC champions Munster host 2024 champions Glasgow Warriors at Thomond Park on Saturday, 26 September.
Other Round 1 highlights include Connacht welcoming the DHL Stormers to Dexcom Stadium, the Fidelity SecureDrive Lions hosting Leinster at Ellis Park, Ulster facing Edinburgh at Affidea Stadium, and Scarlets meeting Cardiff in a Welsh derby at Parc y Scarlets.
The Hollywoodbets Sharks start their campaign at home in Durban against the Ospreys, while the Vodacom Bulls’ first clash is away against Zebre Parma in Italy on the first weekend.
As is now the norm, Vodacom URC supporters across the globe can download fixtures directly to their devices via the Ecal URC 26/27 calendar, ensuring they never miss a kick-off, no matter their time zone. Please note updates may take up to an hour to sync: Click here for Ecal download to your device.
The 2026/27 season promises another thrilling campaign following a record-breaking 2025/26 regular season, which produced the closest-ever Race to the Eight as teams competed for play-off places and Investec Champions Cup qualification.
Festive derby rounds will again form a major part of the season, with Rounds 7, 8 and 9 staged across December and early January, while the Race to the Eight will build from Round 13 as the battle for knock-out rugby intensifies. Themed rounds will also return during the 2026/27 campaign, with further details to be confirmed by the Vodacom URC in the near future.
The format of the competition remains unchanged, with the top eight teams progressing to the play-offs. The quarter-finals will begin on Friday, 28 May, with the semi-finals taking place from Saturday, 5 June before the Grand Final on Saturday, 19 June to crown the 2026/27 champions.
Martin Anayi, United Rugby Championship CEO, said: “Publishing our fixtures earlier than ever before is a major achievement and an important step for our clubs, supporters, broadcasters and venues. Fan certainty is hugely important to us. The more notice we can provide around fixtures and kick-off times, the easier it becomes for supporters to plan their weekends, travel to games and follow their teams throughout the season.”
“This has been a very collaborative process with our clubs and broadcasters, and we are grateful for the way they have worked with us to deliver a more balanced fixture list. The touring model has helped us create a better cadence of home and away games across the season, while also supporting improved kick-off scheduling.”